SPECIALISED SHIPBUILDING SKILLS
T
he Tehnomont Group consists of the 100 year old Tehnomont Shipyard Pula Ltd and Tehnomont BMN Ltd. Apart from shipbuilding, ship repairing and the production of solar equipment the Group also serves the metal industry, as well as the tourism industry in Marina Veruda. The shipyard, located in Pula Bay, started with the production of smaller size wooden ships; today, it is a modern company with an open production area of 32,000m2 and a covered production area of 3000m2, consisting of fully equipped workshops and all the infrastructure necessary for smooth operations. Two slipways for the large sized ships (up to L 50m, W 18m, Wt 600t) are also part of the production facilities. The company constructs a wide range of vessels for various purposes such as patrol boats, cruise ships and passenger boats, fishing and fire-fighting boats etc. It also has an overhaul and repair department which is engaged in maintenance and reconstruction of ships made of various materials. In addition, Tehnomont Shipyard produces its own marine equipment such as stairs, cradles, dry docks and platforms, made of steel. The production of offshore steel-hulled ships and other special-purpose vessels still represents the shipyard’s core businesses. 134 Industry Europe
The Tehnomont Group is one of the major shipbuilding companies in Croatia. It is integrating the wide range of its activities to develop its potential and adjust to economic changes in Europe.
Aluminium solutions
Long-lasting collaboration
When the prices of fuel kept on rising dramatically in the last couple of decades, Tehnomont Shipyard Pula began to set its sights on producing more sophisticated ships made out of aluminium which due to their light weight ultimately consume less fuel. Another reason for considering aluminium solutions was a response to the competition from the Far East whose shipbuilding industry has conquered international markets with its steel vessels. Currently the company is focused on building vessels up to 80m in length. Although European customers have not shown much interest in aluminium ships in the past, it looks as if this material is slowly acquiring an important place in the European shipbuilding industry as a result of increasing demand for larger and faster ships. Tehnomont’s first step in aluminium shipbuilding technology was getting its workers trained in Germany and Italy. Today the company successfully implements these technologies in delivering its own marine vessels and passenger ships. The latest example from 2012, a new 37m long passenger catamaran vessel completely made of aluminium alloy, shows that Tehnomont Shipyard meets one of its pivotal business strategies – bringing aluminium shipbuilding to the Mediterranean.
Another profit centre within Tehnomont is its operations in other countries. More than 300 of its skilled workers are sent to Germany and Italy to help in constructing particular ship sections, fitting ship pipes and engaging in other marine construction work. Tehnomont owns branch offices in these shipyards. Experience gained during 30 years of such collaboration enables the workers to return armed with new knowledge which is then implemented in their own company. HDV Kiel, P. Lundenau Kiel, Fincantieri Monfalcone and Fincantieri Ancona are just some of the shipyards where Tehnomont’s experts in steel and pipe manufacturing perform outfitting and learn new technologies. When it comes to assembling aluminium structures on various ships and vessels, Tehnomont has worked on numerous cruise ships in Italy and Germany. It is particularly proud of its contribution to the 165m long yacht for the Kingdom of Oman, delivered by the Bremen-based shipyard Lurssen. The company has also built large aluminium funnels for Aida and Disney ships.
Eggs in different baskets Apart from the shipbuilding industry, Tehnomont Group benefits from two other activities. It develops and produces solar panels
