Shipping and Marine Issue 107 Final Edition

ISSUE 107 final

The magazine for maritime management

The right

solution A new IT system at Peel Ports Group aims to streamline operations and align the customer experience

go with the flow

Cavitation damage on ships costs the marine industry millions every year and so it is vital that solutions to this problem are created

harmonised information

If e-Navigation benefits are to be realised, shipping operations must be considered as a key part of an integrated logistics chain

SMM 2014

Every two years, representatives from the shipbuilding and marine equipment industries from all parts of the world attend SMM 2014

If you don’t have the time to read it all, read what you need

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ISSUE 107 Early

Editor’s editor’s comment

Shipping &MARinE

ThE magazInE for marITImE managEmEnT

The right

solution A new IT system at Peel Ports Group aims to streamline operations and align the customer experience

go with the flow

Cavitation damage on ships costs the marine industry millions every year and so it is vital that solutions to this problem are created

harMoniSed inforMation

if e-Navigation benefits are to be realised, shipping operations must be considered as a key part of an integrated logistics chain

SMM 2014

every two years, representatives from the shipbuilding and marine equipment industries from all parts of the world attend SMM 2014

Chairman Andrew Schofield Group Managing Director Mike Tulloch Sales Director David Garner Editor Libbie Hammond Staff Writers Matthew High Jo Cooper Drew Dann Steve Nash Editorial Administrator Emma Harris Production Manager Fleur Conway Art Editor David Howard Design Jenni Newman Jamie Elvin

Money

savers This issue highlights several areas where innovation is being applied to help maritime companies save money. The amount of research and development that is underway in the industry is phenomenal and ranges from areas such as new fuel filters to sourcing alternative rope materials and applying the right hull coating. In an industry that is still feeling economic and environmental pressures, owners and operators have to stay up-to-date on any option that could make them more efficient. If you’ve got something you’d like to see in these pages, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Production studio@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Office Manager Tracy Chynoweth Head of Research Philip Monument

libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

Business Development Manager Mark Cawston Editorial Researchers Tim Eakins Laura Thompson Natalie Martin Gavin Watson Mark Cowles Vita Lukauskiene Peter West Advertising Sales Joe Woolsgrove Dave King Darren Jolliffe Finlay Johnson Nick Davies

If you would like a digital version of Shipping & Marine magazine please contact Iain Kidd: ikidd@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

Subscriptions ikidd@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

Schofield Publishing Cringleford Business Centre, 10 Intwood Road, Cringleford, Norwich, NR4 6AU, U.K. Tel: 044 (0)1603 274130 Fax: 044 (0)1603 274131

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk. ©2014 Schofield Publishing Ltd

Please note: The opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers within this publication do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. Every reasonable effort is made to ensure that the information published is accurate, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine are strictly copyright, the property of Schofield Publishing, and may not be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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FEATURES 4 News Updates and announcements from the shipping and maritime arena

8 Go with the flow Cavitation damage on ships costs the marine industry millions every year and so it is vital that solutions to this problem are created

10 Control the line

10

Looking to the sailing industry for rope handling technology may well be a better solution than trying to re-use standard steel cable equipment

12 Harmonised information The advent of e-Navigation services evolving over the next decade should provide the mariner with more reliable information, relevant to the real-time operational context of the ship

14 The value of expertise Aside from the financial savings, the true value of a shipping agent lies in their expertise. There is simply no substitute for the vast amount of experience contained within pure ship agency businessesx

12

16 The right solution Peel Ports is making a multimillion-pound investment in Navis N4 terminal operating system (TOS)

14

18 Giving momentum to the industry SMM is the leading international forum for the maritime industry – the 26th SMM fair runs from 9 to 12 September 2014 at Hamburg Messe in Germany

18

22 Van Heck Group 24 Heinen & Hopman 26 Fortune Technologies 28 Clean Marine

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contents 37

profiles 33 Oman Drydock Company 37 Deep Down Inc 41 Breadbox Shipping Company

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45 Unigas 49 Ă–sterreichischer Lloyd 52 UmeĂĽ Hamn 55 Swedish Orient Line 58 Koepping Shipping Company

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61 Griffon Hoverwork 65 UN Ro-Ro 68 Smedegaarden 72 Spicer Gelenkwellenbau 74 Pres-Vac 77 Port of Gibraltar 80 Hoek Naval Engineering/Dutch Barge Company 82 McFil Filters and Fuel Optimizers 84 Thor

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86 Europlan Engineering 88 DORIS Maritime 92 Parkol Marine Engineering 94 Caterpillar Marine 96 Palmali Shipping 98 Alicat Workboats

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New Asian office Bogerd Martin has opened a new office in the heart of Hong Kong’s shipping community in Kwai Chung, to meet demand for its services from its growing Asian client base. The creation of Bogerd Martin Marine (HK) Ltd will enable companies across Southeast Asia to benefit directly from the group’s 100-year experience in navigation charts and publications, both paper and electronic.

“Bogerd Martin built its success on its ability to meet reliably and consistently the most diverse and challenging requests from its clients,” says Michael Martin, MD of Bogerd Martin. “Opening this office ensures our growing customer base in Hong Kong and across the whole region can benefit from our tailor-made supply and support services.”

Bogerd Martin Marine (HK) Ltd will offer the full range of services, including printed and electronic charts, digital publications and folio management. Its Chart Track program will also be available and serviceable from the new office, enabling ships to optimise the management of charts and new editions through the automated order facility, saving considerable time for the shipboard crew and improving safety on board.

Furthermore, the company has built an enviable reputation for supply of equipment to all kind of ships built in China. The Hong Kong office will service clients in the neighbouring countries and as far as Japan, India and Australia.

Significant contract Aberdeen-based standby vessel operator Atlantic Offshore Rescue has commissioned a £6 million vessel for a long-term charter with Nexen Petroleum UK Ltd (Nexen).

Thirty new jobs have been created as a result of the new vessel, Ocean Tay, a Class A Emergency Response and Rescue Vessel (ERRV), which will provide emergency vessel cover for Nexen’s flagship Golden Eagle Area Development in the North Sea. The charter will last a minimum of two years.

Atlantic Offshore Rescue is part of the Atlantic Offshore Group, which is based in Norway. Atlantic Offshore Rescue Ltd employs 350 people (approximately 330 seamen and 20 office-based staff) and provides multi-role offshore and emergency rescue and response vessels for many of the oil majors operating in the North Sea. John Bryce, managing director of Atlantic Offshore Rescue, said: “This is a significant contract for the company and is one of a number of agreements with major operators, both retained and new clients, which we secured throughout 2013.”

Ocean Tay underwent conversion at Wear Dock & Engineering Co, Sunderland, to become one of a fleet of 12 ERRVs Atlantic Offshore Rescue manages out of Aberdeen. The 63-metre vessel has the capacity to accommodate a crew of 20 people and as a Class A ERRV can rescue in excess of 300 persons.

Pipe-lay project Inchcape Shipping Services has successfully supported Saipem, the leading international contractor to the oil and gas industry, with a major pipe-laying project in the Gulf of Mexico.

Providing marine agency and logistics support for Saipem’s newest pipelay vessel Castorone during its first project in the Gulf, ISS assembled a 15 person team that provided port agency and husbandry, crew logistics services, freight forwarding, warehousing and personnel logistics throughout the nine month project.

The Castorone, which is a DP3, ice classed, pipelay vessel, was employed on the 219 kilometer long Walker Ridge oil export pipeline, which connects Chevron’s Jack and St Malo fields in 2140 metres of water, north to a Shell-operated platform in Green Canyon block 10.

During the course of the project, ISS handled over 250 port calls in Port Fourchon and New Iberia, Louisiana, and safely co-ordinated over 6000 crew changes and nearly 600 van transports between New Orleans and Port Fourchon.

ISS supplied project logistics support to Saipem through the provision and operation of bonded warehouses in Houston, Texas and Port Fourchon, Louisiana, with the arrangement and timely customs clearance and delivery of over 2500 tons of freight.

Says Clark Buffam, general manager offshore logistics, ISS North America: “ISS is delighted to be able to support Saipem throughout this diverse and challenging project from our dedicated offshore agency and logistics division based in Houston, Texas. ISS has built a reputation as an innovative and agile partner in the Gulf and is rapidly extending its capability as a trusted strategic partner across the global offshore industry.”

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MARITIME NEWS Enabling efficiency With the signing of a new three-year framework service agreement, Wärtsilä and Van Oord, the Netherlands based contractor for dredging and offshore projects, have entered into an exclusive partnership for all field service and parts supply. The agreement covers preventive and corrective engine maintenance on Van Oord’s fleet of dredging and other vessels. The contract has a total value of 30 million - 40 million euros over three years. The contract was signed on 13 February 2014 in Rotterdam.

The framework agreement will enable both parties to plan the required service work well in advance, thereby ensuring minimal vessel downtime and the effective use of human resources. Van Oord will also benefit from the latest Wärtsilä technological developments on the ships’ engines, including upgrades that offer reduced consumption of fuel and lubrication oil.

Wärtsilä will allocate a dedicated, permanent, team to support the Van Oord vessels included in the agreement.

The team will co-ordinate activities on a worldwide basis, focusing on value creation, energy efficiency and a sustainable supply chain.

“The crucial benefit of this agreement is that it enables greater efficiency with regard to maintenance. The aim is to enhance the technical performance of our engines and optimise overhaul processes, which together will result in lower energy consumption and a cut in emissions.

The reduction of CO2 and SOx is of vital importance, and Van Oord is committed to delivering a valuable contribution to that goal. The agreement reflects the new Van Oord strategy in which we want to be sustainable and an economical fleet manager,” says Jaap de Jong, director, ship management at Van Oord.

“Wärtsilä works hard in helping its customers maintain long-term certainty of operations, something that is essential in today’s marine sector economic climate.

With the most comprehensive global service network in the industry and worldwide logistics for spare parts supply, we are uniquely positioned to work in partnership with our customers to ensure lifecycle optimisation of their vessels’ operations,” says Peter Bos, general manager, sales, Wärtsilä Netherlands.

Thoroughly modern mooring

The age-old process of ‘tying up’ and ‘letting go’ ships’ mooring lines is being modernised at Portsmouth International Port. Fourteen automatic quick release mooring hooks are being installed on berths mainly used by cross channel ferries, making the arrival and departure process faster and safer.

The new system being installed on Berths 3 and Berth 4 greatly reduces the need for Port staff to handle heavy mooring ropes. It means staff have to spend less time on exposed areas of the dock, with the risk of back injuries from heavy lifting also reduced.

At a cost of £400,000 the new quick release mooring hooks are a major investment in new infrastructure and are being supplied by ‘Strainstall’ who are based just across the Solent on the Isle of Wight. Similar technology from Australia was first installed at the Port in 2012.

Martin Putman, port manager of Portsmouth International Port, said: “The Strainstall system will really modernise our operations, an investment that helps to further protect the safety of our workforce. I’m personally delighted the most competitive tender for the best system came from a company on the Isle of Wight. That means money stays in the local economy, helping to protect jobs. It also guarantees us a high level of service, with maintenance and spare parts just a short ferry ride away.”

Learning app CM Group, a global leader in the field of innovative learning solutions comprising interactive eLearning and mobile learning, has announced that Warsash Maritime Academy, part of Southampton Solent University, will deliver its latest innovative and international mobile learning programme using Luminosity Mentor, CM Group’s range of learning and corporate communications Apps. Following the successful launch of Warsash Superyacht Academy’s mobile learning App and mobile learning platform in September 2013, CM Group will design and develop a new mobile learning App to provide students and staff at the larger Warsash Maritime Academy with mobile, as well as online access to learning content and Academy communications. The App will initially be available via iPad’s, with an Android App following soon after.

Lars Lippuner, business development manager at Warsash said: “The launch of our mobile learning App within the Superyacht Academy was very successful and the feedback we received from our students was extremely positive. It convinced us that the solution was right for wider deployment and so we decided to expand the scope of our mobile offering by deploying a similar system to the students and staff at the Maritime Academy, so that they will also be able to see the benefits that mobile learning will bring to their learning programme.”

The Apps will be served with a range of educational content from CM Group’s Luminosity Motion cloud based mobile learning platform.

The mobile learning App deployment will enable the Maritime Academy to reduce both the time and costs involved in producing, updating and distributing paper-based course material to its students. The students will also benefit by having access to their learning content via an App whilst offline, removing the need to carry large and heavy course material whilst travelling globally. www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 5

Reduction in costs

Ship’s spares

The Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers will benefit from new helicopter-borne early warning systems 18 months earlier than planned in a move that will save taxpayers £22 million.

Following the renegotiation of the Aircraft Carrier contract to deliver savings for taxpayers, the Defence Secretary has accelerated the Crowsnest Airborne Surveillance and Control programme to ensure it is operational by 2019.

Crowsnest uses high power radar to provide long-range air, maritime and land tracking capabilities and will be an integral part of future carrier operations. The Crowsnest system will be fitted to the Royal Navy’s fleet of upgraded Merlin Mk2 helicopters.

The decision to bring forward the Crowsnest programme has been made as part of the annual review of the MoD’s Ten Year Equipment Plan. The plan, worth £160 billion, includes unallocated funding to support equipment requirements that may arise as threats emerge or priorities change. The shorter delivery time for Crowsnest will lead to a significant reduction in costs, as specialist industry personnel will be required for a shorter period of time.

GAC Marine Logistics (GML) has established a new company in Hamburg, Germany, as the latest addition to its growing network of offices co-ordinating ship spares logistics around the world.

The new company GAC Marine Logistics GmbH, which started trading on 1 February, further develops GML’s door-to-deck delivery and warehousing products and builds on existing strong relationships in key markets such as West Africa, South America and the Middle East.

Jan Kielmann, director of Global Marine Logistics, says that Hamburg’s burgeoning cargo volumes and Germany’s position as the world’s second largest shipping market makes the city the perfect location.

GML clients benefit from the ability to draw on the GAC Group’s many other offerings such as husbandry services, hub agency and bunker fuel deliveries to create a customised support suite to meet all their time-critical ship spares logistics and related shipping needs.

“No other provider has a better understanding of the challenges our clients are facing in today’s changing markets and economic climate and is better equipped to help overcome them,” adds Katja Springmeyer, general manager of GAC Marine Logistics GmbH. “For example, through our partnership with Griffin – G2 Crew & Port Services – we combine spares and crew logistics to deliver exceptional cost savings. HSSE, Compliance and Ethics are at the heart of everything we do. So too is transparency – web tracking means that our customers have complete visibility of movements at all times.”

Series of studies QinetiQ has carried out a fatigue and fracture mechanics assessment of NATO’s submarine rescue vehicle, part of the NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS), a multi-national project that delivers rescue capability primarily for the partner nations of France, Norway and the UK and to NATO and allied nations.

QinetiQ’s Marine Structural Analysis & Technical Services team was commissioned to conduct a structural integrity review of the submarine, including a stress-life fatigue assessment, which evaluated the welded joints of the pressure hull against the relevant design standards, and a probabilistic assessment of the likelihood of failure by fatigue.

The assessment, which was accepted by Lloyds Register and the UK MoD Naval Authority, demonstrated that the SRV would only require visual inspections, rather than complex pressure testing, which would have taken it out of service for six months.

“QinetiQ carried out an excellent series of studies applying their expert knowledge in metal fatigue. They established that the hull could be subject to a visual inspection regime. The report that QinetiQ submitted was reviewed by both Lloyds Register and the UK MoD Naval Authority who endorsed its conclusions,” observed Ben Duke, NSRS Technical Manager, MoD. “QinetiQ are one the world’s leading providers of marine structural analysis and technical services with many years of experience. We have worked on a wide range of surface ships and submarines, including large glass reinforced plastic (GRP) mine hunters, and submersibles such as the NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS),” commented Vittorio Vagliani, head of structures & survivability, QinetiQ.

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Prepare for impact Leading contractor accountancy and payroll firm Danbro is urging shipbuilding contractors to prepare for the impact of the Government’s draft legislation to tackle ‘false self-employment’.

At present intermediaries are used by companies to save paying National Insurance and other employment-related costs such as holiday pay, sick pay, redundancy and pension contributions and deducting PAYE tax.

The proposed change to legislation is designed to ensure that people engaged by or through an intermediary will receive the same benefits as someone who is engaged directly by the employer.

Danbro managing director Damian Broughton urged contractors to think about switching to a compliant umbrella scheme or limited company ahead of the changes. “Those using a compliant umbrella or limited company solution will not be affected by implementation of the new legislation in any of its proposed forms. While the structures are quite simply the best way to protect yourself, they will also help contractors to maximise take home pay.”

Damian adds: “We are keen to encourage shipbuilding contractors to contact us if they are concerned about the impact of any upcoming legislation as we are confident that our expert personal service will save you time and money.”

MARITIME NEWS First-of-its-kind TRACE International and DA-Desk FZ-LLC have announced a partnership to create greater transparency in the shipping industry.

The first-of-its-kind shipping industry partnership pairs TRACE, the worldwide leader in setting the standard for global compliance due diligence, with DA-Desk, the largest independent provider of port cost management services. The alliance enables port agents and suppliers registered with DA-Desk to receive preferential pricing for TRACEcertification and promote their commitment to compliance.

TRACEcertification is an internationally accepted due diligence review, analysis and approval process that allows entities to own their verified compliance information and share it with all global business partners. TRACE-certified companies are ‘pre-vetted’ partners for multinational companies seeking to do business with shipping agents who share their commitment to compliance.

DA-Desk recently was awarded TRACEcertification.

“The shipping industry is undergoing greater scrutiny,” said Alexandra Wrage, president of TRACE. “This alliance will encourage agents of DA-Desk’s global business partners to undergo the TRACEcertification process, providing recognition for their commitment to increased transparency, anti-bribery training for all their employees, and visibility to multinational companies seeking potential new business partners.”

“As an industry partner of TRACE, DA-Desk is working to help bring down the cost of compliance, making it easier for agents to afford the due diligence process,” said Hans-Christian Mordhorst, commercial director, DA-Desk. “Additionally, TRACEcertified companies can promote their commitment to the highest standards of transparency in our database of over 10,000 agents and suppliers.”

Addressing the challenge Unique Seaflex, a Unique Maritime Group company that is one of the world’s leading integrated turnkey subsea and offshore solution providers has facilitated one of the most complex underwater lift projects. The project was carried out for Lundin Tunisia BV in approximately 300m of water.

Lundin Tunisia BV is a 40 per cent stakeholder in and operator of the Oudna field 80km offshore Tunisia.

Abandoned by Shell in the mid-80s when relatively small discoveries in relatively deep water were still considered unviable due to lack of pipeline infrastructure, with the advent of the FPSO came a new way to make such fields viable. Oudna was accordingly de-mothballed a decade or so ago, and serviced until recently by the FPSO Ikdam. At the end of the field’s viable lifecycle, the problem arose of how best to decommission the FPSO - and in particular how to take care of the delicate operation of disconnecting several hundred tons’ worth of moorings without incident.

After a series of technical discussions between Lundin and Unique Seaflex, it was determined that a combination of 41 different-sized parachute-style Air Lift Bags (ALBs) up to 50t in size were needed to be installed on the moorings to reduce their tension to a manageable level. The deck-mounted linear winch was rated to 450t, but because the three mooring anchors were extremely well embedded in the sandy seabed, the effective tension on the chafe chain would have increased by an estimated 1.5 to two times the original 400t.

The use of Unique Seaflex ALBs allowed the deck-mounted linear winch to pull on the chafe chain so as to slacken the connection to the Ikdam deck hook. The connecting shaft was then pulled out from the wren hook and by doing so, freed the chafe chain thus allowing the mooring system to gently be lowered on a wire, thereby de-tensioning the system. Once released, the chafe chain was transferred to a nearby AHTV, which held the de-tensioned mooring system whilst the Ikdam FPSO disconnected.

Along with the fleet of ALBs, Unique Seaflex also supplied all the heavy-duty shackles and lifting slings as well as an air inflation/deflation system and a topside technician to oversee the operation and ensure the safest and most efficient use of the package of equipment.

$150 million funding Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP has represented international lenders Mizuho Bank, Ltd. and Itaú BBA International plc in providing approximately $150 million in financing for the purchase of an innovative compact semisubmersible multi-service vessel destined for Brazil’s most productive offshore oil and gas location.

The support unit, named Olympia, represents a groundbreaking new vessel design, which suppliers believe will change the long-term landscape of the offshore vessel market. It was developed to help increase production in Brazil’s Campos Basin, source of some 80 per cent of the country’s substantial oil reserves. DP-3 rated, meaning it has redundant systems designed to hold it in place in virtually all weather and sea conditions, the 276-foot (84.25 metres) craft was built in Fujian Province in southern China and holds up to 500 people.

Olympia is the first of a group of three sister vessels ordered by Rio-based oil and gas firm GranEnergia and will be leased to state-owned energy major Petrobras. Olympia is part of Petrobras’s $5.6 billion program to increase operating efficiency in the Campos Basin, a 44,000-square-mile area off the coast north of Rio de Janeiro. The vessel, whose primary function is to act as a floating accommodation unit for rig personnel, will begin operating in the Campos Basin in the second quarter of 2014. New York-based project finance partner Daniel Bartfeld led the Milbank deal team, which included London-based partner James Cameron, and associates Fernando Capellão, Russell King and Caroline Rasmussen. Milbank has previously advised on the financing of a new fleet of deepwater drillships produced in South Korea that are also on the frontlines of Brazil’s burgeoning offshore oil recovery sector.

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Go with the

flow Shipping is a vital part of the world’s economy, and their contribution to growth is therefore dependent on keeping ships at sea. Cavitation damage is proportional to the rate of flow across the substrate.

Therefore, with increasing speeds of vessels, solutions are needed to combat this phenomenon.

Cavitation is caused where rapid changes of pressure occur. This is seen in fluid flow situations and usually occurs on foils. Foils are used in many different areas in industry and are best exemplified by an aeroplane wing. In the marine industry, foils are seen on the rudder, the vanes in pumps, and also the propulsion systems.

Foils are used to create pressure differences for varied reasons. For an aeroplane wing, the foil is used to create lift. The flow of the fluid is caused by the foil moving through the fluid whether it is water or air. As an aeroplane is driven along the runway the wings are in a position where lift would not be present. When the aeroplane reaches a certain speed the wings are adjusted to create the lift required for take-off. The lift gained is through a pressure difference where high pressure moves towards low pressure. Low pressure is caused by fluid particles moving fast around the longer edge of a foil. This means that the other side of the foil experiences comparatively high pressure.

Cavitation is apparent on the low-pressure side of a foil. The formation of the vapour bubbles is where the boiling point of the fluid is reached at the lower pressure. These microscopic vapour bubbles sit close to the

Fig 1: Formation and collapse areas for vapour bubbles

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Cavitation damage on ships costs the marine industry millions every year and so it is vital that solutions to this problem are created

surface of the foil. As the flow moves towards the end of the foil, pressure rises and the vapour bubbles implode with immense force. Cavitation damage will be easily identifiable on any blade or vane as it will occur in intensive patches.

Fig 2: Cavitation damage in identical areas

Cavitation damage can render equipment useless if left untreated.

Pumps tend to show accelerated rates of cavitation due to the high rate of fluid flow across the blades. The damage resembles a substrate that has been shot blasted in one place until holes appear. There will always be varying amounts of damage depending on fluid velocity and substrate material.

Damage from cavitation can be limited in the design phase of producing the foil shape. During design, simulations can be carried out to find out the forces that the foil will be under and therefore work out the amount of cavitation and where it will occur. Slight changes to the camber and the chord length can change the forces acting upon the foil. This is the main area where the effects of cavitation can be reduced. However, cavitation may still occur and so the questions are; how is the cavitation damage repaired? And, what else can be done to prevent cavitation damage?

Millions is spent on replacing equipment damaged by cavitation. This is not only expensive and time consuming, but like for like replacement will not solve the problem. There are many alternatives in the market with varying rates of success.

Many repair methods involve welding. This is a common option and replaces metal with more metal. By overlay welding the damage, the pitted area becomes filled and then machining and polishing can bring the substrate looking almost new. However, this method is just papering over the cracks. As previously mentioned, the same problem will arise. Welding is also encouraging other problems to occur. Corrosion can still attack any uncoated or untreated metallic surfaces. Erosion from impingement and entrainment will still damage the substrate. Introducing heat into the substrate can cause HAZ (Heat Affected Zones) and stress corrosion cracking. Unless carefully selected the weld alloy can introduce bi-metallic corrosion. Also the required permits required plus a skilled worker needed

Hulls and coatings hulls

counts towards the growing drawbacks when working with welding. This means thermal spraying is ruled out as well.

So what are the alternatives?

Coatings have been on the market for decades and offer solutions to corrosion and erosion problems. Some coatings offer general corrosion resistance and shouldn’t be involved in situations where there may be elevated temperatures, strong chemicals, and high erosion rates. Where cavitation occurs, low value paint systems tend to break down very quickly. Coating brand new equipment may seem like an additional expense to start with, however, a suitable long term solution can dramatically cut costs. Therefore, it is very important to select the right solution.

Epoxy coatings have advanced in recent years to be able to cope with the demands of higher temperatures and stronger chemicals to halt corrosion. Erosion and abrasion are an increasing problem in industry however, reducing the effects and preserving the substrate will help equipment, especially when the coating will completely stop corrosion.

Some epoxy coatings in the market have fillers made from alumina oxide, silicon carbide and ceramics, which actively resist the effects of erosion.

The epoxy coating will still see signs of erosion (depending on the wear rates) but it is faster, easier and cheaper to repair the epoxy coating during maintenance periods compared with replacing metal by welding.

Through stringent laboratory testing and sea trials, elastomeric polymer coatings have now been developed to resist the effects of cavitation and save costly downtime. Whereas epoxy coatings are made very hard to resist general erosion, they suffer from impacts and cavitation due to brittleness. The best way of protecting a surface from strong impacts

Above: Fig 3: Belzona 1341 after erosion testing Below: Fig 4: Belzona 2141 after erosion testing

is to cushion the force. A corrosion resistant coating that will compress with impact, and then return to its original state, is the future in combating erosion by cavitation.

Independent tests were carried out on a Belzona epoxy coating and polyurethane coating. Belzona 1341 is an efficiency enhancing, ceramic filled, epoxy product. It has a proven track record of increasing the efficiency in pumps and in fluid flow situations, as well as stopping corrosion and resisting the effects of erosion. Belzona 2141 is a relatively new polyurethane coating. It has been designed to resist the effects of cavitation and impacts, as well as stopping corrosion.

The independent testing comprised of a 500-hour erosion simulation where the products were subjected to cavitation effects. As can be seen in figures 3 and 4, the Belzona 1341 had slight damage showing in one particular area. In the same area on the Belzona 2141 there is a very slight shadow but no damage. This damage is from the effects of cavitation and proves the capabilities of a polyurethane coating.

Cavitation usually occurs in specific areas. Knowing where the cavitation areas are helps to identify the repair areas. Combining a Fig 5: Rudder horn protected with Belzona 2141 and 1341

polyurethane coating with an epoxy coating is a good way to get the benefits from both products.

The combination of Belzona 1341 and 2141 has given impact and cavitation resistance in the areas that were previously damaged. It also gives complete corrosion resistance and improved efficiency. Both products are hand or spray applied and will cure in a matter of hours helping to reduce downtime. When spray applied the products tend to give a smoother finish and offer a faster application on large areas.

If any piece of equipment is suffering from erosion, corrosion and specifically cavitation, efficiency of how that equipment works will be declining. Avoid costly replacement or hot work and look into polymer coatings. Coupling protective coatings with a well-scheduled maintenance programme can save your company time and money. n

Belzona is a global leader in the innovation of repair compounds and industrial coatings. Where other products fail, Belzona has the materials to solve your maintenance issues and protect your equipment or structures from wear, breakage or chemical attack. For further information visit: www.belzona.com. www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 9

Control the line

Andrew Ash-Vie discusses how advancements in synthetic rope technology have affected the development of winches Over the last decade, Dyneema and other synthetic fibre ropes have been gaining acceptance as replacement for steel cable. Their advantages are well known: strength to weight ratio, neutral buoyancy, corrosion proof, UV stable, greater flexibility and mobility, kinder to handle and simpler splicing.

These modern ropes have allowed smaller diameters to be used, compared to polypropylene and conventional ropes, thus massively reducing storage volumes and logistical problems.

These factors can be combined to deliver safer and more efficient operations if correctly applied. However, in many cases these advantages are not fully exploited

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because operators are simply re-using existing steel cable equipment.

If equipment has painted mild steel surfaces, it has most probably experienced abrasion, which leads to higher renewal costs.

Furthermore, synthetic ropes are much safer even in failure as they do not whip around explosively. Obviously, any line failure is going to have severe consequences, so to really gain the benefits of modern ropes, it is necessary to have a close look at the entire line handling system.

Twenty years ago, a powered sailing winch was relatively exotic. Today, they are mainstream, with both electric and hydraulic versions fitted to vessels from ten metre family cruisers right up to 100 metre superyachts handling loads from 500 kgs to 25 tonnes.

Over the years, winch drum surfaces have been developed to be exceptionally kind to rope. The gripping surfaces are shaped and thus do not depend on surface friction to hold the line. Hard-kote anodised aluminium or chrome plated bronze finishes are much preferable to painted steel. Likewise, the self-tailing jaws only hold a fraction of the load as it has been reduced by the drum. These factors have a major impact on abrasion.

It is an unfortunate fact of life that cruising sailors are not necessarily great maintenance engineers, therefore winches need to allow for salt water flooding and draining. Even still a build up of salt and dirt is inevitable and therefore, a yacht winch needs to be very corrosion resistant thus composite bearings and isolators are usual.

Typical sailing capstan type winches pay out line manually in a single action even if the pull function is powered.

The rope is taken out of the self-tailing jaws and manually surged off the drum. This is perfectly acceptable in a sailing application, but it has limitation in industrial applications where a double action with a more controlled release is required.

The latest generation of Rewind winches have a powered reversing function. This allows for

winches

‘‘

Looking to the sailing industry for rope handling technology may well be a better solution than trying to re-use standard steel cable equipment

hands free, remote release of the line whilst the line is still held captive in the self-tailing jaws. Existing models can handle loads up to around 1500kgs.

By using a universal mounting plate (UMP), a standard yacht winch can be used instead of a traditional ratcheting wire winch for mobile applications.

Mobile Winch applications versus UMP There is a huge weight saving, as both the winch and line are significantly lighter so deployment is significantly easier and more efficient. The winch can be loaded very quickly using a bight of rope without having to pump all the slack through. Any high load release is much more controlled without having to first increase the tension to disengage the ratchet. Also, the fibre line is much kinder to the hands than the fish hooks found on flexible wire.

A different approach is using captive reel winches, which operate on a different principal of both pulling and storing the line. Typically these have been limited to the higher loads found on Super Yachts operating between five and 20 tonnes. As vessels are getting larger all the time, load capacities are anticipated to increase substantially. However, they are also suitable for smaller vessels as they adopt the flush deck aesthetic, so they are also getting more compact with working loads going down as low as one tonne.

To keep this clean deck aesthetic, these winches are often tucked away in the bilges with an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach. Users also need to consider the operators may be relatively untrained private individuals. Therefore, they are designed to provide a reliably safe operation. To that end, numerous safety devices were developed including load sensing, travel limiters, over-ride prevention and laser sights measuring the line heights.

Furthermore, with an indirect lead, the line tensioning systems are critical to successful operations. These need to push the rope when

feeding out whilst being synchronised to the drum rotation. They control the line feed onto the drum so over lays are avoided. Fibre ropes do compress more than steel, so users need to avoid individual wraps jamming into the layer below. The large hollow drums allow for enough line to be stored in a single wrap.

Rope technology is also impacting on pulley blocks, which are used in winching systems. The trend is to replace heavy swivel shackles on pulley blocks with rope loops. If users are happy using fibre rope to pull the load, they can secure the equipment with it. This simplifies the construction of snatch blocks hugely and again takes so much weight out of the equipment. Winches, the Hard-kote anodised aluminium provides a much better operating surface as well as reducing weight.

The smallest SBL has a break load of 40 tonnes and only weigh four kgs. Even the large 95 tonne version only weighs 22.5kgs. Any rigger having to install a system, especially at height, is going to be able to safely install them manually.

In conclusion, looking to the sailing industry for rope handling technology may well be a better solution than trying to re-use standard steel cable equipment. There are limitations to this solution, but properly considered and properly operated, they ensure users get the most out of modern ropes. n

Andrew Ash-Vie is the industrial director for Harken Inc, which was founded in 1986. With over 40 years of load management experience Harken designs and manufactures a broad range of high-end, material-handling apparatus. Strong, lightweight products include low-friction winches, pulleys, linear motion cars, track, and roller furling equipment in aluminium, stainless steel, or titanium.

For further visit: www.harkenindustrial.com.

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ACCSEAS Trials: The Galatea – where Resilient Position Navigation Timing demo took place, Feb & March 2013

Harmonised

information Efficient sea & land logistics - beyond ACCSEAS.

By George Shaw

The IMO concept of e-Navigation involves the harmonisation and communication of digital maritime information across ships and shore functions, for voyage planning and operations berth-to-berth.

The part-European funded ACCSEAS project of the INTERREG North Sea Region programme is implementing prototype operational and technical services within an e-Navigation test-bed for the North Sea. These services seek to improve safe accessibility to ports across the region, with less congestion and reduced carbon footprint while protecting the environment.

How planned Wind farms are going to increasingly take up space in the North Sea Region

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Waters around the UK, especially The Channel and the North Sea, face burgeoning demands from users as diverse as fishing, leisure, renewable energy and environmentally sensitive protection. The navigable sea room for shipping is decreasing rapidly. As the global economy recovers, the number and size of vessels is predicted to grow rapidly. Even with the benefits of effective Marine Spatial Planning, ships will need to navigate increasingly complex sea spaces safely and efficiently. Short Sea Shipping is set to increase with the modal shift of logistics from land to sea. Accessibility to ports through pinch points and congested channels will become more challenging.

The advent of e-Navigation services evolving over the next decade should provide the mariner with more reliable information, relevant to the real-time operational context of the ship. Such harmonised information should enhance situational awareness and decision support for mariners. The e-Navigation services extend beyond the bridges of ships and their crews to a range of shore-based operations such as Vessel Traffic Services and integrated logistics applications to improve the safe and effective throughput of cargo and people.

Increasingly, if e-Navigation benefits are to be realised, shipping operations must be considered as a key part of the integrated logistics chain across land and sea, with all the implications of transmodal freight and modal shifts to relieve pressure on the heaviest loaded links in the chain.

Can many of the shipping safety and efficiency advantages of e-Navigation be achieved without addressing problems of congestion and capacity in and around ports and the connections to their hinterland?

In-port operations involve the planning of synchronised and co-ordinated activities across pilots, tugs, linemen, crane operations, storage, refuelling and the connection with the inland intermodal logistics

navigation ACCSEAS Trials: Simulation conducted by ACCSEAS, putting the trainer into a potential future e-Navigation environment

chain (road, rail and inland waterways). Effective integrated logistics depend on a complex network of dynamic information exchange between the vessels, shipping agents, ports and operators of inland logistics. Incorrect or outdated information in any part of the logistics chain can affect all other parts and prevent the seamless integration of the movement of goods between ships at sea and inland destinations.

Hence ensuring accurate, up-to-date information on the status and predicted timings of intermodal connections and the various stages of in-port logistics is vital to minimise delays. It will be important that e-Navigation services and information reach out across the sea/land boundary to inform land-side logistics of the ship’s current and predicted situation and for the ship to be informed of the land-side status for effective co-ordinated decision making and planning throughout the chain.

Road congestion in the port’s hinterland can lead to delays which have knock-on effects throughout the logistics chain, leading to congestion or inefficiencies at sea as vessels await the availability of a berth due to delays in the loading and unloading of vessels in port. Fuel can account for around 75 per cent of shipping costs, so a change of only a few knots in the planned speed of a ship can have a dramatic effect on fuel consumption and hence costs, with an associated reduction in carbon emissions. So it is vital that the situational awareness picture for operations throughout the littoral environment and trustworthy real-time information along the logistics chain are maintained to reduce costs and maximise efficiency and safety.

Unlocking the wider potential: ACCSEAS a project consisting for 11 partners1 from the North Sea Region has explored and developed possible solutions to not only help the mariner understand better where they are and where they are going but also to improve ship/ port operations with the potential to unlock the wider efficiencies for effective integrated logistics.

‘Indicated Route’ services between ships, ‘Suggested Route’ and ‘Dynamic Under-Keel Clearance’ are services between ship and shore, if seamlessly integrated with intermodal logistics services at ports and Vessel Traffic Services, can greatly reduce uncertainty on the Expected Time of Arrival (ETA) of vessels at the pilot station and at the berth. Such e-Navigation services could also inform co-ordinated vessel and shorebased decisions on optimal routes and speeds of vessels to achieve planned ETAs under prevailing conditions of weather, tides, currents, congestion and interaction with other vessels’ routes. Achieving

more accurate estimates of ships’ ETAs, with reliable estimates of their uncertainties would support the interactive analysis of logistical movements across the land/sea boundary. Effective decisions from this analysis would be a major benefit for the provision of seamless, efficient, lower cost and environmentally friendly solutions throughout the integrated logistics chain. n George Shaw is principal development engineer, General Lighthouse Authorities, UK & Ireland. The General Lighthouse Authorities is the lead beneficiary of the ACCSEAS Project. The General Lighthouse Authorities (GLAs) of the United Kingdom and Ireland are Trinity House, the Northern Lighthouse Board and the Commissioners of Irish Lights.

Together, they have the statutory responsibility for the provision of marine aids to navigation (AtoNs) around the British Isles. ACCSEAS is a three-year project under the North Sea Region Interreg IVB Programme.

For further information about the programme and other projects it funds please see: http://www.northsearegion.eu/ivb/home/.

The second annual ACCSEAS Conference took place in Edinburgh, 4th – 6th March, welcoming over 80 shipping experts from around the globe and proved to be an excellent three-day event.

Throughout the three days ACCSEAS presented its e-Navigation testbed solutions aimed at increasing accessibility and improving safety in the North Sea Region. Demonstrations included Vessel Operations Co-ordination Tool, Dynamic Predictor, Multi-Source Positioning Service and No-Go Area.

The final ACCSEAS Conference is set to take place 17-19th February, 2015. This is a free to attend event and will present further demonstrations and the future legacy plan for the test-bed.

1 ACCSEAS partners are General Lighthouse Authorities, UK & Ireland; Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden); Danish Maritime Authority; Federal Waterways & Shipping Administration (Germany); Rijkwaterstaat, Minesterie Infrastructuur en Millieu (The Netherlands); Swedish Maritime Administration; Norwegian Coastal Administration; SSPA Sweden AB; Flensburg University of Applied Science (Germany); NHL Hogeschool, Leeuwarden, Maritiem Instituut Willem Barentsz (The Netherlands) and World Maritime University (Sweden)

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The value of

expertise

The role of the independent ship’s agent is constantly changing and developing to cater to the demands of clients and the industry as a whole. Alan Platt takes a look at the benefits they bring

Saving time and money are prominent business goals in most industries, but are even more significant in the world of shipping and logistics. The primary aim for shipowners and principals is always to ensure as quick a turnaround as possible for every vessel, as excessive time spent in port can create a huge and unnecessary additional cost.

There appears to be an increasing amount of congestion at certain ports, which causes delays and has a detrimental financial impact. A missed tide can cause delays of up to 12 hours, which is extremely costly.

But how can the independent ship’s agent help mitigate some of these issues and potential unnecessary additional costs? A key to this is local knowledge and contacts – they can be the difference between hitting a tide for berthing, sailing or not. A man on the ground, who is present during cargo operations, acts as the liaison between the stevedores, Master and shipowner, monitoring operations and keeping the pressure on stevedores to perform. This can help save valuable time in port, delivering tangible benefits and cost savings. Let’s also not forget

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that local contacts are in prime position to be able to call in a favour if and when required.

For many years, shipping agents have been the eyes and ears for shipowners, charterers and ship managers. They have a wealth of local knowledge, experience and contacts and therefore stand the very best chance of ensuring operations run smoothly to get vessels in and out of port in the shortest possible time.

Where additional services are required, such as supplies, repairs and crew changes, a ship’s agent knows exactly where to go and who to contact to save valuable time. Agents can play a vital role in providing first-class communication and leveraging on local contacts to assist in minimising delays.

However, the face of liner and port agencies has changed dramatically over the past ten to 15 years. Large global carriers have tended to set-up their own offices to perform these functions, often at the expense of traditional shipping agents.

Commercially, this can be costly, as lines have to consider the additional overheads associated with running an own office at multiple ports and this coincides at a time when many shipping lines are

shipping agencies

desperate to reduce unit cost by increasing vessel size in order to take advantage of economies of scale.

Fortunately many shipowners and charterers still recognise the value of the independent ship’s agent and regard this as an attractive proposition, generally paying an agreed fixed lump sum fee per vessel.

Employing the services of a shipping agent means that you only pay for a service when you need it, and are not exposed to additional on-going costs whether a ship is in port or not.

Aside from the financial savings, the true value of a shipping agent lies in their expertise. There is simply no substitute for the vast amount of experience contained within pure ship agency businesses, and this can often prove to make a real and tangible difference in terms of eliminating unnecessary additional costs for shipowners and charterers alike. n

Alan Platt is managing director of the John Good Group of companies.

Founded in Hull in 1833 and still under the ownership of the Good family, the John Good Group includes established companies from across the Humber region. Companies include John Good Shipping, Trans European Port Services Warehousing & Distribution, DAN Shipping & Chartering, as well as business travel specialists Good Travel Management.

For further information visit: www.johngood.co.uk.

‘‘

There is simply no substitute for the vast amount of experience contained within pure ship agency businesses, and this can often prove to make a real and tangible difference

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The right

solution A multimillion-pound technology investment will streamline container terminal operations across the Peel Ports Group

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case study

Peel Ports is making a multimillion-pound investment in a Navis N4 terminal operating system (TOS). The new system will streamline operations and align the customer experience across the Group’s container terminal sites located in the UK and Ireland.

An industry leader in port centric and handling facilities, Peel Ports combines innovation, commercial know-how and commodity expertise to develop game changing logistics solutions, which bring added value to customer supply chains.

As a UK-wide business stretching from Clydeport in the North to Medway in the South East, Peel Ports connects major population areas across England, Scotland and Ireland through its Irish Sea hub. The Group also owns and operates the Manchester Ship Canal – the UK’s only water freight route delivering cargo and containers to the heart of the UK. This strategic network of ports, hubs and services, allows Peel Ports to offer complete logistic solutions for its customers, which streamline supply chains, helping to cut costs, carbon emissions and congestion.

Its customer base includes Kellogg’s, B&M Retail, Typhoo and Home Bargains.

The Group continually strives to enhance and improve its customer experience and this was the driving force behind the decision to move to Navis N4.

Peel Ports’ £300m Liverpool2 deep-water container terminal development will serve as the enabling platform for Navis N4 and the base from which Peel will standardise and centralise their TOS. Built on reclaimed land in the River Mersey Liverpool2 will double container capacity at the port, offering shipping lines a unique opportunity to bring larger vessels – up to 13,500 TEU – closer to the UK’s consumer heartland than any other UK port.

Liverpool2 will be equipped with eight megamax STC cranes and 24 CRMGs, and will be the first semi-automated CRMG terminal in Europe.

As part of the new Liverpool2 development, the N4 TOS will be installed and fully integrated enabling complete automation of the terminal whilst allowing Peel Ports to standardise its operations and centralise visibility. The state-of-the-art TOS will connect a multitude of data inputs

from shipping line files, to haulage vehicle booking systems and port operating systems.

To ensure a smooth transition from the current TOS, Peel Ports will be rolling out N4 one terminal at a time, beginning with Royal Seaforth Container Terminal and Liverpool2, both located at the Port of Liverpool.

The terminals have put large, dedicated internal and external teams in place to manage the implementation processes to ensure continued positive customer experiences.

Overall, Navis N4 will allow Peel Ports to streamline operations and align the customer experience across multi terminals within the group.

By optimising efficiency it will power the intelligent movement of goods, giving the terminal operator a flexible and scalable platform.

As well as the management of day-to-day container movements and activities, N4 will also help streamline complex billing processes, providing a single consolidated bill for all Peel Ports’ services, creating a simplified and uniform user experience helping save its customers time and money.

The new technology will then be rolled out across all Peel Port’s container terminals over the next three to four years, putting the Group’s operating systems on one platform.

David Huck, port director at Peel Ports, said: “We are ready as a group for this performance enhancing technology as we are committed to delivering a world class customer service.

“We operate in an increasingly competitive market and understand that in order to continue we need to continue to invest in our customers.

Full integration of the terminal operating technology is an essential part of this process.

“Using N4 will have a genuinely transformative effect on customer experience and will undoubtedly deliver logistics solutions of real value.”

Bill Walsh, president and CEO at Navis said: “We are confident that the TOS will provide a solution that will allow Peel Ports to continue to grow its business and improve the overall customer experience.” n For further information, visit: http://peelports.com www.navis.com

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SMM 2014

Giving momentum to the

SMM is the leading international forum for the maritime industry – the 26th SMM fair runs from 9 to 12 September 2014 at Hamburg Messe in Germany

industry Every two years, representatives from the shipbuilding and marine equipment industries from all parts of the world meet in Hamburg for SMM. At this important industry event, companies and spokespeople present innovations and forward looking technologies, and set the course for future success of the industry.

With more than 2000 exhibitors and 50,000 visitors from all continents, SMM covers a wide range of different topics, products and services. These include areas such as large-scale industrial ship and shipyard engineering, ship fittings and equipment, cargo handling systems, offshore engineering, maritime services, and much more.

As a result of the diverse range of exhibitors, speakers and visitors, SMM will be the most important event for the maritime industry again in 2014 – the trend indicator, innovation show and meeting point for the experts.

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It also offers valuable opportunities for synergies and furthermore, the link between the Maritime Security and Defence (MS&D) conference and the Maritime Security and Defence section of SMM fills

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 19

in the gaps and expands the scope of SMM with new target groups.

SMM is also the trailblazer for green technologies in shipbuilding and the marine equipment industries. gmec (global maritime environmental congress) will be held at the same time as SMM, providing another attractive component.

Newbuilding The activity level in the shipbuilding market is a key indicator of the general confidence in the industry. After years of dismal news, experts are seeing positive signals around the world. Numerous ship-owning companies are taking advantage of the current low price levels, ordering ships now to be ready for the next economic upturn. For example, the Chinese Chengxi Shipyard Co. Ltd. will build two ‘Dolphin 64’ bulk carriers for Dalnave Navigation Inc. of Greece. The Russian republic of Komy has ordered a 30-metre passenger ferry from REB Shipyard, Archangelsk. The newbuild will cost around EUR 600,000. The shipowner Teekay LNG Partner L.P. is having two additional LNG carriers built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. Ltd., South Korea. The completion of one particular ship is being awaited with great anticipation: ‘Pieter Schelte’, a giant catamaran that will mainly serve as a utility vessel for oil platform installation and decommissioning work. With a lifting capacity of up to 48,000 tons, this ship will be able to dismantle even the heaviest oil platform topsides. Three hundred and eighty two metres long and 124 metres wide, she is expected to be launched in early 2014.

Meanwhile, many German ship-owning companies have taken action: In response to the trend, Döhle Schiffahrts KG has ordered a minimum of two 64,000 dwt Ultramax bulk carriers from Jiangsu Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., deliverable in late 2015/early 2016, with options for two additional vessels. Ohdendorff Carriers, a time-honoured ship

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owner headquartered in Lübeck, Germany, has placed an order for four new bulkers with the Chinese Jiangsu New Yangzijang shipyard, scheduled for delivery in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Hamburg Süd is said to have three 10,000 TEU containerships on order with the South Korean shipbuilding group Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering.

The German shipyard Fassmer is building a new ferry worth EUR30 million for AG Ems. And Meyer Werft is working on a 1680-cabin cruise liner for Genting-Holding. The vessel will accommodate 3364 passengers and is worth around EUR 707.2 million.

“Yet, in spite of this positive development the financing challenge continues to be a major concern for every other shipyard in assessing their economic risks. In the current environment, the capital need can only be met with great difficulty,” says Hans Thon, Chairman of the IHK Nord and President of the IHK Schwerin, Germany chambers of commerce. Thon therefore calls for a support initiative by the German national and state governments to provide loan guarantees and financing backup.

What goes for the German market applies to other countries, as well.

This is why financing is one of five key topics for SMM. The event will also cover maritime environment protection, security and defence, the offshore segment and recruiting. Each day of the fair will be dedicated to one of these key topics, a feature of the new concept for SMM. As an overarching leitmotiv, ‘Innovation’ will be the keyword for the entire fair.

At the Ship Finance Forum, which will take place one day ahead of SMM (8 September 2014), reputable international experts will try to find answers to financing questions currently affecting the global shipbuilding and shipping industry. With increasing frequency, US investment companies are playing a role in this field.

Focus on Innovation On 9 September, everything will revolve around environment protection.

Participants of gmec, the global maritime environmental congress (motto: ‘Setting the Green Course’), will discuss advanced solutions and technologies enabling the shipping industry to achieve its environmental targets. One day later, MS&D, the international conference on maritime security and defence hamburg, will put security and defence on the

SMM 2014

On 11 September the SMM Offshore Dialogue will explore the opportunities and challenges the shipbuilding industry and its suppliers face when serving the offshore oil and gas and wind energy sectors.

The last day of SMM will be dedicated to the topic of recruiting.

Professional education and follow-up training as well as personnel recruitment for German companies will be the featured topic.

Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH, the company organising the leading international maritime trade fair in Hamburg, has also established two international subsidiary fairs, SMM India and SMM Istanbul. In April 2013 in Mumbai, SMM India will highlight new accomplishments of the subcontinent’s maritime sector. SMM Istanbul will take place seven months ahead of SMM Hamburg. “Business relations initiated in Mumbai or Istanbul can subsequently be continued and further developed in Hamburg,” says Peter Bergleiter, Business Unit Director at Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH. With this holistic approach and its broad spectrum of international exhibitors and visitors, SMM demonstrates its position as the world’s leading trade fair for the maritime industry. n agenda. “At the MS&D conference experts will examine new options for protecting sea routes and ports,” explains Bernd Aufderheide, Chairman of the Board of Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH.

For further information please visit: www.smm-hamburg.com

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Positive

I

head

n the summer of 2014, Van Heck Group celebrates its 50th year of trading. “The business was founded by my father who recognised the market for dependable pump units in the dredging process,” begins managing director, Jeroen Van Heck. With experience gained developing pump units, the evolution into other markets was inevitable. “The growth of the offshore industry in the North Sea in the 1980s saw an increase in jackets and platforms being manufactured. The construction yards had to load these onto barges and the ballasting for this needed to be done by pumping water.

“The business has since grown with the increase in offshore cable laying. In the 1990s this was driven by the need to lay data cables and in the past few years the main segment has been routing large cables from the offshore wind farms back to land.

We also have contracts with businesses developing other large infrastructure projects that require the pumping of water or sewage, and tackling the effects of flooding in communities. It is a segment that has grown to become a much larger and important part of our business,” he continues.

Working with dredging companies worldwide, offshore installation contractors, cable layers, and salvage companies, it has through the years established close working relationships with environmental agencies that control the response in emergency situations. As the company’s target market expands, Jeroen comments on the recent activities Van Heck Group has been involved in: “Emergency plans and the growing market surrounding wind farms are the sectors demonstrating

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the most growth, with regular infrastructure work proving relatively slow.”

Following the spate of recent bad weather in the UK at the start of 2014, Van Heck Group was called in by the Environment Agency to tackle the effects of flooding on the Somerset levels.

“The main challenge in this situation was to get the water out as soon as possible. It is vital to establish a solution and to be in a position to mobilise quickly. The solution was to bypass the relief channel to the main drainage of the levels. We were also faced with the battle against the weather. It was one of the largest storms in a long time to have hit the UK and the continuous bad weather meant that there was a real issue with safety. As such, many solutions to dealing with the water were not feasible. Weather is always a factor that we have to face and in many operations the only option is to wait until conditions improve. In all our operations, safety is the first consideration,” points out Jeroen.

The business has the largest fleet capacity worldwide, but most importantly for its customers; it offers complete services and solutions, with technology being at the core of the fleet. In September 2013 Van Heck’s offshore team successfully completed a 20,000 tonne float-over operation in the Caspian Sea. Providing details on the project, Jeroen explains: “This was a very large platform in the Caspian Sea, which had to be installed on the jacket already positioned in the sea. We had to ballast the barge with complete precision so that the operation could be carried out to the highest degree of accuracy. With such a heavy platform on a barge of over 150 metres in length, we had to perform within

Profile: Van Heck Group

three centimetres of accuracy. The total operation, including the planning and installation took one and a half years. The actual pumping operation took just three and a half hours. It demonstrates the vast amount of preparation and testing involved to carry out the task, but it is a highly critical activity and all the background tasks are a critical element.”

Unique to the marine industry, Van Heck Group has launched the Sea Trophy Green and Easy Oil Recovery pump system.

The costs of an oil spill at sea, or in harbour, as a result of loss of time, capital damages and even the loss of the oil itself are often immeasurable, but worse still is the ecological damage caused above and under water with local economies, fishing and tourism all suffering. “The question surrounding a solution was initially raised by salvage companies. Should an incident occur where oil (fuel) needs to be quickly removed, this can be done in combination with the FOR (Fast Oil Recovery) piping system for example. However, the Sea Trophy system offers many adaptive alternative ways to extract this oil in the most efficient way,” says Jeroen. The system is suited to the entire shipping industry, and when available on board, in the event of a spill, immediate action can be taken, and if it is not possible to transfer the oil to another vessel, it can be moved to undamaged facilities elsewhere on the ship. “We are able to serve the chemical industry in general. Our product is a quick and easy way to recover oil, and the pump itself has a very high volume compared to the small size,” he adds.

Van Heck Group offers its services to assist organisations in the development of emergency plans, as Jeroen says: “In the event

of an emergency you need to be prepared. It is essential to know what you need, to know what action needs to be taken so that you have a plan of attack.” The company’s reputation is built upon quality, and as a fixed element of the business it is complemented by an innovative vision. Its research and design team is focused on product improvement with the drive to develop new products that can support the market and enhance the complete package that Van Heck is able to offer.

Recognising that innovation is attributable to the personnel it employs, Van Heck offers ongoing training to employees. “The best education and standard safety training are essential. We want to develop the company and tailor our training to suit each role.

We attract students to work with us throughout their education from hands on levels to highly educated,” adds Jeroen. Looking towards the future, he explains that the company’s presence in Australia is growing, and the Asian market is approaching the horizon, concluding: “Our focus over the next year is to drive forward with the Sea Trophy and emergency plans whilst we continue with our expanding involvement in offshore wind farms.” l

Van Heck Group

www.vanheckgroup.com • Pump systems and water control • Internationally operating company • Solutions for several sectors

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Strong

identity

H

einen & Hopman Engineering B.V. was founded in 1965 as a family business, and its main activity at that time was to carry out heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) installation and contracting work in buildings. Within a short period, shipyards had begun to invite the company to quote for complete packages in more specialised fields, and as a result, Heinen & Hopman started developing its own products for marine applications. Today it has become a financially healthy multinational with over 1100 enthusiastic and capable employees worldwide and representation in North America, South America, Europe, Russia, the Middle East and Asia. It works with all the major shipbuilding industries and is proud of its well-filled order portfolio.

As Eric Stoffelsen, sales manager noted, Heinen & Hopman works very closely with its main customers. “These are both ship-owners and shipyards,” he said. “I think our close working relationships are what keeps our clients returning to us.”

He continued with some further benefits that the company offers to its clients: “Being a family-owned business means that decisions are made on a long-term basis and the human factor is kept in mind,” he said. “We also have a dedicated research and development (R&D) department that continuously adds innovation to existing products, and stimulates the development of new products and systems. We also have a programme to improve our already high level of health, safety and environmental standards, and furthermore, our 24/7 global service network means we are always reachable for our clients.”

Out of the industries and sectors in which Heinen & Hopman operates, the company has seen the biggest increase in demand for its superyachts and offshore products, and Eric credits the company’s knowledge, know-how, value for money and good service for its steadily growing order book.

Indeed, there is little doubt that Heinen & Hopman has built

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up a very respected name for itself over the past 49 years in all the market sectors where it is present, but as its fifth decade in business approaches, the organisation has taken the decision to step up its marketing and communications strategy.

It believes that the challenge for companies today is to ensure that their brands are recognisable and memorable - seen as lifestyle experiences and choices, not products. As a result, Heinen & Hopman aims to reinforce its worldwide brand with a uniform, consistent identity and communication style across its global subsidiaries. This involves creating a single strong global brand, modernisation of communication items and logo, and the creation of a green label and manifesto. The results will be a uniform logo and style across subsidiaries, and the establishment of a single global website linking the local offices.

The beginning of this process required the board of directors and management team of Heinen & Hopman to classify the company’s identity, and after much deliberation, they created the following definition: ‘a reliable partner in the global maritime sector, offering top quality products and service in the field of climate control.’

They also created a mission statement: “It is our number one priority to dedicate ourselves to our customers with top service, high-quality products and sustainable, innovative technology.”

And finally, spelled out a forward vision: “To provide the best HVAC services in the world, by continuously expanding our global network and by offering more innovative and sustainable solutions.”

Results Heinen & Hopman’s new brand and communication strategy is based on this mission and vision. “Enrolling the new branding programme throughout the whole Heinen & Hopman group is our main focus for 2014,” confirmed Eric. “But we will also be

Profile: Heinen & Hopman strengthening our current market position, as well as constantly searching for better methods to service our customers in the best way possible and give them value for money.”

A crucial aspect of Heinen & Hopman’s new philosophy is its focus on sustainable innovation, which is reflected by its green manifesto. This aims to increase awareness within the industry of the importance of environmentally sound solutions. The green manifesto logo will appear on Heinen & Hopman’s sustainable products and systems and relevant information materials. Its green beliefs will be shared across all communication platforms, including the website, advertisements and brochures. This will further increase awareness of how Heinen & Hopman is investing in a better and more efficient tomorrow.

Eric highlighted some examples of eco-friendly solutions from the company: “Our Turbocor compressor is the world’s first totally oil-free, energy efficient and lightweight compressor,” he said, “and we also utilise jet fans in engine rooms, and offer annual check-up of systems to ensure they are running at their most efficient.”

The new brand strategy will be displayed at the SMM Exhibition in Hamburg, Germany. “From 9th to 12th September, Heinen & Hopman will be present at the Show,” explained Eric.

“To involve visitors with its new announcements, the company has created a Tradeshow App and visitors are encouraged to visit booth B5.112 to find out more details,” he concluded. l

Heinen & Hopman

www.heinenhopman.com • Leading specialist for marine HVAC & R systems • Fitted over 10,000 systems worldwide • New brand strategy being unveiled at SMM

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 25

Dynamic

strategy F

ortune Technologies is a Microsoft Business Solutions Partner specialised in providing products and professional services to shipping industries. Established in 2004, the company is dedicated to helping clients and its own people by exceeding their expectations. With the mission to become the undisputed software leader in the vertical maritime ERP markets, locally and internationally, it consistently provides a high quality of service, strong customer partnerships and support.

“We are a Microsoft Dynamics NAV Gold Partner, and we have utilised Microsoft Dynamics NAV core products to create an add on solution for the maritime sector. Our focus covers all the departments of a typical maritime company from finance, technical, purchasing operations, and also from the vessel side.

We have developed a synchronisation mechanism where we can import and send data in the most optimal and cost efficient way,” says George Frydas, managing director. Microsoft Dynamics is a line of integrated, adaptable business management solutions that enables employees to make important business decisions with greater confidence.

Presented as a case study by Microsoft US in 2005, Fortune Technologies was additionally awarded the best NAV Regional Partner in Central and Eastern Europe in 2008. With its headquarters in Greece, the technical department has obtained type approval from Lloyds Register and Class NK. Serving customers in Greece, Cyprus, the UK and Monaco the company is now expanding worldwide. Over the past ten years the business

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has successfully retained all its customers and in this time has developed several modules, supporting its returning client base.

“While some organisations are able to offer elements of what we provide, we are the only Microsoft Dynamics NAV business offering a full maritime solution. Right now we are in the process of finalising and upgrading our solution to NAV 2013, which is the latest technology from Microsoft,” explains George.

The branding of Microsoft provides the backbone of the business solution. As well as providing a high quality product with a very strong support service, it also has the ability to customise tailor-made solutions to every customer. “One of the challenges that we are faced with over the next two months is the integration of the upgrade from NAV 2009 to NAV 2013. The final package will be of a greater quality than anything on the market,” says George. With the upgrade to be launched at one of the largest maritime exhibitions in June 2014, Posidonia, Greece, George adds: “It is very important to have a presence there. It will house people and customers from all over the world and it is a very good opportunity for us to promote our services.”

The company prides itself on the ability to deliver maximum efficiency, ensuring that it greatly simplifies the shipping process. Microsoft Dynamics operates in a similar way to other Microsoft software easing adoption and reducing the risks inherent with implementing a new solution, as George points out: “Our customer, the end user, is already very familiar with the application and the understanding is easily transferable. Requiring

Profile: Fortune Technologies little effort to use the application, the product promotes simplicity with a strong support network and access to the Microsoft products family. Our customers can feel assured that not only do we have the maritime type approval products but we have also developed our new solution from the highest requirements that Microsoft can have for any third party solution.” Recognised for quality, all Fortune Technologies products are fully certified by Microsoft.

Across the majority of the sectors in the last four years the market has not been at the high levels witnessed before the economic downturn. However, following the huge growth from 2004 to 2008 and the subsequent decline, the market today has seen some stabilisation. “We are in a relatively stable position right now and there is the potential that in the second half of 2014 the market will promote an increase in rates. Growth is being generated in the Middle East and Asia, and we are focusing on this market through partnerships and alliances with other Microsoft partners or those aware of Microsoft technology,” says George.

Having recently signed a partnership agreement with a leading provider positioned in the Middle East, the business now has access to the Middle East and Africa. Commenting on the company’s continued expansion George notes: “Next on the agenda for us is to expand our focus to the Far East, establishing roots in Hong Kong and Singapore. Being positioned in this area will open up further opportunities.” The launch of the new product signifies a major milestone for the business as it drives forward seeking worldwide partnerships. “I believe that the future will see the consolidation of companies working towards providing better solutions to the market, covering a wider area.

We aim to position ourselves as one of the three major players in the worldwide market. We have the technology, products and the backup from Microsoft with strong support. The customer solutions we will be able to offer will be more advantageous to our customers compared to that offered by our competitors,” he concludes. l

Fortune Technologies

www.frtntech.com • Gold Partner for Microsoft Dynamics • NAV Regional Partner in Europe • Expanding to Middle East, Asia and Africa

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 27

The emission

challenge P

erched in the starting blocks, Clean Marine waits for a signal. Having been in preparation since in 2006, it knows what is around the corner. There is less than ten months before ship owners operating in northern Europe and the US will see their fuel bill increase substantially, unless they install an Exhaust Gas Cleaning System (EGCS), which allows the vessel to run on the cheap and readily available HFO. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) Annex VI sulphur regulation calls for a 0.1 per cent sulphur limit in Emission Control Areas (ECA) by 2015, and a worldwide limit of 0.5 per cent by 2020 or 2025. Approved ECAs include Baltic, North Sea, English Channel, US and Canadian coasts and inland waters.

Helping ship owners to meet this tough target, the Norwegian company Clean Marine provides a unique, proven EGCS (also called scrubber) technology. Regarded as a pioneer in the EGCS industry the company is fully dedicated to emission cleaning for ships.

Strategic investment is crucial to business, but as ship owners play a waiting game, time does not participate. The passenger

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ferries and cruise ships have departed with an early adoption of similar technologies, but the commercial industry is holding its breath. As the 11th hour approaches, Shipping and Marine magazine spoke to Pia Meling, sales and marketing manager for Clean Marine: “It is a six months lead-time from signing the

Profile: Clean Marine

contract to completing the installation, and the longer the ship owner allows, the easier and cheaper the installation will be.

“We received the first fully commercial contract early in 2013 with Samsung Heavy Industries for two shuttle tankers being built for AET. These tankers are chartered to Statoil on a long contract and will be operating in the North Sea. Statoil’s pre-requisites stated that vessels operating on their contracts needed to conform to new regulations. This pattern we believe will continue to grow, with the upgrade being pushed by the charterers. At the moment there are just 150 contracts industry wide for EGCS installations, but we expect this to total more than 2000 over the next five years.” An understandable reluctance exists for ship owners to invest three million to four million USD without security of receiving a higher rate from the market, but when there is a longterm charter agreement in place already when the vessel is being built it is more likely that rates can be agreed to compensate for the extra cost of installing an EGCS. However, a two tier market will develop and the chartering market will very soon have different rate levels for ships with and without scrubber.

Pia Meling further explains that Clean Marine’s solution is the only proven system currently on the market where all exhaust sources on board, including boilers, can be served by one common EGCS unit without encountering an increase in back pressure: “Our system for AET cleans both sulphur oxides and particulate matters emissions from two main engines, five auxiliary engines and three boilers. In total, a single unit manages ten exhaust sources and cleans 240,000 kg of exhaust per hour.

“Our system is the perfect fit for this kind of vessel. The alternative from other suppliers is the installation of several scrubbers. By having just one scrubber unit, it is more cost

effective, with simple operation and maintenance procedures,” adds Pia. Clean Marine offers a proven hybrid system that can operate in both open and closed loop mode. It differs from other systems in that it uses caustic soda in both modes, which means vessels can operate in all types of water, including low alkaline and saline water, in either mode without loss of efficiency.

Furthermore, the use of caustic soda enables the Clean Marine EGCS to operate with a pH>6 at the outlet, making the effluent compliant with all IMO and regional/local regulations, which stipulate a maximum level of acidity in the effluent back to sea.

Alternative open loop scrubbers produce more acidic wash water, promoting Clean Machine’s solution as environmentally beneficial.

With regulatory variety in international waters, the system provides a future proof option for ship owners.

Payback on the investment is calculated to be around one year, assuming 100 per cent of operations are completed in an ECA with price difference of $300 per metric tonne between marine gas oil and a high sulphur fuel oil. The bulk carrier MV Balder was in 2013 reported to be the first vessel in the world to operate a fullscale EGCS in the North American ECA. “We have had around 1600 running hours related to testing our unit onboard the Balder.

When the new ECA rules are enforced in 2015 the ship will have full commercial use of the system,” says Pia. Clean Marine is supplying EGCS for various tanker vessels currently under construction at the leading Asian yards for AET, Dorian LPG and Stolt Tankers and is set to be a leading provider of EGCS for cargo ships. “Our latest contract, announced in January 2014, is with Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a major shipyard in China. The ship owner, Stolt Tankers, decided to get the scrubbers installed early in the building process, recognising the www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 29

Profile: Clean Marine

we are positioned for significant growth. We are one of only a handful of serious suppliers who have a commercial product ready.

The cheapest solution is to install the unit while the vessel is being built, saving the cost of going off-hire. If there is a lack of funding or willingness to install the technology at this stage we urge newbuild ship owners to design the vessel with space to retrofit the technology,” says Pia. As technology improves, the cost may eventually reduce, but in the short term, coinciding with the enforcement of regulations, the expected rush to install has the potential to drive the cost up, as Pia concludes: “Having invested a lot of time and money in our patented solution we are now building the organisation to meet tomorrow’s demand. We are taking on more project managers, developing an international network of sales- and support agents as well as dedicated site managers to oversee the installation locally for both retrofit and newbuilding. We expect quite a substantial and exponential growth over the next couple of years.” l lead-time limitations. Having signed a contract with Clean Marine for installing EGCS on two of their newbuilds which are due in 2016/17 there is the option to add scrubbers on the rest of the fleet at a later date.

“We are a growing company with a proven and fully certified system. Having established several contracts with major shipyards

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Clean Marine

www.cleanmarine.no • Patented solution to emission challenge • Growing number of commercial contracts • Vessel in operation with pioneering technology

Profiles There are thousands of ships sailing the oceans today, transporting every kind of cargo.

The global fleet is manned by over a million seafarers of virtually every nationality and the companies involved in this sector are among the most technologically sophisticated of any in the world.

The prominent and successful companies that are highlighted in the next pages of Shipping & Marine provide real world examples of how state-of-the-art technology, best practices and modern innovations are put into practice in the maritime sector.

Oman Drydock Company Deep Down Inc Breadbox Shipping Company Unigas Ă–sterreichischer Lloyd UmeĂĽ Hamn Swedish Orient Line Koepping Shipping Company Griffon Hoverwork UN Ro-Ro Smedegaarden Spicer Gelenkwellenbau Pres-Vac Port of Gibraltar Hoek Naval Engineering/ Dutch Barge Company McFil Filters and Fuel Optimizers Thor Europlan Engineering DORIS Maritime Parkol Marine Engineering Caterpillar Marine Palmali Shipping Alicat Workboats

Profile: Oman Drydock Company (ODC)

In the

O

dock

man Drydock Company (ODC) is one of the biggest and most modern ship repair yards in the Middle East. It is located in Duqm, in the Al Wusta region of Oman, and is designed to be one of the major development projects that promotes trade and industry in the Sultanate of Oman in general and the Al Wusta region in particular.

As a country, Oman is dedicated to accelerating its development with the aim of reducing dependence on oil revenues and improving its labour skills in compliance with Vision 2020 – His Majesty Sultan Qaboos’ plan to balance economic development around the country by investing in nonpetroleum industries to diversify industry structures.

The new town of Duqm, with a drydock company, free zone, an airport, and a seaport facility in the Al Wusta region, was created as part of this vision, and the zone around the port aims

at developing a refinery and petrochemical industries complex, but its unique selling proposition is the drydock complex. This extensive facility is strategically located on the southeast corner of the Arabian Peninsula outside the ‘Hormuz Strait’ and is in close proximity to the busy regional trade routes traversing Oman’s coast.

ODC was established in September 2006, with 100 per cent investment by the Government of the Sultanate of Oman and is operated by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Company Limited (DSME) of South Korea. A ten-year operation and management agreement is in place between the Oman Government and DSME, in order to ensure the best organisation of talent, experience and technology to the benefit of Oman in the diversification of its economy.

The yard’s construction began in June 2008, and when ODC launched its soft operations in April 2011, ODC's dry dock

Khimji’s Sparkle Marine Services

Khimji’s Sparkle Marine Services

Khimji’s Sparkle Marine Services, a joint venture between Khimji Ramdas Shipping and Ocean Sparkle, India, offers all marine related services to the ports, including port management services, tug services, mooring and pilotage services.

The Joint Venture has been awarded a long-term contract to provide tugboat services at the drydock facility at Duqm by the state-owned Oman Drydock Company (ODC), which owns and manages the Duqm ship repair facility. Uplifting the Oman Ship Repair Industry has been a common goal for both entities. They are cohesively working together to make ODC the most preferred yard in the region, which is in line with the National agenda for overall integrated development of the Al Wusta Region.

Khimji’s Sparkle Marine Services have a long term contract with ODC Marine Services, Both the companies were christened around the same time (though their respective technology partners are pioneers in their own field).

It would be extremely difficult to express in words the journey and the challenges enroute.

Any Greenfiled project is always a challenge but cohesively we are working towards making ODC the most preferred yard.

We have always shared common goals and walked shoulder to shoulder for uplifting the Oman Shiprepair Industry and in line with the National Perspective of overall integrated development of the Al Wusta Region which is primarily propelled by the Oman Drydock Facility. www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 33

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Profile: Oman Drydock Company (ODC)

was ranked among the biggest ship repair yards in the world equipped to handle some of the largest vessels in service today, including ultralarge crude carriers (ULCCs) of up to 600,000 deadweight tonnes (DWT) capacity. In October 2011, the company received its first LNG carrier (Muscat LNG) owned by Oman Shipping Company.

Today the yard is fully functional, with over 1,277,000 square metres of land and 1,139,000 square metres of sea surface with 2800 metres length of quays. The yard has six workshops (pipe & outfitting, electric shop, machinery shop, hull shop, blasting & painting shops, and cryogenic shop) all equipped with state-of-the-art and high-tech equipment.

In 2013 the company achieved 75 dry dockings, which was represented the strongest year of business in ODC’s history.

The services provided by ODC can be split into four main areas: ship repairs, conversion, offshore projects and painting, and its services include procurement, fabrication, engineering, erection or removal, installation, fitting, painting, and various tests, and trials It can work on the construction of offshore accommodation barges, offshore jackets and/or platforms, top-side modules and sub-sea pipeline manifolds, as well as the fabrication of steel structures for long-span steel bridges and high-rise buildings.

The repair and conversion services available at the yard can be applied to a wide variety of vessel types, including:

l FPSO,

FSO upgrades conversions l VLCC/FPS0 conversions l Double hull conversions l Cargo-handling system installation l Pipe lay vessels refurbishments l Self-unloading bulk carriers l VLCC/FS0

In addition to these services, ODC is well prepared for various painting jobs. The weather in Duqm absolutely suited to this activity with, humidity of 15 – 70 per cent and temperatures of 15 – 37°C with bright sunshine all through the year. It also has complementary services, such as high-pressure water blasting with 1.2 bar, grit blasting with cooper slag up to 2.5 S.A, painting on hull, cargo hold, cargo tank, water ballast tank, engine room, and deck house and anti-corrosion painting, anti-fouling painting, top coating, and silicon painting.

The company also has plans to expand these services. It is upgrading its cryogenic workshop in order to cater for four LNG tankers at once (instead of the current three) and it is planning to extend the facility with a medium dock and a floating dock in order to be able to undertake more business.

One of the main foundation stones that is supporting this development at ODC is a commitment to excellence in procurement. The Procurement and Contracts Department’s www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 35

Profile: Oman Drydock Company (ODC)

mission is to support the operations and goals of ODC by managing the effective and efficient procurement of quality products and services at the best value from reputable vendors.

This will be achieved through outstanding customer service, first-rate supply chain management, and on-going streamlining of processes. The Department strives to continually improve communications with customers and suppliers and promote the utilisation of technology.

One way in which the procurement department supports the wider ambitions of Oman is by encouraging the local market to enter the new business line of supplying appropriate ship repairing materials and services to ODC. The organisation is keen on developing relationships with local vendors and suppliers and through this process, aims to create firstrate supply chain management, and maintain a continuous improvement of purchasing operations.

This dedication to the local area is part of a wide corporate social responsibility strategy for ODC. The company pays much

Byrne Equipment Byrne Equipment Rental, one of the largest and most diverse suppliers of plant and equipment in the GCC region, provided Oman Drydock with a power solution to run a 60 man accommodation camp at their Duqm Port project. The Byrne generators ran for a total of 19,000 hours over the 26 month period with preventative maintenance and an emergency service response 24/7 supplied by Byrne. Byrne would like to thank ODC for using their services.

attention to CSR, and the board of directors recently allocated a sum of money for investing in a number of developmental projects, supporting ODC’s belief in boosting the social role of the company in Al Wusta Region.

It is also constantly working to create job opportunities for young and talented individuals. It believes that every job requires particular skills and gives particular attention to employing individuals with a positive attitude, an inclination to work hard and a willingness to develop new skills in a challenging and invigorating work environment.

Because ODC values its partnerships with employees as much as its clients, the HR department takes an active interest in employees growth, providing guidance and counselling as well as opportunities to train in a variety of skills.

Since the company was founded, it has seen great success, and has also secured a number of certifications that attest to its allround capability, including ISO 9001 and 18001 certifications for quality and health & safety. The yard’s strategic location, climate, world-class yard facilities, technical support from DSME, and integrated services already provide ODC’s customers great advantages, and as it moves into the future with further ambitions, ODC is set to become one of the most preferred dry dock companies across the globe. l

Oman Drydock Company (ODC)

www.omandrydock.com • Operates a partnership with DSME • New dock constructions planned • Constantly looking to expand business offering

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Profile: Deep Down Inc.

‘

Get er

down

E

stablished in 1997 by founder, chief executive officer, president and executive director Ron Smith, Houston headquartered Deep Down Inc. provides proven services and solutions to major oil firms operating globally in the offshore exploration and production industry.

With a core focus on complex deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil production distribution system support services as well as the development of innovative technologies used between platform and wellhead, Deep Down’s dedicated, expert team of project managers and engineers ensure the swift progression and safe, successful execution of all projects.

A lean, mean machine that is run by seniors who thrive in challenging situations, Deep Down is trusted by virtually all of the major oil firms and works for three groups of customers: operators/oil companies representing 52 per cent of the company’s income, OEMs with 36 per cent of the company’s income and installation contractors with 11 per cent. “We work for all of the oil companies, Chevron, BP, Exxon, Noble Energy, Statoil, CNOOC, basically everybody that is interesting to a company like us. We also work for umbilical manufacturers such as Nexans and Parker as well as installation contractors such as Technip, Subsea 7 and Hereema. Not only that, but we also supply some of our competitors in certain markets,” highlights Ron. Benefiting from Ron’s offshore expertise and eye for opportunity, the company has developed and strengthened its services in line with market and customer demand since its inception. “We started managing installations and I realised

the deck of vessels were lacking critical services or didn’t have the right personnel or equipment on deck to deliver testing and monitoring services quickly and accurately. Deep Down began offering these services and then realised that at the end of these installations the contractors may not have the correct deck equipment to get the subsea equipment on and off platforms, so we set up a post commissioning services option. Basically our whole history has been about putting together solutions for customers and then adding these solutions to our own service range or product line,” says Ron. Indeed, Ron has been directly responsible for the invention

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 37

Profile: Deep Down Inc.

or development of a diverse range of innovative solutions used in the offshore industry, such as the first steel tube flying lead installation system. Today, having successfully supplied loose steel flying leads (LSFLs) for more than a decade, the company is now known as a pioneer of the product’s development and is a leading manufacturer of cost-effective, high quality, hydraulic, electrical and fiber optic LSFLs. “Our new 215,000 square foot facility in Houston has been manufacturing a lot of steel flying leads as we speak. We recently received orders for steel tube flying leads and long-term associated services in the Gulf of Mexico and West Africa in 2013; these projects are proceeding perfectly. We also delivered a significant amount of flying leads to Australia, so there is a huge influx of deliveries going all over the world,” says Ron. Another product to enjoy huge demand is the company’s patented non-helical umbilical (NHU), which combines its expertise in making miles of loose steel flying leads, of observing the installation behaviour of all umbilicals as well as terminating conventional steel umbilicals. The portable manufacturing and easily transported NHU System can be set up anywhere that full-sized steel tube infield umbilicals can be produced up to ten miles in length. Super-duplex tubes of standard number and size, the NHU can be additionally equipped with either electrical or optical components and is intended for both static and shortterm dynamic service applications.

“The beauty of the NHU is its mobile manufacturing process. It can be taken over to any location that doesn’t have

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the Deep Down brand; thanks to our mobile capabilities, the manufacturing equipment can be installed with minimal mobilisation or demobilisation costs through the utilisation of local content. This gives back to local areas and is getting a lot of people excited,” highlights Ron. “This product has some unique concepts and will be a major part of our future in the mobile umbilical making process.”

Despite a relatively small number of personnel, for a publicly traded company, the company boasts an excellent reputation and long list of major oil customers that stems from its longterm expertise and ‘can-do’ attitude in the face of extremely challenging projects. “We are growing, working for multiple customers requiring subsea hardware and subsea services then coming up with solutions for installation, production or emergencies and situations like that,” enthuses Ron. “We have so much going on in regards to solutions that we aren’t allowed to talk about, but a whole lot of people in the industry know that if you are in a tight spot you go to Deep Down because we get things done.”

An example of the company’s ability to prevent an uncontrollable release of hydrocarbons are its Riser Isolation Valve (RIV) and Subsea Isolation Valve (SSIV) control systems, which are being installed onto platforms as part of Emergency Shutdown Systems (ESDS). By integrating Deep Down’s installation friendly subsea distribution system components, the control rooms on platforms can thus operate SSIVs and also monitor the valve position in open/closed circles. Designed to control and monitor up to 12 RIVs on a single platform, the single RIV systems can be installed both onshore and offshore in addition to installations on new or existing riser systems. This innovative technology is leading the way in enabling a safer future within the oil and gas industry. “This product prevents a potential Macondo catastrophe where if the oil and gas gets past the BOP stack or the subsea tree the operators don’t want it creating a problem for the platform. Our highly robust RIV systems block off the flow at the bottom of the platform and are perfect for retrofit projects,” says Ron. Boasting approximately $200 million in quotes and $29 million in back log, Deep Down is enjoying ongoing demand for its services and products that is certain to continue long into the future. With clear aims for the ongoing success of Deep Down, Ron concludes: “Our plan is to increase the installation of our flying leads then expand our NHU business to the point we can use more of our subsea distribution components and connect the dots within the market. We also want to work in parallel in several of these market areas without compromising on the quality of our services. Deep Down will expand into several teams of equal capability but still retain our mobile philosophy that will all be posted out of our Houston facility. Ultimately our aim is to increase our sales content in new locations through a potential new base facility and continue to demonstrate our expanded capabilities.” l

O

De se pr in an loo RO ba su an hi te

T T

Deep Down Inc.

www.deepdowninc.com • Provide a broad range of services to the oil and gas industry • Works with major blue-chip organisations • Has created innovative solutions and industry firsts

F T

Our 17 th Year!

Deep Down, Inc. is an oilfield services company serving the worldwide offshore exploration and production industry. Its proven services and solutions include distribution system installation support and engineering services, umbilical terminations, loose-tube steel flying leads, installation buoyancy, ROVs and tooling, marine vessel automation, and ballast control systems. Deep Down supports subsea engineering, installation, commissioning, and maintenance projects through specialized, highly experienced service teams and engineered technological solutions.

New Operations Center!

Deep Down’s new operations center is so big, it is difficult to get it in a photo. 215,000 square feet to serve you better. 20 acres of subsea equipment storage/fabrication.

Call Deep Down for a quote on your project.

NHU non-helical umbilical • Ease of installation • Manufactured anywhere The patented Deep Down concept is portable and easily transported for setup anywhere in the world.

Full-sized steel tube infield umbilicals can be manufactured up to 10 miles in length, incorporating appropriate percentages of local content and installed on vessels in the vicinity of subsea fields.

All using compact, portable Deep Down equipment.

Portable umbilical manufacture.

Deep Down can fabricate on site and then load your vessel for installation - almost anywhere.

THINK CAROUSELS - THINK ALL SIZES THINK DEEP DOWN! Deep Down, Inc. has designed an extraordinary fully scalable carousel system that can be manufactured to handle 1000 MT or up to 9000 MT. Utilising the latest technology available, Deep Down Inc. engineers designed this unit with safety and flexibility in mind. This sophisticated, sectioned carousel is highly flexible allowing storage and deployment of several cables or umbilicals at the same time. The modular sections provide more compliance and relief against tolerance issues yet remain easy to ship. The ability to bulk transport standardized umbilical cross sections has the additional advantage of reducing delivery costs.The removable and moveable termination porches offer more flexibility in termination placement and handling. This feature allows the umbilical to be cut and terminated near the termination assembly supplier, again reducing costs.

For further information: Deep Down Inc. 15473 East Freeway, Houston TX 77530 USA Tel +(1) 281-862-2201 Fax +(1) 281-862-2522 sales@deepdowninc.com www.deepdowninc.com

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Profile: Breadbox Shipping Lines

Using its

loaf

E

stablished in 2001 as a provider of reefer liner services for the Dutch onion and potato trade to West Africa, Breadbox Shipping Lines has developed its services over the last 13 years to offer a diverse spectrum of liner, parcel and chartering services for the trade lanes between Europe and West Africa. The largest division of Breadbox Holding Group and well reputed as a specialist of West Africa, the company benefits from its extensive knowledge and foothold within this currently booming region.

Previously featured in Shipping and Marine magazine in September 2012, Breadbox Shipping’s fleet and activities have more or less remained the same, as founder and managing director Joris Bakker begins: “We have five ships owned by www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 41

42 - www.shippingandmarine.co.uk

Profile: Breadbox Shipping Lines

the group as well as a number of ships on time charter, either on long-term or a on trip-out basis. This comprises our entire package; at any time we are operating a fleet of 12-15 ships that are partly owned. This is a healthy mix that allows us to remain

Cory Brothers Shipping Cory Brothers Shipping is proud to be the UK agent of Breadbox Shipping offering UK clients a fast personal flexible service with the option of direct UK calls for sufficient cargoes. Together, Cory Brothers and Breadbox Shipping can offer solutions for your Mauritanian and Senegalese cargo requirements. Having a long standing and close working relationship with its principals it is the UK’s most trusted liner agent and represent many shipping lines with services worldwide.

flexible and react to market developments, such as fluctuation in volumes or seasonality “We are focused on West Africa, an area that is still developing and is especially driven by the mining and oil and gas industries.

We are surfing on this wave, but are also focused on niche trades and offer a close service to all of our clients to maintain our diversity. As a relatively small company, with 15 staff members at our headquarters and four personnel at our regional office in Dakar, we can stay very close to our clients needs and requirements and quickly act on possible changing market circumstance. By staying lean and mean and very focused we are able to successfully manage our parcel and liner services and are continuously looking at further expansion of our activities.

Using specialised reefer vessels that depart from Flushing to Nouakchott and Dakar, the company’s founding service offers between 35 and 45 sailings annually. “The reefer service is the backbone of the company and our core business area; we have been doing this since day one and charter our reefer vessels, sometimes on a weekly basis, to load them with palletised potatoes and onions under decks in temperature controlled holds.

In Flushing the cargo is loaded at Kloosterboer, a specialised reefer terminal, until the vessel arrived; meanwhile, in Dakar, Breadbox Shipping operates a dedicated 5000 metre squared terminal to cater for storage and distribution,” highlights Joris.

The second service to be developed by the company was its timber and log liner service, which began in 2006. Focusing on Dakar and Cabo Verde, Breadbox Shipping’s timber liner service is managed from its Dakar office and was developed to reposition www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 43

Profile: Breadbox Shipping Lines

vessels coming from Central Africa back to West or North Africa.

Frequent positions are offered from locations such as the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Douala, Daka and Cabo Verde, with potential for Casablanca and European ports. Discussing the service, Joris stated: “We chartered the northbound return leg of ro-ro vessels that were carrying cars from the Netherlands to Nigeria and used them to service the timber industry, mainly transporting sawn timber in bundles from West Africa to Dakar, Senegal, and Cape Verde. We still operate this service today but now use a combination of ro-ro ships and multi-purpose vessels (MPVs).

This is because not every port in West Africa is suited to ro-ro operations, nor are ro-ro’s suitable for the shipments of logs.”

Two years on, the company’s Iberia multi-purpose parcel service began, with a core focus on the transportation of steel from the Iberian continent to West Africa. In addition, East Med multi purpose parcel services, dedicated to the steel trades from Turkey and the Black Sea to West Africa, became a part of Breadbox Shipping’s offering. “We offer multi-purpose parcel services in Spain and Portugal going down to West Africa, this is mainly for steel parcels and some deck parcels and the same service is offered from Turkey.

“On top of this, as an offspring of Breadbox Shipping’s reefer liner service we offer the highly specialised Mauritanian Express service, which is mainly used for the mining industry. We tend to ship excavators, trucks, piping and steels; anything that is needed

to supply the mining and oil and gas industries,” says Joris.

For this service the company added the MV Breadbox Falcon to its fleet in 2011. A 3500 ton, twin deck multi-purpose vessel, the Falcon boasts two 50 tonne cranes to reach a combinable 100 tonne lifting capacity that makes its highly suitable for small project cargos and coastal traffic.

With between five to seven geared coastal vessels, ranging between 2.750 dead weight tonnes and 7.250 deadweight tonnes, based permanently on the West African coast, Breadbox Shipping is wholly able to serve local coastal trades in Africa. Trading mainly between Mauritania and Cameroon, these vessels are managed by the company’s office in Dakar and tend to transport local cement, salt and timber on top of shipping project cargoes in the area. Not only focused on transportation, the company is dedicated to developing exceptionally strong relationships with clients and has thus expanded its network to ensure it is represented in each port in West Africa.

Looking ahead, Joris is positive about the future of Breadbox Shipping, yet remains cautious of challenges within the market.

“Port congestion is a big challenge, particularly in areas we are active such as Gabon, Congo and Mauritania, where there was a strike situation that involved one vessel blocking large part of the operational port. Another issue is the risk of piracy in Nigerian waters, so there are two very important challenges we need to overcome in the future. However, there are strong business opportunities in Africa, particularly in the mining industry; a lot of projects are on standby due to economical and political issues, but our strategy is to stay close to our clients and follow these projects to ensure we adapt and set up our services for this rapidly developing continent,” he concludes. l

Breadbox Shipping Lines

www.breadbox-shipping.com • Links Europe and West Africa • West Africa specialist • Provides a diverse range of services

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Profile: Unigas

A united

F

fleet

ounded in 1969, Unigas specialises in the safe and efficient global transportation of petrochemical and petroleum gases and has developed a solid order book of long-term contracts for affreightment and time charters with many of the major international oil, gas and chemical firms. Today operating 42 vessels that are controlled by the Pool Members of the Unigas Consortium, Unigas provides high quality customer service and flexibility to remain competitive in the rapidly evolving shipping market. Indeed, this large, modern

and technologically advanced fleet, comprised of semi-ref or full pressurised type, enables the company to meet and surpass the highest quality and operating standards in any part of the world its services are required.

Owned by Germany based Schulte Group, Sloman Neptun and Denmark’s Ultragas Europe, Unigas benefits from the long-term expertise and reputation that all three of its well-established shareholders have accumulated in the shipping industry over the decades and operates with a confident, long-term outlook that

m.v. Happy Penguin (6,800 cbm ethylene carrier, leaving Busan upon delivery in June 2013

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Left: m.v. Gammagas and m.v. Thetagas, loading butene-1 and ethylene respectively

holds it in good stead throughout challenging periods in the gas shipping market.

Previously featured in Shipping and Marine magazine in July 2013, Ian Woolley, managing director of Unigas International, gave an update on the fleet expansion and delivery schedule for the new ships: “In the intervening period, we have sold our two

GAC GAC has been supporting Unigas International’s operations in the UK and Netherlands with an integrated range of shipping, logistics and offshore services since 1979. A specialist in the oil & gas sector with more than 10,000 employees in over 40 countries around the world, GAC has the global insight, expertise and resources to deliver the solutions to drive your business to success. For professional, cost-effective ship agency services and much more in Europe and beyond, think GAC.

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oldest vessels, have taken delivery of the final vessels in the series of six 6800 cbm newbuildings and look forward to receiving the first of the six 12,000 cbm newbuildings later this year. The remaining five 12,000 cbm newbuildings will be delivered in the course of 2015.”

The new vessels are ‘semi-ref’, which stands for ‘semipressurised and fully refrigerated’ and means the vessels have the versatility to carry most products at fully refrigerated temperature while also under a semi-pressurised atmosphere as opposed to standard market options for a fully-refrigerated vessel or pressurised ship. They all additionally have ethylene carrying capability.

Viewing the smaller size vessels as suitable for both intraregional operations and business in between different regions, Unigas presently has three out of the six 6800 cbm newbuildings in the growing Asian market, alongside seven out of the 11 pressurised vessels within the company’s fleet. These pressurised vessels are carrying a diverse range of products such as VCM, petrochemical gases and LPG. Despite this increase in demand for services in Asia providing employment opportunities and potential long-term contracts for a number of the vessels, some of the smaller semi-ref vessels will also be operating in the more traditional areas of Europe and the Americas, which means the company must be prepared for the upcoming low sulphur fuel legislation that is being introduced by the EU/USA in January 2015. Discussing this issue,

Profile: Unigas m.v. Zetagas (6800 cbm ethylene carrier, delivered 2013 and proceeding up the Houston ship channel)

Ian said: “This issue is going to affect all types of shipping in the North Sea/Scandinavian region, as well as the USA, where there will likely be little, or no alternative, in the ultra low sulphur emission areas, to switch to distillate/gas oil for main engine consumption.”

Unigas’ newer vessels will be able to operate their main engines on gas or fuel oil without further adaptation; in addition, the company has implemented modern, environmentally friendly technology onto its vessels. “The main engines and hull designs that we have chosen for the two sets of new buildings are more efficient so fuel consumption is going to be up to 30 per cent less than it would have been as little as five years ago, and will have lower CO2 levels as well. The next stage will be for us to decide whether, as part of a permanent solution, we have dual fuel engines, or exhaust gas scrubbers, fitted into any future series of smaller vessels which may regularly trade in the low sulphur emission areas,” said Ian. Unigas has a centrally operated technical/quality/ safety vetting department based in Rotterdam, which acts as the interface with the oil/gas industry, enabling a pro-active view on these critical issues and to enable a direct fleet-wide dialogue with the oil and chemical majors. All three consortium members are

utilising in-house crewing and technical management divisions, which add to the overall deliverance of quality in this highly sensitive shipping branch.

Taking advantage of its structure under the umbrella of three multi-generational, privately owned industrial ship owners, Unigas can keep abreast of new regulations and trends within the industry. For example, by making shrewd investments at critical times in the market, the company acquired more efficient vessels from a high quality shipyard for a lower cost. Viewing ships as part of its long-term fleet is a key strength of Unigas that will hold it in good stead as the market looks set to continue picking up significantly over the coming years in both existing long-haul trade patterns and with new opportunities linked to shale oil and gas in the USA,which has now joined countries from the Middle East in having access to cheaper prime energy, as Ian concluded: “In the next three to four years, petrochemical expansions and planned investments in crackers will come on stream in both regions; we then expect to see new exports of petrochemical gases, also from the USA, which will likely include ethane, ethylene and propylene, as well as the LPG which has already started. A potentially significant change in Middle Eastern product volumes over the longer term could arise when/if Iranian sanctions are suspended for a longer period, or lifted completely.

Such a scenario should be in the overall benefit of the vessel size range in which Unigas operates.”

The ongoing macro-economic and geo-political challenges, which, while improving, may continue to impact the gas shipping market for a while longer. However, Unigas is well-placed to adapt to these ever-changing challenges, with a growing, modern fleet with both a global and key regional hubs serviced by the three offices in Europe, Asia and the Americas. l

Unigas

www.unigas.nl • Global transporter of petroleum and petrochemical gases • Six new vessels to be delivered in 2014/2015 • Opportunities linked to shale oil and gas

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Profile: Österreichischer Lloyd Seereederei (Cyprus) Ltd Captain Eberhard Koch

Extending its

T

he history of Österreichischer Lloyd (ÖL) began with the motto ‘Steaming ahead’ in 1836. By the turn of the 20th century ÖL was one of the biggest shipping companies in the world, however it ceased trading upon the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, remaining dormant until its rebirth as a shipowning company in 1951. A shipmanagement subsidiary was established in 1991, for both in-house and third party vessels trading from Limassol in Cyprus with offices located close to the port. In 2008, the business undertook a major transformation, withdrawing as a third party manager and evolved to concentrate purely on ownership signifying the start of Österreichischer Lloyd Seereederei (Cyprus) Ltd. With a proven expertise and comprehensive range of services, the owned fleet expanded through the delivery of newly constructed MPV newbuildings between 2008 and 2010. Each vessel is deployed under long-term time charter agreements or pool-arrangements, supported by existing relationships with worldwide principals, charterers, bankers, suppliers and associates. The operation of owned vessels has ensured an increase in market power in terms of supply and flexibility.

“We have a strong and solid fleet of seven multipurpose vessels with a young average age of just over five and a half years.

neck

At present, we are seeking long-term strategic partnerships to further strengthen our business by encapsulating today's market opportunities driven by the low ship evaluations for new and second hand vessels,” says Captain Koch. With experience in all types of seagoing transport, the business has predominately focused and specialised in the MPP segment. “Container ships are an integral part of the transport chain linked closely to shore side

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transport. Our MPP’s are 618 TEU containers equipped with two x 40 ton Macgregor cranes. Five sister vessels are under pool-arranged time charters and the remainder of the fleet is under straight time charter to first class operators,” he adds. Employment in a commercial pool eliminates short-term market fluctuations whilst at the same time secures regular income increasing market power. The business is in a position to accommodate the management of up to an additional six vessels.

Keeping focused on the development of personnel, practical and theoretical skills training is regularly provided. Within the business exists a multitude of skills, knowledge and experience, which is updated through a continuous learning process. “Our efficient and conscientious teams both onboard and ashore are one of our most valuable assets. Being highly trained, they are fully conversant with technological maritime market developments, which subsequently results in considerable savings passed on to all our clients,” says Capt. Koch.

The management consists of commercial, technical, financial and administrative expertise. Covering concept and projection, investor reporting and management updating, equity acquisition, contract management, stringent finance and cost control management performance is under one roof. Capt. Koch points out: “It demonstrates our

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Profile: Österreichischer Lloyd Seereederei (Cyprus) Ltd

willingness to further consider potential third party services and we are very proud of our main assets. Onboard personnel are exclusively employed through MED Crew, consisting of a pool of approximately 250 seafarers who have up to 25 years of loyalty and dedication having undertaken extensive orientation training additional to the continuous onboard training.”

As members of the Cyprus Shipping Chamber (CSC), the business is able to offer the younger generation opportunities within the industry through association with several maritime institutions, which are dedicated to education and continuous training within the industry. Investing in trained and competent crew onboard is also vital to the company’s performance and efficiency. All personnel undertake appropriately related theoretical and practical courses.

“Like all shipowners there have been challenging, trying and stressful times. However, with strong negotiation skill sets and transparency throughout the company we have been collectively able to overcome these. One of our beliefs through the business is that the combination of the right structure and the right focus will attribute to the right result. The size of ÖL within the global shipping industry will play a more significant role in the future.

By strengthening our business across all aspects we can be in a position to take advantage of such opportunities,” Capt. Koch says. Through investment in market orientated and specialised shipping segments ÖL aims to counter balance market trends, taking advantage of industry specific conditions that optimise growth in terms of tonnage, welcoming new additions to the fleet.

“The economic climate is generally now less cloudy and prospects worldwide, particularly including Europe, have become increasingly more favourable. In fact, 2013 unfortunately saw a reduction in the introduction of new tonnage. Shipowner’s placed too many new tonnage orders to secure the last low newbuilding prices on top of the over supply. Simultaneously, second-hand values are increasing and cash buyers from the Far East to Greece are in a position to purchase vessels. The market has also seen an additional encouraging aspect through the heightened activity of scrapping.

“Nevertheless, it is clear that whilst the market is indicative of an uplift, it will take a little while longer for the unprecedented growth in tonnage to be absorbed and for a healthy return on investment to materialise. As shipowners, we cannot avoid this tough situation although we can avoid adding more tonnage to the already existing over supply. As managers of the vessels, we strive to maintain the continued financial strength by retaining the vessels in very good and safe shape remaining OPEX stable.

Shipowners are left to contend with the ever-increasing liabilities imposed upon them under the International Convention,” explains Capt. Koch.

Asia will almost certainly have to look to its own economic strength in the years ahead. In shipping terms, that is likely to lead to a sharp rise in Intra-Asian trades. A report published last year by United Overseas Bank of Singapore indicated that the global economy would increase by 73 per cent between 2010 and 2020 with Asian trade flows among the key drivers.

“This year’s trade within Asia, particularly to and from China and the Association of South East Asian nations region and between Asian countries themselves is expected to register strong growth and this should allow rates to harden further. Another factor that has accounted for the lift in charter rates for smaller

ships has been that the past two years has seen the most aged and fuel inefficient units scrapped with some tightness in supply arising as a consequence,” Capt. Koch concludes. l

Österreichischer Lloyd Seereederei (Cyprus) Ltd

www.oelsm.com • Strong and solid multi-purpose fleet • Seeking continuous growth • Focused on development of personnel

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Port of Umeå. Photo: Lars Lindh/City of Umeå

Practically

minded

U

meå Hamn is a year-round port, located in one of Sweden's fastest expanding regions, known for its high quality, strong customer orientation and a high level of service. Managed by the Port of Umeå AB, it is the country’s most northerly container port. Strategically located at the natural shortest route across the northern Gulf of Bothnia, the catchment area covers northern Sweden, Norway and Finland.

With the natural harbour providing a shelter from harsh winter conditions, it has become an important logistical hub for the whole of northern Scandinavia. It handles an annual cargo of 2.3 million tonnes, evenly split between import and export with 50 per cent of trade consisting of forest products such as kraft liner, wood products, recycled fibre and wood fuels. Other goods include liquid fuels such as oil, animal feed, cement, food, windmills, ferry goods, steel products, peat and intermediate goods for industry.

Before the 1920’s, vessels would sail up the Ume River to the historic port in the city, but as vessel size and numbers increased, the decision was made to establish a port remotely

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at the river’s mouth, 15 kilometres south of the city. As a hub it has become one of the three pillars of the Nordic Logistics Centre (NLC), which integrates the port with a transport terminal and logistics park to offer complete sea, road and rail services to the region.

As one of the largest ports in northern Scandinavia, Freight traffic has had a steady increase since the 1970s with frequent scheduled services to and from the continent and Finland. The port covers an area of 92 acres with 26 companies based at the site, employing over 360 personnel. With regular departures to the US, Scandinavia, Europe and the Mediterranean area, over 800 vessels call at the port each year. By spreading its interests across several industries, the port has managed to continue business growth over the last four years.

Organisations operating from the port include SCA, Statoil, Lantmannens Foderfabrik, Vasterbottens fodercentral, Wasaline, Nynas and iLogistic. Most are highly dependant on good infrastructure in terms of road, railways and an effective port. The facilities at Port of Umeå have been geared towards its position as an important container port, including several

Profile: Umeå Hamn

Left: Cargo arriving with the ferry from Vasa (Finland) to the port of Umeå. Photo: Johan Gunseus Below: Around 50 per cent of trade consists of forest products. Photo: Stefan Rehn Below left: Cargo handling at the intermodal terminal NLC in Umeå.

Photo: Andreas Nilsson/INAB

Below photos: Malin Grönborg

long berths as well as heavy lift cranes. There are 11 berths in total including three of 150 metres, one of 172 metres and one of 350 metres as well as a 66 metre quay and an 80 metre quay dedicated to oil. “We have worked on building the infrastructure so that we are prepared for the increase in business as the market continues to recover from economic problems,” says Curt Kristofferson, managing director.

The scope of works included improvements to road links and the electrification of the railway running parallel to the ferry in the harbour. The construction was completed in October 2013 establishing a vital logistic solution to and from the ferry port and outer harbour. The project was co-funded by the Municipality of Umeå, the EU, and the Swedish Transport Administration and Growth Board.

“The port is in an area of increasing population, and while many smaller ports become redundant, major ports like ourselves will continue to grow,” adds Curt, continuing: “We are at the crossroads of two major motorways, the north-south E4 and east-west E12, and now, an electrified railway in the port that supports the good fairways for the ships. The new

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 53

Profile: Umeå Hamn NLC is a concept that aims to increase the amount of transports conducted by rail and sea. Photo: Andreas Nilsson/INAB

electrified rail eliminates the need for diesel locomotives, and also increases the speed of the service whilst lowering the cost.”

The double track Bothnia Line railway continues beyond the area and into the heart of the country.

The renewed infrastructure supports the realisation of the NLC-Corridor, an international logistics route facilitating travel between Norway and Russia via the Port of Umeå and the Finnish port of Vasaa. Having recognised the challenges facing the business, the expanded infrastructure is sufficient to accept increasingly larger vessels. Lengthening quays, strengthening cranes, and increasing the speed and efficiency of work are highlighted in its strategy. As the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Annex IV sulphur regulations come into force in 2015, the company continues to focus on the structure in the port to efficiently carry out operations whilst coinciding with the new regulations.

Over the next 12 months, the business is driven towards the development of the passenger and cargo ferry service to

Finnish Mantsinen Group Oy Ltd Finnish Mantsinen Group Oy Ltd is committed to provide lowest cost per ton solutions for ports, terminals and industrial plants world-wide. Mantsinen material handlers are built for purpose, taking into account specific customer needs. Port of Umeå is using two Mantsinen material handlers in its port operations. Over the years Mantsinen material handlers have proven to be reliable and effective machines especially in handling large volumes of forest industry products and bulk cargo.

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its largest neighbouring port, Vasaa in Finland. Expanding its interests in the handling of cargo and containers, the business is producing plans to construct a new terminal, close to the ferry terminal, dedicated to the intermodal handling of cargo. “The sea transport business is in a changing mood as it increasingly becomes more global and subject to environmental restrictions.

We expect to see an increase in larger vessels that require a faster turnaround in the port. With the preparations that we have made, we are ready to hold our position as an important player, now and in the future,” concludes Curt. l

Umeå Hamn

www.umeahamn.se • Large storage space and warehouse • Infrastructure ready for growing demand • Modern road and rail links to port

Profile: Swedish Orient Line

Operational

S

excellence

wedish Orient Line AB (SOL) is a ship owner, operator and manager, specialising in complete transport solutions for project and contract cargo, with more than 50 per cent of its business being trade on the Mediterranean.

Ragnar Johansson was appointed as managing director of the company in January 2014. He previously worked for Swedish Orient Line for the last five years in a position as MD for two of the Group’s subsidiaries, SOL North Europe Service AB and SOL Continent Line AB and is therefore ideally positioned to give a breakdown of how the company operates. “The company was founded in 1911, with the purpose of operating vessels between the Nordic countries and Eastern Mediterranean,” he began. “As it was then, today our biggest business segment is the transportation of forest products from Sweden/Finland to Egypt and Israel, and the Swedish and Finnish forest industry (direct or indirect) remains one of our major customers. The others are the main European freight forwarders such as LKW Walter, Schenker, DHL and DSV, as well as the military administrations from a number of western countries, whose trust helps to cement our reputation for quality and reliability.”

SOL is 100 per cent owned by Imperial Shipping Ltd based in London, and Ragnar credits the entrepreneurial owners,

Laurence Coleman and Michael Kjellberg, as one of its competitive strengths. “Their legacy forms our way of working,” he said. “We are fast moving, customer oriented and devoted to do business.”

He added another important benefit of being owned by a UK

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company: “It gives us the right of flying the UK flag, and this represents European quality and a vast competence within the maritime administration.”

Ragnar continued with some details on some of SOL’s subsidiaries: “Our daughter company TransProCon’s main business is project, contract cargo and chartering. TransProCon is also one of the biggest suppliers of Ro-Ro capacity to the military forces in Europe, US and Canada.

“SOL Continent Line is the brand name for our short sea liner service between Hanko in Finland to Rostock in Germany. We operate two Ro-Ro vessels with four weekly departures in both directions.

“Finally, SOL North Europe Service has an assignment to operate Stora Enso’s system traffic, on a management basis, which handles approximately three million tonnes/year. I am very proud of this last management contract, as Stora Enso is the biggest forest industry company in the world. The fact that it has chosen us as the outsourcing partner for its North European traffic system recognises our quality.”

To maintain a leading position in the market requires a modern fleet and SOL recently invested in three new vessels. Ragnar explained that these came about after the acquisition of a new route: “When we obtained the route Hanko-Rostock from Scandlines, we also inherited three vessels,” he said. “These were

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Profile: Swedish Orient Line

two Ro-Ro sister ships, Aurora and Merchant, plus a ropax vessel, Urd. Urd was sold to Stena Line 2013.

“Aurora, now renamed as Vikingland, is operating on our Hanko-Rostock service together with Vasaland, a sister vessel that we already had in our fleet. Merchant is currently trading on the spot market.”

He highlighted that the investment in these new vessels strengthened the company’s service offering: “With the vessels came a liner service,” added Ragnar. “The route Hanko-Rostock is the shortest route between Finland and Germany and that fact will become more important when the SECA-regulations come into force in 2015.

“We are able to decrease speed in order to save fuel but still maintain two weekly roundtrips. From the SECA perspective it will be better to have two good and cheap vessels on a short route, than expensive vessels on a long route, and that possibility is really strengthening our service offering.”

the company towards further development, but his current focus is on strengthening the current business: “We are strong in the break bulk segment from the Baltic to the Med, but nevertheless, the lowest hanging fruits are often hidden in your present set up, so I will be looking at consolidation and focusing on increased efficiency in the company and in our business processes,” he stated.

“I would also like to develop the management model we have with Stora Enso. We have already proven ourselves as a competent and reliable partner to a huge manufacturing company, and I think there are many others that could benefit from our shipping and logistic skills.”

He also has a longer-term vision, as he concluded: “Basically this is to strengthen our position in the segments we are in, both the historical ones and where we are today. We might very well find some new business opportunities ahead but that remains to be seen.

At the moment operational excellence is the way forward as the market begins to grow again.” l

Swedish Orient Line AB

www.sollines.se • New MD appointed in Jan 2014 • Fleet of nine ships • Proud of relationship with Stora Enso

Another development from SOL is the addition of the northwest Africa region to the break bulk traffic from the Baltic Sea. “We were already a major player for the Baltic-Eastern Med break bulk traffic, and we saw it as a natural extension to widen the market in the Med and include countries like Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Libya,” explained Ragnar.

The changing SECA rules that he mentioned are going to pose a challenge to the entire industry, but he sees them also as an opportunity for SOL: “The transport map will to some extent be re-drawn,” he said. “It remains to be seen who will end up on the winners side, but in general I like to focus more on opportunities than challenges.”

He added: “As with many other shipping companies, I would say that we are in a phase of consolidation. Since Lehman Brothers, the shipping markets have not really recovered. We can now see a flickering light at the end of the tunnel and believe that there is a brighter future coming for the segments we are operating in. As an entrepreneurial company we are always interested and willing to look at any business opportunity that we might come across.”

As the new MD of SOL, Ragnar has a strategy in place to steer www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 57

Steaming to

success T

he Koepping Shipping Company was founded in 1984, when, after gaining sailing experience as an officer and a captain with respectable German shipping companies, Captain Jörg Köpping took the opportunity to become independent. He laid the foundation for the company with his first secondhand containership, named after his hometown Rendsburg, and since that time has invested in further secondhand and newbuild vessels, building up to today’s fleet of 16.

The main goal of the Koepping Shipping Company is the commercial success of its customers, and it maintains close business relationships and contacts with yards, banks, suppliers, insurance companies, charterers and shipbrokers. As Jörg Köpping noted, these are blue-chip clients: “Our main customers are Samskip, TS Lines, Yang Ming and other recognised maritime organisations,” he said.

In order to provide these clients with a high quality service, the company and its ships have been ISM (International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and for Pollution Prevention) certified by Germanischer Lloyd since 1998.

Each customer is looking for solutions to their own challenges; however, Koepping Shipping’s focus on slow steaming (which began in 2008) offers fuel saving benefits, which many charterers are looking for.

It was the first company to order Wärtsilä’s new Upgrade Kit for Slow-Steaming for RTA and RT-flex low-speed engines, as these enable shipowners and operators to make major savings in fuel costs while slow-steaming their ships. The Upgrade Kit allows Wärtsilä low-speed marine engines to be operated continuously at any power in the range of 20 per cent to 100 per cent. This means that with the Upgrade Kit ships can sail

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Profile: Koepping Shipping Company

overcomes such problems, enabling the engines to operate continuously at powers down to 20 per cent of their full installed power. The modified engine is not permanently derated but can operate at any time up to its full installed power. Owing to the characteristic power versus speed relationship of ship propellers, this extended operational power range enables ships to be sailed at sea speeds down to some 60 per cent of full speed.

Koepping Shipping Company installed the Upgrade Kits for two container vessels, each with a single eight-cylinder Wärtsilä RTA62U engine. The two ships, ‘Aglaia’ and ‘Lantau Arrow’, are 1200 TEU fast feeder container vessels.

They have a maximum speed of about 22 knots at design draft with the main engines delivering 15,000 kW at 107 rpm.

Jörg noted at the time of the order: “The Slow-Steaming Upgrade Kits will give these ships considerable flexibility to continuously at sea speeds down to some 60 per cent full speed.

High bunker prices have put fuel efficiency high on the agenda of charterers, shipowners and ship operators. There is thus considerable interest in slow steaming. Yet without modification with this Upgrade Kit, there is increased risk of engine fouling and excessive component temperatures when operating continuously below 50 per cent engine load. The Upgrade Kit

Golden Harvest Shipping Service As the leading Ship Chandler in China, Dubai, and Australia, Golden Harvest has in the past 17 years been providing Ship Managers and Owners all over the world with a reliable ‘One stop Service’.

Golden Harvest prides itself on efficiency and quality, successfully providing the best solutions for reputable owners such as Köpping with high quality stores, provisions, and spare parts. Both companies have been working closely together with effective communication to ensure smooth co-operation for many years. .

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Profile: Koepping Shipping Company

adapt to the present difficult market conditions, allowing great cost savings while slow steaming but retaining the capability for full speed whenever necessary.”

It is clear that Koepping Shipping values new technology that relates to fuel savings and it the company is considering investments in LNG, with a possible vessel conversion on the agenda in the future. “It is too early to say when this will happen, but we will keep a close eye on the market and develop as and when the opportunities arise,” said Jörg. “But 2014 will see us continuing to focus on saving fuel and all the aspects of this, as well as continuing to investigate other ways of managing vessels.”

The fleet of vessels under Koepping Shipping’s control operate half in Europe, and the other half in Asia. Jörg believes that Asia is where future growth will come, but the company is dedicated to all its customers and to support the European operation, it

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has invested in its own plane, in order for it to be able to be quickly on the scene when needed or to deliver urgent required spare parts. The Cessna T303 Crusader is fully IFR equipped and is able to fly in almost all weather conditions. It operates from the airfield Schachtholm that is located 5.6km to the west of Koepping Shipping’s office in Schuelp and it allows the organisation to react promptly when required.

Another way that Koepping Shipping is improving and maintaining its existing safety and quality standards is by continuously investing in crewmembers, especially in the area of training. Regular safety training sessions are held onboard and only modern and proven technology is in use on deck, on the bridge and in the engine room. Jörg noted that this is a good way to prepare for future challenges: “There are always complications along the way but I think we are quite confident that we can survive, and over the next three years we will continue to grow and thrive as we have so far,” he concluded. l

Koepping Shipping Company (Köpping Reederei GmbH) www.kship.de

• Celebrating 30th anniversary • Considering investing into LNG • Focus on slow steaming

Profile: Griffon Hoverwork

Original

invention

G

riffon Hoverwork, as it is recognised today, was established in 2008 with the acquisition of Griffon Hovercraft and Hoverwork by the Bland Group, which later merged the two entities into a single business during 2009. The merger united close to half a century of hovercraft design, manufacture and operational experience and today the company continues to deliver market-leading craft to appreciative clients all over the world.

Although an interesting mode of transport, capable of capturing the imagination of the general public and maritime operators alike, hovercraft technology is often thought of as a highly niche and specialised solution. Hovercraft provide a vital service in meeting the challenges of some of the planet’s most challenging terrain as, Griffon Hoverwork’s Managing Director

Hovertravel BHT 130 Solent Express

Adrian Went explains: “In its original guise during the 1960s and 1970s there was an impression that this amazing British invention of hovercraft would be the solution to all of the world’s transport problems, but we are obviously not in that mindset today. At Griffon Hoverwork we consider it a specialist marine vehicle that can access the inaccessible. If a client is dealing with huge intertidal range and needs to access the shoreline, then a hovercraft will get them there. Hovercraft can traverse marshes, rapids, ice-covered water, logs and other debris. They can be used to get people to shore dry shod unlike in a conventional landing craft. In coastal operations where there are sand bars that change location with the weather and there is a chance that the information regarding their location is not up-to-date, a hovercraft will get round that situation much more easily.”

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Profile: Griffon Hoverwork

Indian coast guard

Griffon Hoverwork retains its base in Southampton, from which it has delivered bespoke variations of its portfolio of small, medium and larger hovercraft designs to clients across the globe.

Although the company as it stands was founded in 2008, its roots can be traced back to the very beginnings of British hovercraft design. One significant advantage for Griffon Hoverwork is that through the inclusion of Hoverwork in its makeup, the company retains access to the original design portfolio of British Hovercraft Corporation (BHC). In striking a balance between the design breakthroughs of the BHC and the innovative steps taken by its expert research and development team, Griffon Hoverwork is able to remain at the forefront of hovercraft design.

As Adrian observes: “When the two companies were brought

Estonian border guard

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together we were able to retain much of the knowledge base and this includes people who were involved in the original days of hovercraft. This is important because although there is a written theory of hovercraft design, there is also a huge amount of empirical understanding that needs to be added to the design to always produce hovercraft that will work. We have applied that understanding in all of our work so that if for example, we say a hovercraft will do 50 knots then it will probably do 53 knots at trial. Whereas our competitors will say the craft can do 50 knots but it will only achieve 35 knots at trial. “Although hovercraft technology relies on a relatively simple principle, actually getting it to do what is actually specified is a little more challenging. We are lucky to have an vertically integrated capability here that designs everything from scratch and therefore we are very successful in delivering exactly what the customer is asking for.�

The client base of customers and the industries they serve are spread across an impressive spectrum of markets and locations.

While its main client base is centred on the defence and security markets including Coast Guards, Border Forces, Army and Navy counter insurgency forces, Griffon Hoverwork has also delivered craft designed for air crash rescue operations and for service in the oil and gas industry. Furthermore, it supplies its sister company, Hovertravel, with larger hovercraft deployed as transport craft in the ferry industry off the Isle of Wight.

To serve a global market that extends from South America through to the northern American continent, Canada through

Canadian coast guard

to Europe, Asia and even the Arctic region, Griffon Hoverwork ensures that it has a fully competent network of agents.

“When we select a local agent, it is absolutely essential that they understand our network and as such we provide them with formal training so they understand the way we work, our ethics and the legal framework that is in place,” Adrian says. “Then we provide them with effective support to help them to get out and use their relationships to develop the market for hovercraft.

Once things develop we have a small sales team that is on hand to support our agents at trade shows and help to secure sales. It’s a traditional; agent layered sales approach across different countries at different levels that we have developed into a very effective operation.”

As 2014 wears on Griffon Hoverwork will continue to ensure that it delivers world-class transport solutions in challenging environments to an ever-growing list of satisfied customers, both old and new. The company has a number of clients who have returned after ten to 20 years of reliable service from their craft, including the Indian Coast Guard, the Swedish Coast Guard and the UK Ministry of Defence. Like its forbearers in the early days of hovercraft development, Griffon Hoverwork is set to deliver innovative designs to its clients worldwide, not matter how challenging the environment may be. l

Colombian navy

Griffon Hoverwork

www.griffonhoverwork.com • An expansive global network of agents • Innovative design and research and development • A broad and robust client base

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Profile: UN Ro-Ro Isletmeleri

roll On a

E

Sedat Gumusoglu, chief executive officer

stablished by international transport firms in 1994 to meet demand for an alternative mode of transport to land routes, Turkey based UN Ro-Ro Isletmeleri AS has developed its services and market presence to become one of the fastest growing freight Ro-Ro operators in the Mediterranean region and the world. Following a 260 million euro investment in its fleet over the last five years, the company now has the capacity to meet a 60 per cent increase in truck transportation to Europe. Furthermore, it is also fully prepared for Turkey’s foreign trade target of $1 trillion by 2023.

With 20 years of experience in providing international transport companies with reliable, safe sea journeys through high-risk or challenging areas at a competitive price, the company is looking to further enhance its strengths and capabilities with strategic expansions and acquisitions, as Sedat Gumusoglu, chief executive officer of UN Ro-Ro Isletmeleri AS begins: “Since we last spoke to Shipping and Marine magazine in June last year we have added a new line, which departs from the port of Iskenderun, Turkey, before calling through port of Haifa and connecting to the port of Damietta in Egypt. This line will mainly serve the Turkey export trade that is destined for Saudi Arabia and Jordan, with the port of Haifa added to the line in January 2014 after conflict in Syria www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 65

led to the Syrian border gate being completely closed in 2012. With this Ro-Ro line we can pass this conflict and send cargo and trucks bound for Jordan to their final destination via this port.”

In addition to this development in its operations, UN Ro-Ro acquired the largest ship in its 12 strong fleet in 2013 and recently accumulated a 60 per cent stake in port of Trieste’s Samer Seaports terminal in Italy. Agreed in Trieste in December 2013, the deal represents the company’s first foreign venture and is a major step in its partners plans to become an intermodal infrastructure provider.

“We own and operate our port in Istanbul, own and operate our fleet of 12 vessels, including the now fully operational UN Istanbul, and we now own a stake in this Samer Seaports terminal. This is a major investment because we are not only acquiring the majority stake of this terminal, but will also continue with the development of our company here through a huge investment into Ro-Ro and rail systems,” says Sedat.

“By investing approximately eight million to ten million euros, we will not only be operating Ro-Ro lines, but will also have the capacity to handle six trains per day with approximately 200 trailer capacity per day. Both arriving and departing this will total a capacity of 400 trailers per day being diverted to several destinations in Europe; by connecting Ro-Ro with trains we will deliver an intermodal service directly to the inland of Europe.”

With plans to connect train transfers from Trieste to Austria, Germany and Luxembourg, this investment will enable customers to pick up their trailers close to their chosen final destination. Aside from convenience, other benefits include increased reliability, cost efficiency and more simplified operations; advantages that UN Ro-Ro has strived to deliver to customers since its earliest days in operation.

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“When our customers arrive at Trieste they faced driving restrictions because of permit issues in these countries, but our train service will allow them to load their cargo onto the train and pick it up one day after in their final destination. Another benefit is that our customers won’t have to replace their trailers with craneables; currently traditional truckers work with non-craneable trailers that are not suitable on trains, but through our work with Rail Cargo Austria we have developed a system that allows them to do this,” says Sedat.

With a mission to connect all lines and export destinations in Turkey with Europe where possible, the company is focusing on further developing its foothold in Egypt and Africa over the coming years, with North Africa exports expected to grow rapidly in the next five to ten year period. Although set up to serve Saudi Arabia during the Syrian conflict, this line will also enable services to

Profile: UN Ro-Ro Isletmeleri

customers in Africa and Egypt, as Sedat discusses: “Egypt is a huge country with a population of 80 million and major opportunities with regards to container traffic between Europe and Egypt. We currently have one sailing per week, but once the bi lateral trade agreement comes into effect, we will develop the truck traffic between Turkey and Egypt a lot more, with an every day service to Egypt.”

Ultimately, the core aim of the company is to strengthen its expanding network with train connections throughout Europe, which is set to become reality through its successful partnership with Rail Cargo Group. By working together, the two organisations will provide Turkey with improved connections to North-West Europe and help the country meet its goal of trebling trade volumes by 2023. “2014 is the year we will convert our company into an intermodal infrastructure provider; which already started by January by connecting Trieste to Wels, Trieste to Germany and will be completed with Luxembourg by the third quarter of this year,” concludes Sedat. l

UN Ro-Ro Isletmeleri

www.unroro.com.tr • New line to Egypt launched in 2013 • Acquired majority stake in Trieste Terminal • Converting into an intermodal infrastructure provider

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Sound

breaking S

ince Henning Smedegaard established the company in 1962, Smedegaarden has built a strong reputation as a reliable partner in ship breaking and recycling throughout the European Union and beyond. Today, the company remains a family run business managed by Henning and his sons and operates as one of only a few environmentally approved shipyards in Europe.

As a ship breaker Smedegaarden currently operates primarily in three areas, which are receiving ships and offshore equipment for recycling, worldwide trading of ships and the reselling of vessel parts and equipment to the industry. The company accepts vessels from all areas of industry; however offshore vessels and equipment are increasing becoming a common source of trade in terms of recycling and sales. As such, Smedegaarden houses a large stock of used electronic equipment, marine engines, gearboxes, winches and cranes etc that are suitable for commercial vessels of all sizes and type.

With EU regulations regarding the recycling of vessels and protection of the environment remaining relatively strict in comparison to other regions, there are only a few ship breakers in operation within Europe. With over 50 years of experience, Smedegaarden is a market leader within this sector making it the first choice for operators looking to dispose of aging vessels in a responsible manner. Its competent staff of around 30 employees is made up of experienced breakers as well as a number of trainees, who will ensure that the company is well positioned to continue

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to lead the industry over the years to come. “We take in between one and three trainees a year to train them to be part of the dismantling team,” says chief of sales Morten Smedegaard. “To do this correctly and to not harm the environment is a long process, it is not something a trainee can work on for two years and be fully experienced. Mostly, we say that trainee time for ‘greenhorns’ is about two to three years and to become fully familiar with the process can take around ten years.”

Profile: Smedegaarden

The market for breaking and recycling has shared in the fickle fortunes of the wider shipping sector over the past six to seven years, following the impact of the global recession. While the environmental importance of responsible decommission of assets continues to climb as an area of priority for operators throughout the world, the market for vessels and parts has been less certain as Morten elaborates: “A lot of shipping companies are taking more consideration in the way that they dispose of vessels and other assets to ensure that they are recycled in a environmentally correct fashion. This is certainly a growing field and represents further business to come. Aside from that, the selling of parts was very slow after the global financial crisis, but this has begun to pick up

again and we are now seeing quite a lot of growth in the sale of second hand parts.”

Increasingly, the strengths of the company and its half a century of experience are being recognised by collaborators and shipyards who are changing the way they operate and developing yards that function in the same way as those of Smedegaarden. Working with a varied group of businesses including ACE Winches, Atlantic Shipping Shipbrokers, Heimdal, Nauta S.A, and Maritimeparts the company has an established network of clients and contacts throughout Europe. From its base within the Esbjerg Harbour, Smedegaarden is close to Germany, Holland, the United Kingdom and Norway, which places it in a prime location to service the emerging recycling and supply needs in the region. “We have a good location for all the things going on in the North Sea,” Morten explains. “It is a growing market with extreme expansion within the offshore, oil, gas and wind segments. There is a huge amount of development going on and we are on course to see some of the benefits of that.”

The move into 2014 and beyond is set to be an interesting time for Smedegaarden, as it readies itself for the challenges of the booming North Sea sector, while also seeking to spearhead the responsible disposal of vessels both within and outside of Europe.

Macduff Shipyard We have worked with Smedegaarden for many years and have had great experience with them.

We look forward to the future and to working with Smedegaarden.

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Profile: Smedegaarden

A key focus for 2014 will be the formation of a collaborative organisation within Europe to support ship breaking and recycling as Morten elaborates: “It will be an independent organisation, of which we will be the founding member. Other associations exist within the maritime sector of the EU, but they are made up of various disciplines. We believe that Europe needs a brand that is focused on collaboration between recyclers who work together to ensure that legislation is observed. This will ensure that companies are recycling in the correct way, with a procedure team in operation carrying out inspections and making sure regulations are followed properly. It will also act internationally to observe the process of vessel recycling downstream. For example, it does not help to send

waste for incineration if the country in question does not have an incineration plant that can cope with the legislation in the field.

This is something that goes far beyond the recycling company, as we want to make sure that members have all of the necessary downstream organisation in place so that it is possible to follow every part of the vessel to its final destination.”

Longer term, over the next five to ten years Smedegaarden will look to push further into the world market and increase its global foot print with new facilities through the world. Although it has yet to decide upon a final location, the company is keen to explore areas outside of the EU as a potential base for future growth, as well as extending the reach of environmentally friendly vessel decommissioning. This will be an interesting challenge for Morten and the rest of the team as he prepares to take over leadership of the company from his father later on this year. Commenting on the future of Smedegaarden Morten concludes: “My brothers and I will soon take over the company once we have concluded some other projects that we are working on. While there is no set date in place, this will happen before the first of May. We of course have many wishes for where we would like to take the company, but a primary focus for us is to establish recycling outside of the EU. This will be the company’s focus over the next five to ten years, however if all goes well it could be achieved in as soon as three years.” l

Smedegaarden

www.smedegaarden.net • Ship and building breaker • Green vessel recycling • Parts sale and hire

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Profile: Spicer Gelenkwellenbau (GWB)

Driving

force T

he history of GWB began in 1946, when the company started refurbishing used drive shafts. Founded as a repair shop, within ten years the business progressed into the manufacture of drive shafts for heavy-duty vehicles. Having built up a reputation for global innovation, durability and quality performance, its products were the first to be developed specifically for diesel rail locomotives. In 1964 the company moved to its current location in Essen where it manufactures industrial drive shafts.

Recognised for its aptitude, in 2000 it was acquired by the Dana Group, a large multinational company. Dana has for over 110 years remained a global technology leader, with sales of ₏8 billion and over 24,000 employees it has close to 100 facilities in over 25 countries. GWB’s expertise is integrated into the off-highway unit, which has 15 facilities in

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Profile: Spicer Gelenkwellenbau (GWB)

Dirostahl ... this name stands for tradition and progress in the art of forging. Dirostahl covers the entire range of open die forgings for shipbuilding, power generation, large-scale mechanical engineering and the printing industry.

For more than 45 years there has been a pleasant and trustful business relationship between Spicer Gelenkwellenbau GmbH and Karl Diederichs KG called Dirostahl.

Hot rolled rings, punched discs and shafts are manufactured corresponding to quality specifications of alloyed quenched and tempered steels which Spicer Gelenkwellenbau GmbH needs for cardan shafts.

nine countries, employing 3000 people. As the largest business in the industry it provides the systems for vehicles, axles, transmissions, torque convertors and drive shafts.

Dana promotes the credo ‘local accountability, global strength’. “We are linked to a lot of other branches of Dana, but we have the possibilities and freedom to act and move quickly in our specific markets with drive shaft products. In the industrial world, GWB has a very strong reputation, and although our product is specifically geared towards industrial drive shafts, the company branding is a very useful tool for our growth,” begins Hubert Lepoudre, managing director. The business promotes its services to six markets; marine, steel, paper, rail, machinery and service and repair. “We pride ourselves on operational excellence, guaranteeing our customers a quality and reliable product, offered at the shortest possible lead times. With over 60 years experience, our product design and technology leadership generates the best possible technologies for all standard and custom fit solutions. Our team are able to develop and build drive shafts that are tailored to suit the customer’s requirements on fit and function.

“At the moment we are in a period of strengthening our aftermarket service, repair and maintenance activities, utilising our technicians who benefit from a deep understanding and passion for industrial drive shafts. We want to be the partner of choice for our customers and we are investing to improve our problem diagnostic efforts. We have a strong technical sales force with a heavy presence in Europe and a growing presence in the US, China, India, and Asia and are currently targeting growth in South America and Australia,” he continues.

In its experience, the business has learned that it is important to establish a local presence with local manufacturing capabilities to be able to target sales and grow within new regions, as Hubert points out: “One of the benefits of being part of the Dana brand is being able to utilise the natural global presence. We have access to facilities across the globe where we can embed our skills and capabilities and conduct research. It is the platform that we are using to expand into Australia. Being part of Dana gives us more global strength and access to some of the best practices such as global buying power and supply management processes.”

Association with the Dana brand has improved GWB’s operational systems with access to tools and specialists that have helped drive forward continuous improvement and technological growth. “Our design and manufacturing knowledge is continually supported and we have access to the HR processes

that help to deliver coaching, support and development of personnel and IT systems.

“Through innovation we have developed a solution that has reduced the service levels frequency by 100 per cent. This was laboratory and field tested before distribution, proving the product will remain greased for life, depending on the type and demand of application,” announces Hubert.

GWB invests heavily each year through vertical integration and buying a number of new and modern machines. “This year we will invest a further €1.5 million into various aspects of the business including knowledge, training and development of personnel. Operational excellence is a fundamental service that we must deliver to our market. Our customers require ontime delivery with short lead times, and as a response, we are introducing mathematically smart forecasting systems, ensuring that we have the best possible forecast to ensure the correct materials are available,” Hubert adds. The Dana Operation system introduces solutions that encourages the flow of materials, avoiding stagnation which in-turn reduces lead-time, and the result has been close to a 50 per cent reduction.

Looking ahead, Hubert notes: “The order book for the first half of 2014 is healthy, and our budget and current market analysis indicate continued and mild growth for the second half of the year and beyond. With 15 to 20 per cent of our sales in large-scale projects, the win rate makes the difference between a solid year and a very strong year. There is a lot of competition in the market, but our engineering capabilities and cost focus put us in a strong position to be chosen partners for these projects.”

Over the next few years the company is looking to expand its interests by offering more systems associated with the driveline, and as such is seeking synergic acquisitions. “We have the German product values and engineering, the German quality and the German premium brand. We are operating within the global environment and through the agility and the speed within our organisation we have all we need to react to customer demand. I am convinced that it will not be the big that will eat the small, but it will be the fast that eat the slow, so we need to be fast,” concludes Hubert. l

Spicer Gelenkwellenbau (GWB)

www.gwbdriveshaft.com • German premium quality products • Introduced the first maintenance free driveshaft • Products for multiple applications

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Profile: Pres-Vac

A

world-leading manufacturer and supplier of high velocity pressure and vacuum valves, Copenhagen based Pres-Vac has more than 60 years of experience in supplying solutions to the marine industry around the world. With over 200,000 valve solutions installed onto tanker vessels thus far, Pres-Vac today offers its customers the broadest spectrum of valves and venting systems on the maritime market.

Through a strong commitment to providing an unrivalled level of service and support to customers, the quality conscious firm has amassed an impressive customer base, including all of the leading tanker fleets across the globe. With a strategic network of knowledgeable, competent agents and distributors located in all major ship-owning and ship building countries, Pres-Vac can easily work with shipyards, naval architects and partners to deliver a close, transparent and successful relationship.

Previously featured in Shipping and Marine magazine in August 2012, Pres-Vac has spent the last 19 months developing its core products and strengthening strategies for ongoing growth, as Jens Ulrik Nielsen, business unit manager of Marine Nitrogen Gas Systems noted: “We have launched a strategic co-operation with another Danish provider of nitrogen systems, Oxymat, a production and engineering company that manufactures Pressure Swing Absorption (PSA) based systems,” he noted.

The two companies are launching a campaign to promote advanced inert gas systems to the world’s largest shipping companies, shipyards and oil extraction companies. The partnership offers new, exciting and cost-saving opportunities for customers.

The companies are continuing their growing success in dedicated nitrogen inert gas systems to the marine and offshore sector. The new Pres-Vac Oxymat co-operation will share resources within R&D, sales and support ensures an even more compelling offer to the market. Oxymat has an excellent position in energy efficient technology; and Pres-Vac has an extensive and global organisation as it already supplies equipment to all major tanker fleets in the world. At the same time, the companies share the same values – they both place the highest priority on the safety and reliability of products and are committed to giving customers the best service across the globe. Both companies have long tradition for using PSA technology that is widely recognised as leading both in terms of energy efficiency, purity output and lifetime costs.

Pres-Vac Marine Nitrogen Systems not only provide the onboard capability for generating a safe storage environment for hazardous cargo, preserving perishable goods, and ensuring the safety of crew but also provide significant operational costsavings through total self-sufficiency and up to 30 per cent energy saving over conventional systems. www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 75

Profile: Pres-Vac

These cost-effective systems utilise the very latest PSA technologies to fulfil stringent Class and IMO requirements in meeting the toughest commercial demands. By using PSA, Pres-Vac produces nitrogen through systems that are designed to meet the specific needs of its customers that operate or own vessels such as product tankers, chemical carriers, LPG carriers, LNG carriers and oil tankers. “We have seen a lot of enquiries from LNG newbuilds, which is related to the incident in Japan two years ago; since then many Japanese power plants were shut down there has been a noticeable increase in demand for LNG. On top of this, we have seen a spike in demand from bulkers carrying (toxic and flammable) chemical cargo, which is hazardous if not carried in an inert atmosphere,” said Jens. l

Pres-Vac

www.pres-vac.com • 60 years experience in valves and venting equipment • Systems designed to meet customer’s needs • Strong R&D activity

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Profile: Port of Gibraltar

At your service T here are not many around the around the world who would not have heard of the Port of Gibraltar and with good reason. “The Rock of Gibraltar has been used as a naval fortress guarding one of the world’s most important trades routes for centuries,” says minster for tourism, public transport and the port Neil Costa. “Today the Rock anchors a major commercial route with over 71,000 vessels transitioning the Strait of Gibraltar every year. As such the Port of Gibraltar has become a vital bunkering port - the largest in the Mediterranean in fact, that also offers a wide range of other

shipping services. This has allowed the Port of Gibraltar to become a maritime centre of excellence, presiding over a crossroads of Mediterranean and Atlantic shipping lanes and acting as a hub for vessels of all sizes and types.”

As a busy navigational and financial hub the port’s responsibilities and challenges are many and varied. However, the main functions carried out by the Port Authority include monitoring and control of all vessel movements for BGTW (British Gibraltar Territorial Waters) in support of port operations and navigational safety, provision and monitoring of port security

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including provision of security controls within restricted and controlled zones, the licensing of port operations, search and rescue within BGTW. The authority also manages pollution prevention and response, monitoring and control of ship-to-ship and bunkering operations inside of BGTW. “Bunkering has become the main activity within the Port of Gibraltar and as such, its bunkering companies have continued to go from strength to strength,” explains Neil. “During 2011 4.2 million tonnes of bunkers were delivered, compared with just 0.84 million tonnes in 1990. In fact of the 10,350 vessels that

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called at the port during 2011, just over half (6181) were supplied with bunkers.”

In terms of bunkering services, Gibraltar’s bunkering companies can supply all grades of marine fuel from 30 centistokes to 380 centistokes and undertake constant quality checks to ensure an optimal product. Bunkers are normally delivered via barge while vessels are at anchor within Gibraltar Bay, however it is also possible for delivery at berth inside of the harbour. The government and local authorities strictly regulate all bunkering operations and safety and environmental concerns are given to priority.

Profile: Port of Gibraltar

in the daily life of the Port of Gibraltar, which is hardly surprising considering Gibraltar’s impressive natural beauty and continual development. With its prime location at the southern tip of Europe and close proximity between the port and the Gibraltar airport, the Port of Gibraltar is well equipped to transit the 300,000 cruise passengers that pass through the port per annum. Currently plans are in place to increase capacity at the cruise terminal as well as to add to the port’s substantial berthing capacity. In terms of longterm development, the Port Authority plans to develop its base in the longer stay tourist segment in increasing the connectivity between airport and Gibraltar. Additionally a floating hotel with 189 rooms will soon open her doors and another four-star hotel of an internationally recognised brand is at the planning stage.

All of these plans are designed to increase longer stay tourism as well day tripper numbers to the Rock of Gibraltar, which will have a positive impact on the whole of the peninsula, as well as the port itself. l

Port of Gibraltar

During 2012 the bunkering code of practice was completely revised to ensure that its remains as relevant and effective as possible. Furthermore, two bunkering superintendents monitor all operations and the port is also an associate member of Oil Spill Response Ltd (OSRL) of Southampton. Additionally, the Port of Gibraltar offers a host of advantages that compliment its bunkering services including a competitive market, low costs owing to the port’s unique EU tax-free status, competitive port dues and close proximity to shipping lanes. Furthermore, the port is continuously monitored by the Government to ensure its continued competitiveness.

Further to its comprehensive bunkering services, the Port of Gibraltar operates a full range of complementary maritime services that ensures that the port can deliver turnkey solutions to all ship owners needs across a host of markets from cargo to cruise liners.

These include ship management services and shipping agents, ship registry, ship repair, provisioning services including ship-to-ship (STS) cargo transfer and waste reception and storage facilities. The port is also able to cater to ships transiting the Strait of Gibraltar, but not wishing to come off charter or leave international waters.

Several local companies offer off port limit services including receiving stores, spares, provisions and even a change of crew while still offshore, thus avoiding the time and expense of putting into the Port.

All of the port’s expansive operations are conducted with safety and responsible behavior in mind, as Neil elaborates: “Over the past year the port has appointed a health, safety and environmental advisor in order to promote safety matters in the port. This has already borne fruit with a number of initiatives being undertaken.

One of these is the introduction of BSI's entropy system to provide a structure for both health and safety and port marine safety risk assessments and management systems. The Gibraltar Port Authority is a participant in the Green Award Scheme as an incentive provider. The scheme exists to reward responsible ship owners and operators who are able to prove compliance with best environmental practices.”

Tourism and cruise ships are an increasingly important dynamic

www.gibraltarport.com • Major navigation hub • Turnkey port facilities • Strong cruise and tourism industry

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Trend

setters

E

stablished in 2009, Hoek Naval Engineering provides services for the maritime and shipbuilding industry, including design, engineering, research and development, support, surveys and supervision. During its period of service to the industry it has introduced modern technologies and ‘green’ solutions, going above and beyond common practice. Developing its strengths to further encompass the offshore support market, it has engineered designs for small work craft, jack-up modules and anchor handlers. Of great significance to the industry has been the progress of the ATBOSV design, conceptualised by Ewoud Visser of Dutch Barge Company.

The major design project has focused on the development of a multi-purpose offshore support vessel (MPOSV) as Wouter Hoek, managing director of Hoek Naval Engineering begins: “We were introduced to DUC Diving and soon established that we had a similar ethos. Ewoud had developed a modular offshore support vessel and although the idea of an articulated tug and barge unit (ATB) is not new, they managed to give it a complete and multifunctional purpose for the offshore market.”

DUC Diving The idea for this particular type of vessel was born after a thorough market study by DUC Diving. The company is this year 30 years in business and is focusing more on the offshore industry. Based on the gained experience of DUC Diving in finding suitable vessels for her vast growing offshore projects, a market survey was performed within the industry to define the requirements for a vessel, which meets the clients’ requirements.

The results of this survey showed that the majority of charterers can’t find the vessel they really need. Most vessels don’t have a modular design/lay-out, lack sufficient accommodation, deckspace, crane capacity, shallow draught etc. The businesses combined skill sets translating the initial idea into a fully regulatory compliant design. A series of general arrangement drawings and meetings resulted in a technically and economically feasible solution. At this time, DUC Diving took a fresh step into the offshore support vessel market with CEO Henk Kapitein forming the Dutch Barge Company. With the working partnership formed, the development of the product capabilities accelerated. “The key feature of the vessel is its modular capability. The MPSOV can adapt to suit many different types of operation. The ATB combination has adapted by this innovative operational twist,” Wouter points out.

“We began with market research and were able to develop a shortlist of required capabilities. The vessel can operate

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The multi-purpose offshore support vessel truly is ‘A support vessel like no other’

separately as a tug and a barge, or combined as a full DP2 vessel,” says Ewoud as he highlights the development of the concept. Utilising a diesel/hydraulic propulsion, the vessel benefits from impressive efficiency, an aspect that has attracted a great deal of attention. Accommodation is amidships and aft of the barge beneath the deck but above the water line and complies to NORSOK requirements, keeping crews of up to 68 people in safety and comfort.

Due to this position of the accommodation just above the waterline the crew suffers less G-forces during heavy weather to facilitate more comfort to the offshore workers and thus facing less fatigue.

The wheelhouse is adjustable in height - also at sea - ensuring good sight when the deck is full, but able to maintain a low centre of gravity when operating as a full equipped anchor handling tug. The large unobstructed deck of the barge supports safe transport of heavy equipment and offshore supplies. “The barge has a length of 70 metres with its own engine room and self supporting full hotel service, which allows the tug to be deployed for other duties. In the harbour the barge can move to another berth without the tug, using a smart combination of jetthrusters in her stern and the two retractable bowthrusters.

“Being able to beach and having provisions to load rolling equipment, it has been suggested that this vessel is comparable to a Swiss army knife,” explains Wouter, adding: “We had to ensure that all requirements laid out in our operational profile were covered. Once we were certain we had reached this goal, the next stage was to prove to the market that this is the best available solution.”

Large modern cabins benefit from valued daylight and its crew

Profile: Hoek Naval Engineering

have access to modern entertainment systems. High insulation standards reduce vibration and noise, and the modified hull shape gains a better vessel motion profile, supporting the crew welfare.

Safety has been one of the major considerations throughout the development of the double hull vessel, focusing on escape routes, monitoring equipment, alarm systems and lifeboats. Easy access to the barge is provided by the CTV-landing zone at starboard, where also oil, fuel and water can be transferred between the CTV’s and the barge.

In addition to producing a safe and comfortable vessel, other features of the build secure its position as an operationally adept asset. The large free deck of 920 [m²], is suitable for stacking containers, accommodation modules, heavy cargo etc. and can sustain 15 tonnes per square metre, with under deck stowage providing capacity for five TEUs and a four point mooring capability. A heave-compensated 100-ton crane and a large moonpool with a bottom hatch completes this lists.

When revealed at Offshore Energy in October 2013 the vessel generated a lot of interest. “Potential clients have been drawn to this new and innovative product. As a combination vessel, it has 200 mile certification, or as separate vessels is unrestricted, and its adaptability to undertake a range of activities in offshore wind farms and the oil and gas industry environments is proving significant,” reveals Ewoud.

“We forecast the vessel to be mainly operating in the North Sea and Baltic zones in the offshore wind and oil and gas market,” adds Wouter. In the background, Hoek Naval Engineering has continued its interests in the development of other products, such as the IncradiDock, the IncradiFloat modular pontoon and the IncradiLock, a solution to coupling systems for modular

pontoons and equipment, combining strength, durability and safety.

The demand for the designs has increased in-line with the interest in versatile offshore support vessels and modular solutions. “As demands are changing more rapidly our company will be focusing on maintaining and expanding our position as a trend-setting developer,” says Wouter. “Strategically we will focus on increasing knowledge and training personnel as we continue to deliver solutions for the industry. We have a solid position in the market, and we strive for continuous improvement,” he concludes.

DUC Diving together with her affiliate Dutch Barge Company can offer now full services for her clients. The company performs as a main contractor various air diving jobs worldwide in the salvage, oil- and gas and renewables industry. The new vessel will be the next step for this Dutch maritime specialist. l

Hoek Naval Engineering

www.hoeknaval.com • Services for the maritime and shipbuilding industry • Aided the development of a modular support vessel • www.dutchbargecompany.nl

IncradiFloat

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Fine

performance O

perating around the globe, Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers saves its customers as much as 90 per cent on oil and up to nine per cent on fuel through its comprehensive range of high quality, specialised oil filters and fuel optimising systems. Providing both fixed systems that are ideal for applications such as storage installations, as well as bunkering services and mobile systems that are ideal for ferries, ships and cruises, the company has developed cost efficient and environmentally friendly solutions that meet and surpass the needs of the shipping industry.

Committed to improving the environment, Micfil Fuel Optimizers knows that oil does not get old but instead gets better through use if treated correctly. Utilising its experience and knowledge, the company’s ultra fine filters and systems can save thousands of gallons of used oil from being disposed of and considerably reduces the chance of accidents and spillages during the transportation of large amounts of oil around the world.

Elaborating on the history of Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers, managing director Alexander Proch states: “I founded Micfil in 2007 after I was a captain for 23 years until 2009 on commercial super yachts. During this time I saw the problems in the industry with fuels/oils on ships and the resulting affects on the environment as well as the required use of resources/spare parts that led to increased costs for ship owners and others. Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers has made it its mission to contribute to the solution of these problems.”

The company’s products are mainly used by commercial, military, coast guard, super yacht, fishing and private operators

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and owners within the shipping industry in Europe, South America, Africa, Arabia and Asia around the world. However, the versatile equipment is also suitable for power generators, gear boxes, hydraulic systems, excavators and mining trucks within the mining industry and also refineries. “Used for fuel like diesel, bio fuel, gear oil, engine oil, hydraulic oil, food grad oil and so on, the Micfil technology is a well known system on river ships across Europe and fishing fleets in France and Holland. It is also used on coast guard vessels around the world and is supplied to army ships; when everything else is not working the army comes to us. Tests results have shown that Micfil technology offers lower running costs, healthier engines, much lower emissions and less down time,” highlights Alex.

Indeed, river ships utilising the Micfil technology system run day and night, which proved a costly business when the ships had to change their oil every 250 – 500 hours with approximately 300 to 900 litres of oil every time. Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers eradicates this issue completely, and offers a wide range of additional benefits, as Alex enthuses: “With our filter we can prove that engine oil doesn’t need to be changed any more, or at least for a very long period of time. One of our customers in cargo shipping has completed more than 60,000 hours in operation without a single oil change. The quality of the oil is in perfect condition, always checked through thorough oil analyses.

Another important aspect is that our system means customers need only one type of filter insert for everything; this saves a tremendous amount of money for the owner of the equipment and also saves on spare parts such as injectors, injector pumps on

Profile: Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers

the fuel side as well as bearing and sleeves on the lower side of the engine because there is no abrasion any more.”

Consisting of a tear-resistant fiber mesh with woven in high quality cellulose fibers, the Micfil Ultra-Fine Filter’s filtration performance is down to 0.5 micron; it also possesses a superior contamination absorption capacity, long life span, is water absorbant and has lower differential pressure. Furthermore, to boost flow rate/tank capacity, two or more filters can be installed and filter bars for over 40 bar are available upon request. With zero fuel or oil related breakdowns recorded from a vast array of industries that have installed the filter on its diesel engines, fuel and lubrication oil systems, the company offers its product to potential customers on a free trial basis. Consisting of one Micfil Ultra Fine Filter canister (to be returned or invoiced) and one Micfil element, the client’s trial period lasts 750 hours, which is equal to three OEM fuel filter change outs.

A recent addition to Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers’ product portfolio is its range of bulk fluid filtration systems, both fixed and mobile, that has been developed for large industrial applications/when large quantities of fluids need to be filtered in a short time scale. “The FB bulk filter was developed for a great amount of diesel filtration from 20,000 – 155,000 ltr/hr in the same quality we do with our normal Micfil Filters,” says Alex.

“This product has generated a lot of interest; we are already producing six bulk filter systems for 4600 ltr/hr and we have orders for 100 more.”

Allowing for minimal effect on flow, these filters will have quality, clean fuel entering each application to achieve maximise performance and completely eliminate system failures caused by fluid contamination. Suitable for ships, ferries and cruise ships, the mobile systems are ideal for maintaining a fleet of vehicles that require periodic filtering capability, while fixed systems are more suitable for bunkering services, fuel farms and storage stations, particularly in locations where fuel is at risk of contamination. With most diesel fuels delivered from refineries at a cleanliness level of 22/21/18, an ISO level that is far from clean when compared to today’s stringent requirements, Micfil has developed an efficient, cost effective solution with its Bulk Diesel Fuel Filtration range.

By developing high quality, cost efficient and environmentally friendly products, the future looks positive for Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers as it continues to meet and surpass the needs of clients in a diverse range of industries. This is a trend that is set to continue, as upcoming emission standards are due to come into effect, as Alex concludes: “We have definitely seen an increase in demand from customers in the shipping industry; it began with river shipping operators but we are noticing more interest from offshore shipping and mining industries too. We want to continue growing on a global scale and to become a company that is recognised and trusted by our customers; to do this we want more clients to understand the benefits of filtration.” l

Micfil Filters and Fuel Optimizers

www.micfil.net/hp/ • Global customer base • Ultra-fine filter specialist • Saves as much a 90 per cent on oil

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Reliable

partner

T

hor Ltd is a shipping company located in Hósvík, a safe natural harbour, close to Tórshavn the capital of the Faroe Islands. The company's name is derived from ‘Hósvík’, which means ‘Thor's creek’. Hós is an alternative spelling of Thor (sometimes written as Tor). Thor in Nordic mythology was the god of thunder, a very strong and powerful god who was also the guardian of the gods.

Thor was established on 10 August 1994 and now operates between 20-30 vessels. In the past the company was mainly active in the fishing industry operating gillnetters/longliners, however since 1997 it has become increasingly active in supplying chase/ guard vessels for the offshore oil industry and cable/pipe-laying operations, and has gained a lot of its expertise and experience by working for some of the world's largest seismic companies.

Today Thor owns and operates a comprehensive fleet of ships and offers clients the benefit of its expertise in a far-reaching

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range of services. In the area of offshore support services for the oil and gas industry the company can provide: l Well-equipped chase/support and guard vessels l Transport of crews, freight, and spare parts l Supply of efficient, flexible, multilingual crews The Thor Fisheries division offers a diversified fishing fleet of freezer trawlers, freezing and factory trawlers, gillnetters and shellfishers (scallops, whelks and crabs).

The fleet already includes some impressive offshore vessels, such as the 1051 ton Thor Alpha, and the 1061 ton Thor Omega, both built in 2008 and include a deck crane and 320 m2 of cargo space on deck. It also features a tug - the Thor Goliath and a cargo vessel – the Thor Scandia. New additions are also on the order books, with four newbuilds underway at the Besiktas yard in Turkey. These seismic-support vessels are due to be

Profile: Thor

offshore Faroes, as well as cargo companies loading fish or other fish related cargoes not serviced by the regular freight companies.

Thor also administers and is part owner of Útferðir Ltd, which owns the schooner Norðlýsið, a pleasure boat that offers fishing and tourist excursions around the Faroes and is sometimes used as a host vessel for various Faroese PR activities.

Another service available from Thor is help with arranging registration of foreign vessels in the FAS register. It is currently working with Svitzer and has formed a company called Svitzer Faroe Island PF. Through this company it now manages 11 of Svitzer’s vessels under the Faroese Flag.

This year celebrating its 20th anniversary, Thor can be proud of its evolution into an innovative, trustworthy and creative company. Customers can rely on the experience it has accrued over the past 20 years, whether they are looking for a reliable partner for work around the Faroe Islands and or even all over the world. l delivered in late 2014 and early 2015 and will feature state-ofthe-art technology.

One of the ways that Thor distinguishes itself from the market is through its ambitious quality policy. All work is carried out according to a high standard quality, safety and environmental manual. As Hans Andrias Joensen, CEO highlights on the company’s website, its ‘HSEQ system is built on the pillars of the ISM Code, ISO 9001:2008, IS014001:2008 and OH5SAS 18001:2008’ and its mission is ‘to be a trustworthy and lawabiding partner providing a safe and reliable world wide service.’

This strategy is based on four pillars: l Thor works to ensure safety at sea, prevent human injury and loss of human life, avoid damage to the environment with special focus on the marine environment and prevent damage to property. l Thor acknowledges the importance of creating an innovative, trustworthy and creative company, which is exciting and progressive to work for. l Thor wants to maintain its operations on a HSEQ level, which is always among the best in the market and in accordance with the international codes and standardisation systems. l Thor is committed to carry out good HSEQ responsible work in accordance with the wishes and interests of its customers.

Thor Ltd

www.thor.fo • Four new vessels on order • Operate 20-30 vessels • Celebrates 20th anniversary in 2014

One of these tenets is focused on staff, and the organisation’s policy of looking after its human resources has resulted in a low turnover of employees. As a result the company has built up a workforce, on land and sea, of well-motivated, experienced and flexible people, most of whom are fluent in Scandinavian and English.

Alongside the support of its own in-house team, Thor can also provide services through its own divisions. For example, O.C.Joensen Ltd. is a daughter company of Thor, which enjoys an unrivalled leadership position in the field of scallop and whelk fishery in the Faroese waters. O.C.Joensen Ltd. is US FDA registered and its scallops are MSC approved.

Thor also has a ship’s agency business working within the Faroes. Its customers are seismic and oil companies working www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 85

An in-house

solution

S

ince it was founded in 1984 Europlan Engineering Ltd has continued to grow and adapt, in what have occasionally proven to be challenging and volatile market conditions.

Today with more than 30 years of design and installation experience, Europlan delivers turnkey solutions for interior areas within the marine sector including public, cabin, deck, crew, technical and machinery areas as well as alteration and steel work in hull constructions. These have been applied to a diverse range of markets including living quarters for oil rigs, turnkey interior solutions aboard mega yachts and floating steel constructions, such as restaurants and other public spaces.

The company’s success has been driven by its ability to adapt to the needs of its clients and the ever-changing tides of the global economy. For the first decade of its existence between 1984 and 1994, Europlan operated purely as a design office. However, owing to the growing reputation of the company its clients requested that it expand into installation and material deliveries for the background works of marine interiors. The move would be an important one, as by the beginning of the 21st century 70 per cent of the turnover generated by Europlan would come from turnkey solutions. The first turnkey project for a cruise ship was delivered in 1995 and the cruise ship segment has continued to remain an important market for Europlan from the mid-1990s to the present day. Amongst its satisfied clients is Royal Caribbean for whom Europlan delivered comprehensive turnkey interior solutions for its Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas vessels during 2009 and 2010 respectively. As the largest cruise ships in the world the vessels represented significant investments, with Europlan undertaking 60,000 sq m of turnkey installation per vessel and

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design work valued at over ten million euros. Other customers within the marine sector include Carnival Cruise Line, Fred.Olsen Cruise Line, Viking Line, Tallink Silja, STX Finland, Kleven Verft as well as several others.

Although Europlan continues to draw most of its business from the marine sector, a change in the way Finnish shipyards contracted the interior design of vessels encouraged the company to diversify into new market sectors. During the mid-1990s Finnish shipyards increasingly turned to complete turnkey solutions for new-build vessels, meaning that operators who had previously provided materials and installation solutions began to move towards turnkey deliveries. To account for the increase of market competition many companies opted to target specific areas, such as restaurants or workshops rather than to furnish the entire

Profile: Europlan Engineering Ltd

vessel. Because Europlan had generated vast experience in marine engineering and naval architecture in all areas, it was challenging to limit the scope of its expertise to a single application. Rather than follow its competitors into targeting a dedicated application, Europlan decided to focus its services on demanding and multiform projects before eventually expanding to markets beyond the marine environment.

Once again, these decisions would prove to be highly important for the company and displayed an impressive level of foresight on the part of Europlan because during yet another key moment in the company’s history, events outside of its control would inform the direction that it would take over the following years. The global economic downturn led to the crash of Finnish shipbuilding during 2010, prior to this over 80 per cent of Europlan’s turnover came from new-build installations, while the rest was generated through ropax repairs. Following the decline of Finnish shipbuilding, Europlan redirected its business strategy to focus on the refurbishment and conversion markets.

The level of expertise that Europlan had amassed in providing a broad base of turnkey solutions meant that it could take on any project that was required of it. Additionally, to further strengthen its position it acquired a controlling stock majority of Hermann’s Finnland Ltd during the end of 2010. Hermann’s knowhow is in interior constructions and the company has developed a commanding reputation as a market-leading operator in the provision of interior solutions for public spaces. It also maintains its own workshop, which can undertake the fabrication of internal components for cruise ships as well as for other areas. As a result Europlan operates in a significantly wider market than its competitors servicing marine, industrial and construction ventures.

While Europlan continues to target the marine environment, through Hermann’s it is able to focus on the construction industry in areas including shopping malls, restaurants, interior fittings in public buildings, spas, hotels, movie theatres, bridges, parking halls and several other demanding internal structures.

As the global market continues to evolve, Europlan is ready to meet whatever challenges it encounters and will supply innovative solutions to the varied needs of its clients. Business within the refit market remains strong and as the global economy begins to recover, markets in shipbuilding and construction are only set to grow over the coming years. Furthermore, although competition and shortened delivery times have added to the company’s challenges, Europlan has consistently achieved 40 per cent growth each year and is looking stronger than ever. During the rest of 2014 and beyond Europlan looks forward to dealing with customers old and new, as well as further developing its project

management process to further enhance its market-leading interior solutions. l

Europlan Engineering Ltd www.europlan.fi • Leading project management company • Demanding turnkey solutions • In-house production chain

Kiilto

Kiilto offers a wide range of IMO-certified adhesives and sealants. Its products have been widely used in different demanding marine industry applications. Kiilto has been co-operating with Europlan Engineering, providing suitable adhesive and sealants solutions for their needs.

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Sentimental

journey 88 - www.shippingandmarine.co.uk

Profile: Doris Maritime Services

D

oris Maritime Services SA (DORIS) is a Swiss company specialising in the management of oceangoing vessels, in particular, container feeder ships and bulk carriers. Over its years of trading, DORIS has acquired an in-depth knowledge of the container-shipping sector through operating a subsidiary container line and container terminal operations.

The company was established in 1983 by Nicolas Wirth, the present chief executive officer. A graduate in maritime studies, his expertise covers both technical and commercial management of ships, sales and purchasing, chartering and other financial and operational aspects of ship management and ownership. Heading a team of highly qualified, dedicated and experienced professionals the company is engaged in the technical, commercial and financial management of ships.

“Over the last year we have developed several projects following the realisation of equity in the US. We were also able to purchase three newbuilding bunkers that were left over from unfulfilled contracts,” explains Nicolas. With one 57,000 tonne dead weight bulker, the other two vessels have a 32,000 tonnes load

capacity. “We began trading with each vessel relatively quickly, before signing for a further six newbuildings at 64,000 tonne dead weight. These are very nice economical vessels,” he adds.

The company is now managing 19 ships, of which nine are pure crewing and ten are full management.

As the market begins to steady following the global economic crisis, Nicolas explains: “There is strong recovery in the drybulk sector. It really began to pick up in September 2013 and we were quite fortunate to purchase these newbuildings at a competitive rate. Through the investment we were able to make a 50 per cent return for our clients. Although we are a ship management company we have an entrepreneurial approach, proactively proposing projects. Clients recognise this way of thinking and are attracted to these ideas,” reveals Nicolas.

DORIS provides all its products and services on an intimate and personal level with crewing a speciality, working with offices and agents in Amsterdam, Manila, Malta, Mumbai and Odessa.

With more than 750 qualified seafarers on its roster it currently employs 630 staff. Technical management is undertaken from its Geneva base and supported by professionals located in Malta www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 89

Profile: Doris Maritime Services

and Amsterdam. Taking the role of a management company, its strength comes from its efficient size and the office in Geneva is able to observe the market, propose new ideas and secure investors.

The vessels, comprising of container ships, bulk carriers and cement factory ships trade internationally, as Nicolas details: “Our bulk carriers are mainly tramping on time charter agreements and follow the market with most of the container ships in the Far East and Western Europe. We have a global network of agents that are able to assist with commercial operations, crew changes and local authorities worldwide.”

As the bulk carrier market appears to be on the rise, there is some speculation that the future is still unclear explains Nicolas: “The Chinese government has the intent to close many of the 3000 existing shipyards and as a consequence several are trying to secure orders. It is quite possible that many of these contracts will never see the light of day. The Chinese order books are overstated, however I do think the bulk carrier market will continue to remain buoyant for at least a couple of years. The container ship market in contrast remains extremely depressed. While our interests are currently high in the bulk carrier market, having recently acquired a further nine carriers under our management, we will review the container ship market because it will inevitably recover.”

Looking towards the future, DORIS remains vigilant. “It is difficult to say exactly what the focus will be in the long term.

When the market peaks we will encourage our clients to sell, but ultimately the cycle will bring us back into container shipping.

There has been a lot of equity in the US in the last 18 months, a lot more than in Western Europe and a significant increase in the amount of loans in China. However, most importantly there is still an acute shortage of good and qualified crew. Personnel know they are in demand and tend to move around, but worldwide there is a shortage of well qualified crew, particularly officers with capability and leadership qualities. We have had crew that have been with us for more than 20 years, which demonstrates the value we place on them.

“From our offices in the Philippines, the Sub-Continent and Eastern Europe we train our crew to the levels we demand. We rehire them all the time and they get a rejoining bonus, insurances and a variety of benefits but internal promotion is an element particularly attractive to them. Today, crew members do their own schooling to reach the basic levels to achieve officer rating. At this point, we provide the financing for further ancillary tickets. Our goal is to be a good employer and attract good quality top officers to support us at the forefront in servicing the market,” Nicolas concludes. l

Doris Maritime Services

www.doris.ch • Complete maritime services provider • Over 30 years trading experience • Owned and managed fleet

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Built on

tradition

T

he old seaport of Whitby has a history of seafaring and boat building, spanning hundreds of years. It was in this area that Captain Cook trained as a seaman before selecting locally built colliers for his famous voyages of discovery. In 1706 over 130 ships were built, confirming its position as the sixth major port in Britain. Today, Parkol Marine Engineering continues to uphold the Whitby tradition of boat building and boat repairs.

Parkol offers a full range of marine engineering services from new builds to repairs and refurbishment. Its skilled staff takes pride in their work ensuring that the company’s reputation, which is built on quality, is maintained. The business is well known for building successful commercial fishing vessels for the North Sea and UK fishing fleets. The highly skilled craftsmen and support staff have used their wealth of knowledge and experience to meet the challenges presented by the construction of new vessels, which ultimately ensures that its clients' dreams are brought to life.

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The yard has two large work areas with berths that can accommodate new builds up to 25 metres in length and a dry dock that can accommodate two vessels up to 60 feet at on time and up to 70 vessels a year. Future expansion is planned for the dry dock capacity that is already equipped with an on site lift, capable of maneuvering vessels of up to 450 tonnes, and a crane capacity of 50 tonnes. Furthermore it is able to offer fabrication in steel, alloy, and stainless steel, and refits including electrical and electronic services. Maintenance provision includes power cleaning, shot blasting and painting, all shipwright repairs, steering, shaft and propeller, and repairs in wood, steel and aluminium. Mechanically its skilled workforce is able to deal with all types of deck machinery, trawl doors and door renewal, engine and winch repair/strip down and rebuild, masts and handrails, hydraulic systems, re-engineering work, DTI surveys and insurance work.

Demonstrating skill and dedication in all aspects of their work the Parkol team utilises its talents and craftmanship.

From planning to production the company focuses on quality assurance. Starting with ideas, the business develops the concept, details the design, and throughout production assures that the resulting vessel meets all expectations. The number one priority is to transform the owners’ requirements into the best possible solution. This is achieved through communicating with clients and progressing from sketched concepts to detailed layout and

Profile: Parkol Marine Engineering

styling with 3D computer imagery. Computer modelling has proven to be the most efficient and accurate method of defining hull form, offering access to powerful design, visualisation, and analysis tools, resulting in the optimisation of design in terms of form, structure, performance, stability and sea keeping. The modelled structure of the vessel is able to drive the building of the vessel itself, and this level of automation allows complete control over production, and assures the greatest accuracy of the result.

As well as being one of the leading trawler building firms in the UK, Parkol builds other vessels including workboats and pleasure craft and has produced many beautifully constructed motor craft. Through 20 years of commitment and hard work it has established a reputation for build quality. Historically, people could go directly to a boatyard and commission the boat of their choice. The goal of Parkol is to bring back this service and to offer the highest levels of craftsmanship.

In 2003 Parkol converted a Dutch river barge into Whitby’s new harbour dredger. The project entailed extensive conversion work to put in engines, a wheelhouse and other modifications to get it seaworthy. Its engineering skill was then further demonstrated in the construction of HM Bark Endeavour. The boat that is two-fifths the size of Captain Cook’s historical ship Endeavour was built by Parkol for a private client as a pleasure craft. Traditional boat building skills where revived in the construction of the replica, using techniques that were around in Captain Cook’s day.

Services provided by the company include welding and fabrication by highly skilled fabricators who work to exacting standards with both steel and aluminum, on any vessel be it new build or refit. It additionally offers services in joinery, painting and marine electrical installation. The business employs a team of talented shipwrights and engineers who manage all aspects of designing, sourcing, fitting and commissioning and undertakes all types of hydraulic repair and installation.

The latest build for the business is a 27 metre motor yacht, commissioned by Whitby Yachts LLP. Parkol Marine announced the order placed by LCL Shipping Ltd for a twin screw salmon feed carrier. With a round bilge construction, transom stern, raked stem, bulbous bow and twin propellers behind the skeg, the vessel will be equipped with a stable platform for crane operations and carry 190 1T salmon feed bags in one cargo hold.

The vessel is to be launched at the end of 2014 and will represent another successful project for a business, which has an order book that remains full. l

Parkol Marine Engineering www.parkol.co.uk • Full range of marine engineering services • Direct customer to boatyard service • High levels of craftsmanship

Teignbridge Propellers Teignbridge Propellers is a propulsion designer and manufacturer of propellers, sterngear and rudders.

From its UK facility Teignbridge is the largest manufacturer of marine propellers and sterngear in Europe: propellers to 2.55m and shaftlines to 400mm diameter. Teignbridge supplies the world’s leading boat builders in commercial, leisure and super yacht sectors. Its high performance C’Foil propeller design generates up to ten per cent more thrust and 12 per cent increase in efficiency for improved performance and fuel economy.

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Powering

up

F

or over 85 years the Caterpillar brand has been synonymous with the design and provision of leading machinery and engines across a wide cross-section of markets. The marine market is no exception with Caterpillar Marine (CM) on hand to deliver world-class power and propulsion systems to clients in all corners of the globe.

In the UK, CM has a production facility in Wimborne, Dorset, which was founded in 1968, acquired by Caterpillar in 2000, and forms an integral part of the Marine & Petroleum Power Division.

Caterpillar's manufacturing functions in Wimborne include a standard range of Cat branded and Perkins branded generators for the marine market from 11kVA to 312kVA, for both prime power and emergency applications. Additionally, the onsite engineers provide the ability to ‘Design to Order’ marine power solutions to meet specific customer requirements. The Wimborne facility's strong employee team combines product development, product maintenance and customer support on the same site as manufacturing operations.

The UK facility also has the capability to fast track units and the best lead times can be under one week. “However, there is a premium to be paid for that,” Matt Wilson, sales manager noted. “If there is an emergency we can turn engines round very

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quickly, we target two weeks for these but we have achieved faster than that. So we have the ability to turn around in under two weeks from receipt of order to product leaving the factory. It is understandably expensive to have a vessel out of commission so it is obviously of great benefit to get engines out quickly when such occasions arise.”

The UK site may already be a centre of excellence, but it is also the focal point for a new investment in 2014: “We are taking the opportunity to make layout design changes that the existing facility prohibits us from doing. By increasing our square footage we can re-design the layout to increase process-flow and efficiency.

New products Matt mentioned include an electronic generating set engine that was launched towards the end of 2013. “They are the first EPA Tier 3 certified engines that we have done from this factory,” added Matt. “They make a notable change in technology, not only in power density and efficiency but also they provide a step change in emissions and improve the cleanliness of what comes out of the exhaust.

“This new engine has already generated a lot of interest from different market areas because our customers want generators with good emissions performance in line with the applicable legislative requirements they have to meet.”

Profile: Caterpillar Marine

sense CM wants to be a complete solutions provider; propulsion, engines, gear boxes and propellers - the full solution,” said Matt. “CM can offer combined propulsion and power solutions onboard, and through a recent propeller maker acquisition, Caterpillar Propulsion Systems, these full systems will come to market. With the company moving towards being a full power system provider brings huge advantages; ship owners can call our dealers worldwide, who in turn have all of the knowledge and training to support the equipment on board.”

He concluded: “Caterpillar has just been awarded twentieth place for UK B2B Business Superbrands 2014 of which we are very proud, and we will continue to dedicate time to training staff as well as making sure we are ready to meet the requirements of new legislation. Our onus will be on being aware of these changes and making sure we have the right products to address those requirements.” l

Caterpillar Marine

Marine.Cat.com • Leader in engines and propulsion systems • Design of diesel engines and generator sets • 2100 dealer locations worldwide

As Matt highlighted, Caterpillar’s history and pedigree in engine technology is really benefitting the company in this area: “The advantage is that the engines we use in our marine engines are based on those used in our high volume industrial applications, where the current legislation exceeds that of the marine sector. With the same inherent core engine architecture and the addition of selective after treatment devices, marine engines will in future be able to meet the coming IMO and RCD legislative requirements.”

Evidently CM devotes a lot of time to research and development and Matt gave some details about another new product for which the company has high hopes: “At the moment we are developing the ‘baby brother’ of the seven-litre engine that we have launched and this will be a 4.4 litre, four-cylinder engine that is predominantly targeted at electrical power on board, and aimed at the cargo and tug markets. Within the tug market the mechanical predecessor of this engine has done very well and we are now increasing the power density by 25 per cent. Plus it will meet all current emissions criteria in a very similar sized package.”

Supported by a globally recognised and respected brand, and with updated facilities on the horizon, CM in the UK has a firm foundation on which to build further success. “In a broader www.shippingandmarine.co.uk - 95

Dedicated to

quality

P

almali Shipping is committed to providing a professional ship management service in a competent, cost-effective manner. The company is deeply dedicated to meeting the requirements of its customers, as well as discharging its responsibilities towards its employees, the public and the wider environment.

In fact, the company is very aware of the necessity of ensuring environmental safety when transporting cargoes including oil and oil products, and as a consequence, Palmali continuously improves the quality and effectiveness of its management system (which complies, as a minimum, to the requirements of ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14001:2004 and the ISM Code) as well as doing its best to prevent and reduce pollution to the environment. The main long-term goals and aspirations of the company are zero incidents and zero spills to sea.

In fulfilling this ambition, Palmali maintains a procedure that identifies and assesses environmental risks in its activities and constantly monitors them in order to establish objectives and targets. It also carries out any appropriate actions, and maintains a cycle of analysis and correction in order to work at the highest possible level of environmental care. In this way it has established healthy, safe and environmentally responsible working conditions, found ways to use natural resources rationally and reduce negative impacts to the environment and utilise waste, all whilst strictly complying with applicable statutory and international legislation.

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When it comes to the services on offer from Palmali, the company can assist clients with ship management, chartering, ship agency, technical management and ship construction. In what can be seen as a fluctuating market, Palmali has adopted the philosophy of owning a young, but size able fleet of 130 ships, as it believes this enables it to provide better service to its customers. It can also be considered as the leader in creating unique vessel projects that have been specially designed for the river markets.

Palmali’s operations are controlled from its main office in Istanbul, Turkey, as this location is the most significant point among navigations between the Black and Mediterranean Seas. Moreover, local company offices have been launched in the cities of Rostov-on-Don, Volgograd, Astrakhan, Moscow, Novorossiysk, Kerch, Sevastopol, Odessa, Piraeus, Thessaloniki, Baku, Bourgas, Constanta, Malta, Novorosiysk, St. Petersburg, .

Ceyhan, Poti, Geneva, Singapore and Izmir for the purpose of ensuring 100 per cent control over the management of the vessels.

In the ship management segment, the company complies with all the relevant international quality and efficiency standards necessary to reassure clients that they are in the safest possible hands. It operates a fleet consisting of vessels with DWT starting from 2000 up to 165,000 metric tons, and works to on-time and bareboat charter contracts as well as on cargo lines in worldwide markets. The company’s well known reputation in the market is a

Profile: Palmali Shipping

key factor in ensuring its partners and contractual parties obtain the best results in their world trade and sea transportation.

Palmali’s chartering department works in a highly competitive environment by simultaneously providing professional chartering and post fixture service to charterers, owners and traders. The company focuses on individual solutions, which are composed to meet the demands and requirements of each individual client.

Since the very first day of the company, the increasing number of successfully accomplished voyages among Caspian, Black and Mediterranean Seas has become more than 1000 annually.

Alongside ship management and chartering, Palmali offers ship agency services. These play a significant role in increasing the efficiency of port activities for both owned and chartered ships in Palmali’s fleet. The agency department, as an independent service division, supplies clients with its cost-effective services and its young and professional team is well trained in handling all types of marine vessel, and works around the clock in order to provide the most efficient services. Crew change, delivery of spare parts, repairs and maintenance, certifications by class societies and surveys are just few of services that can be arranged by the company’s experienced agency officers in ports as well as during passage via the Turkish Straits.

All of the ship management services that have been mentioned are supported by Palmali’s technical management department, which takes care of all vessels under its management plus other vessels of client companies. Highly experienced technicians,

whose close teamwork provides both the highest level of operational reliability and optimum financial results, staff this department, and they operate the most up-to-date systems to ensure efficient management and control. The team also has access to sophisticated IT tools and a high degree of information sharing is encouraged in order to repeat success stories and avoid incidents.

The final division of Palmali is the ship construction department, which represents its own repair and maintenance expertise, as well as a working association with a shipyard located at the bay of Tuzla. Located on the shore of the Marmara Sea, Palmali has its repair facility based in the optimal position for ship repairs and construction works, which again illustrates the company’s willingness to put the needs of its customers at the heart of its business.

Palmali has seen significant growth since it was established.

The company represents how the combination of best practices and the principles of modern management can work together to deliver efficient services and increased profits to clients. l

Palmali Shipping

www.palmali.com.tr • Specialise in ship management • Fleet of 130 vessels • Prides itself on flexibility

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Cool for

cats

A

licat Workboats was established in May 2009 in response to demand for suitable vessels to provide access for operation and maintenance support for the rapidly growing offshore wind sector.

The first Alicat vessel was launched at the Seawork International event in Southampton in June 2010 and the company has to date built a total of 16 ships. Global Marine Design (GMD) - an Australian based aluminium catamaran specialist - supplies the design for the Alicat Workboat. GMD was chosen as the designer thanks to its outstanding reputation for creating reliable, high quality vessels. The Alicat is unique in that the designs for both the 20m and 17m version are DNV approved. While Alicat Workboats Ltd is the sole manufacturer of the Alicat in the UK, it has secured the exclusive rights to the GMD design throughout Europe, the US and West Africa.

The Alicat Workboat is constructed by locally employed skilled craftsmen and the facility itself has been involved in ship building and repair work for over 30 years and employs teams of carpenters, painters and electricians as well as aluminium and steel fabricators and welders. These employees are based at Alicat’s ship construction and repair yard in Great Yarmouth, in the east of England. The seven acre yard has 184 m of river

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frontage with direct access to the North Sea, and features two building berths, an undercover dry dock with a total length of 35m, nine metre beam and a draft of up to two metres. A range of other facilities are available on-site including joinery,

Profile: Alicat Workboats

shipwrights, engineering, machine and electrical workshops, as well as painting, stores, messing, and lay down areas of 6500m2.

The facility recently underwent a £1.6m facelift with the provision of a new 200 tonne mobile vessel lift and associated works, and in March 2014 Alicat Workboats received £165,000 funding from the Coastal Communities Fund, which it plans to invest in the construction of a new all weather facility at its Great Yarmouth base. This project will complement the recent investment already mentioned, and will enable the company to have all year round maintenance, repair and construction which will create new employment opportunities for apprentices and skilled personnel alike both directly and indirectly as well as securing a number of existing jobs.

In fact, 2014 is proving to be an exciting year for the organisation as in February Alicat & South Boats IOW, the UK’s manufacturer of state-of-the-art wind farm service vessels

Dometic Marine Dometic are very proud to be the sole provider of HVAC to Alicat and have over 50 years of experience producing seaworthy HVAC systems for coastal and offshore commercial vessels.

Alicat’s challenge to Dometic was to produce a system which would provide improved cooling and heating to the main saloon and helm on board the CTV. The Vector compact was selected, these high capacity units were engineered to harness and maximise the impressive performance of environmentally safe R410a refrigerant.

Direct expansion operation in a compact, low profile unit, with a seawater-cooled condenser and choice of controls.

(WFSVs), received a £5.5 million, two-workboat order from Lowestoft-based operator Iceni Marine Services.

The deal, the latest in a string of contracts signed by Alicat & South Boats IOW with UK vessel operators, is an illustration of the continuing success of UK firms in the offshore wind space.

Crucially, despite tendering to low-cost competitor yards in the UK and Australia, Iceni chose to return to Alicat & South Boats IOW, which continues to offer an unrivalled technical package.

The all-new 22m South Catamaran design, which benefitted from an extensive research and development programme, was developed in collaboration with Iceni to ensure that the technical requirements of the operator were met.

The Iceni Vengeance and her sister vessel Iceni Venture will expand the Iceni fleet of South Catamarans to six, demonstrating the strength of the ongoing relationship with Alicat & South Boats IOW. The two vessels, which will each carry 12 technicians alongside three crewmembers to and from wind farm developments in UK and wider European waters, will be almost identical, but will make use of different propulsion systems.

Vengeance, to be built at the Alicat yard in Great Yarmouth, will use Hamilton water jet propulsion, with sprint speeds of up to 30 knots. Her Cowes-built sister vessel, Venture, is South Boats’ first to employ a controllable pitch propeller using Servogear, and will achieve anticipated sprint speeds of up to 32 knots.

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Profile: Alicat Workboats

“Commitment to custom technical innovation and the highest possible build-quality is what, we believe, will continue to differentiate British boat builders from competitors across Europe and further afield in the developing Asian market,” said Ben Colman, sales and marketing manager at Alicat & South Boats IOW. “It’s no secret that WFSV operators are looking for reliable, high quality vessels that are tailor-made to cope with the increasingly demanding requirements of working on offshore projects worldwide – that’s why the on-going, retained client

relationship with Iceni is so significant.” Both vessels will be delivered in March 2015.

Boat in a box Since it was established, Alicat Workboats has prided itself on an innovative approach to its business. A prime example of this strategy is the way that it offers a unique opportunity to other boat builders to build Alicat Catamarans. This 'boat in a box' concept means any company looking to take advantage of the current demand for vessels can invest in a proven design, therefore avoiding the risk faced on an alternative unproven design. Potential builders can purchase the complete kit, with technical support being offered by Alicat Workboats.

Alongside a purchase option, Alicat Workboats can be chartered. Vessels are supplied fully equipped and with trained and experienced crews, and the services available include, but are not limited to the transfer of personnel to offshore wind turbine installations and vessels, transport of equipment to various coastal installations, dive platform vessels, subsea equipment deployment and recovery, transfer of fuel, transfer of cargo and equipment including generators, marine mammal mitigation and noise monitoring, bird watching, hydrographic survey & oceanography work, VIP visits and film crews, search and recovery operations, fire fighting and salvage capabilities onboard vessels.

The company also offers support to customers, by providing a full warranty on all vessels built and a specialist servicing and repair facility. It can provide vessel repairs in both aluminium and steel, as well as the services of dedicated specialist divisions that were created in 2013, including Alicat Marine Electrical, Alicat Fabrication, Alicat Precision Engineering and Alicat Marine Design.

Thanks to its dedication and hard work, Alicat Workboats has entered 2014 with new orders and an exciting new development project underway. The years ahead look set to be filled with even more opportunity for this ambitious and exciting company. l

Alicat Workboats

www.alicatworkboats.com • Investments into new facilities • Grant awarded from Coastal Communities Fund • New deal signed for two workboats

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Shipping &MARINE

The magazine for maritime management

www.shippingandmarine.co.uk Editor: Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Sales manager: Rob Wagner rwagner@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

Schofield Publishing Schofield Publishing Limited Unit 10, Cringleford Business Centre, Intwood Road, Cringleford, Norwich, NR4 6AU, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1603 274130 Fax: +44 (0) 1603 274131