SHIPYARD NEWS

Rapid repair for modular RIBs

18 years ago

Marine Specialised Technology’ s new Fleet Services division was recently put through its paces, MST tells MJ, when the company was called in to repair a damaged two year old MST 680 MkII RIB that had hit a submerged obstruction at speed – putting a large hole in the bottom.

Repair entailed stripping the craft down to its bare hull, a job made easier by the particular design used by MST which allows the entire craft, including fuel tanks, to be taken apart in under four hours using only hand tools, thus giving access to both the external and the internal sections of the hull.

asked the question about why, and how, MST had come up with this particular approach to designing RIBs of Ben Kerfoot, MST’s managing director.

He said, ‘We have come across problems with more traditional kinds of craft, like a damaged fuel tank or console, where if there is a break, you can’t simply get at it. Major work is required just to gain access to the repair site. All of which takes time, effort and, of course, money.

‘Our idea to avoid these difficulties has been to make the sections modular and replaceable, something that is not common practice in the marine industry.’ While the capital outlay is a bit more expensive, if you look at lifetime costs, this construction benefits the end user.’

An example would be the above mentioned MST 680 MkII operated by the Water Management Unit of the Environment and Heritage Service, based at Lisburn in Northern Ireland. Kerfoot explained that after stripping the boat down, the repair team cut a large section out of the hull, moulded a new, replacement piece and then set the new section back into the hull again.

Also, taking advantage of the RIB’s modular command console, MST put in an upgrade of the existing navigation and echo sounder suite without adding extra time onto the repairs.

This is another important benefit of MST’s approach. As Kerfoot says, navigation equipment and other marine electronics technology is developing quickly, which means that if an upgrade is needed, it can be done with a minimum of fuss as the control panels and fascias are all modular and can easily be taken out and replaced.

MST is particularly gaining ground through its range of ‘through life’ maintenance agreements, where the overriding priority is for reliability and efficiency. The company has, for example, a 10 year agreement with Mersey Fire and Rescue Authority on a preventative maintenance agreement, while worldwide the company has various military integrated logistical support contracts.