Liberian Registry and China Classification Society sign innovation and technology MoU

Liberian Registry and China Classification Society sign innovation and technology MoU

The Liberian Registry has agreed a framework co-operation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the China Classification Society (CCS) as the latest step in its strategy to collaborate effectively with its long-term key industry stakeholders.

Under the terms of the MoU, the Liberian Registry’s technical competence will be employed to help shipyards and shipowners improve their innovative strategies. The CCS MoU has a particular focus on innovation and technology within the international regulatory framework and maritime sector projects. It is an extension to the governmental Maritime Transport Agreement between China and Liberia which entered into force in February 2016.

The MoU is the most recent agreement between the Liberian Registry and reputable, high-quality stakeholders in the Chinese shipbuilding industry. The Registry has also signed ten MoUs with leading shipyards, shipyard groups and ship design companies in China in order to create a platform for the exchange of market intelligence, innovation and technological development.

A streamlined Ship Newbuild Services facility is also available to Liberian-flag shipowners through dedicated joint industry ship design projects. The intention is to produce quality, innovative ships capable of high performance levels and outstanding Port State Control performance, in compliance with all rules and regulations.

Thomas Klenum, Technical Director of the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry (LISCR), the US-based manager of the Liberian Registry, says, “Through MOUs, the Liberian Administration will be involved in the process of ship design and construction from the beginning, which will improve efficiency in meeting IMO requirements at the most cost-efficient phase of shipbuilding projects.”

Meanwhile, LISCR CEO Scott Bergeron says, “Under the terms of the MoU, the Liberian Registry’s technical competence will be employed to help shipyards and shipowners improve their innovative strategies. In this way, the Liberian Registry will be able to expand its continually growing fleet numbers with ships of the highest quality and safety standards, able to operate competitively in today’s challenging shipping industry.”


The Liberian Registry has a long-established track record of combining the highest standards of safety for vessels and crews with the highest levels of responsive and innovative service to owners. Moreover, it has a well-deserved reputation for supporting international legislation designed to maintain and improve the safety and effectiveness of the shipping industry and protection of the marine environment. www.liscr.com

Unique crane launch for OSD-IMT PSV

 The new shipyard facility of Honghua Offshore Oil & Gas Equipment Company in Jiangsu, China, has launched its first ship, an IMT982 Platform Supply Vessel.  The vessel was launched in a unique way, using the yard’s new gantry crane.  At 22,000 tonnes SWL the Honghai crane is the largest moving gantry crane in the world. It was the first time the giant crane has been used.

The 83.2 m LOA PSV, designed by Offshore Ship Designers UK arm OSD-IMT, has a deck area of 900 m² and can carry 1,360 m³ of fuel oil, 770 m³ of potable fresh water, 1,010 m³ of liquid mud/brine, 1,350 m³ of drill water/water ballast, 278 m³ of dry bulk and 170 m³ of base oil. It has a maximum deadweight of about 3,900 tonnes at 5.95 m draught.

A diesel electric propulsion system provides fuel economy and efficiency. It comprises four main diesel generators, 2 x 1900 kW frequency controlled electric motor-driven azimuth thrusters for main propulsion and 2 x 800 kW frequency controlled, electric motor driven, tunnel thrusters fitted forward. The vessel is classed with Lloyds Register and is fitted with a DP2 system. It has accommodation for a crew of 27 persons and has a trial speed of 14.0 knots.

The vessel, named Nordic Trym, is expected to be delivered to its new owners, Nordic Offshore Supply Limited, in April 2015.

Artist impression

 Offshore Ship Designers Group (OSD) is a global one-stop resource delivering naval architecture and marine engineering skills to the shipping and offshore energy industries. It draws on an experienced global workforce to provide high quality feasibility studies, conceptual and detailed designs for tugs and offshore support vessels of all types. OSD is based in IJmuiden, The Netherlands, and has offices in Dundee, York, Appledore, Shanghai and Singapore. www.offshoreshipdesigners.com

For more information:

Merijn Brusselers

Offshore Ship Designers

+31 (0)255 54 50 70

brusselers@offshoreshipdesigners.com

OSD to design seismic support/chase vessel series for Bourbon

Offshore Ship Designers has been chosen to design a series of six new fuel-efficient seismic support/chase vessels ordered by French offshore major Bourbon to be built at Dubai’s Grandweld Shipyards. The 53 m vessels will have a fuel efficient hybrid propulsion system delivering a flexible economic solution for the varied conditions required to support seismic survey vessels including transit speed, slow speed escort and support work and a high degree of manoeuvrability.

Neil Patterson, managing director of OSD-IMT, the UK arm of Offshore Ship Designers says, “We worked closely with Grandweld during the tender period and following their selection as one of the short-listed bidders, we assisted them technically during the successful contract negotiation process, and are pleased to have been entrusted with the design of these new vessels.”

The vessels will be chartered by Bourbon to CGGVeritas with delivery of the first vessels set for the end of 2012. They will be used to support the fleet of CGGVeritas seismic survey vessels operating all over the world, providing them with services including crew change, fuel delivery, storage, assistance and support during at-sea maintenance operations.

Operational requirements of the design include:

• Cargo runs from port to the mother ship
• Transfer of fuel, potable water, dry and refrigerated stores and general cargo to the mother ship.
• Transfer of crew to and from the mother ship.
• Accompanying the mother ship when conducting seismic operations
• Towing of the mother ship when conducting seismic operations
• Retrieval of streamer cables

Key feature of the hybrid propulsion system are:

• Two main marine diesel propulsion engines, two controllable pitch propellers in nozzles, two main gearboxes each with a PTI electric propulsion motor and three diesel driven generating sets, and two electrically driven bow tunnel thrusters.
• Diesel-mechanical mode using main engines only used for the transit operation.
• Diesel-electrical mode with main engines declutched using PTI propulsion motors powered by the gensets for chase and slow speed operation.
• Boost mode with main engines and PTI propulsion motors (powered by the gensets) engaged used for towing operation.
• Automatic push button selection between the different propulsion modes.

Service speed in transit mode with only main engines in operation – 11.0 knots
Service speed in diesel-electric mode without main engines – up to 6.0 knots
Service speed in boost mode with main engines and PTI motors – 11.3 knots
Bollard pull in boost mode with main engines and PTI motors – 50 tonnes

Main particulars are length 53.8 m, beam 13.0 m, depth 5.8 m, load draft 4.8 m, cargo fuel capacity 850 cu m, marine gas oil fuel 260 cu m, potable water 100cu m, refrigerated and dry storage capability as well as space on deck for stowage of stores containers.

Offshore Ship Designers Group (OSD) is a global one-stop resource delivering naval architecture and marine engineering skills to the shipping and offshore energy industries. It draws on an experienced global workforce to provide high quality feasibility studies, conceptual and detailed designs for tugs and offshore support vessels of all types. OSD is based in IJmuiden, The Netherlands, and has offices in Montrose, York, Appledore, Shanghai and Singapore. www.offshoreshipdesigners.com

For a PDF graphic of the IMT 952 concept: brusselers@offshoreshipdesigners.com


Or click this link to find downloadable photos:

http://bit.ly/p0ZbFX



For more information:

Merijn Brusselers
Offshore Ship Designers
+31 (0)255 54 50 70
brusselers@offshoreshipdesigners.com

OSD to design Boskalis-SMIT cable laying vessel

OSD-IMT, the UK arm of IJmuiden-based Offshore Ship Designers, has been chosen by Samsung and Boskalis-SMIT Engineering to develop the basic design, detailed design and production drawings for a 99 m cable laying vessel.

Neil Patterson, managing director of OSD-IMT, says, “This project illustrates perfectly the strengths of the OSD group. We can bring strong offshore engineering experience in the UK to bear on the basic design, and work with our Shanghai office to develop the yard drawings. It is a unique new vessel and we will carry out the model testing programme, noise and vibration analysis and impact and damaged stability analysis in addition to developing the design.”

The vessel combines a large, obstruction free main deck with ample accommodation facilities, allowing for multiple future configuration possibilities. In the current cable laying configuration, the deck has a cable loading capacity of 5,000 tonnes.

Under a separate contract OSD-IMT has been tasked by Dales Engineering Ltd, Aberdeen to design and develop the upgrade conversion production drawings for the Farstad-owned UT 755 multi-role 67 m PSV FAR SCOTIA. The new design will provide upgraded existing and new additional accommodation, ROV equipment and associated seating, new A-frame and associated winches/seating, new deck cranes and associated column/stiffening, new workboat and associated davit and seating.

Offshore Ship Designers Group (OSD) is a global one-stop resource delivering naval architecture and marine engineering skills to the shipping and offshore energy industries. It draws on an experienced global workforce to provide high quality feasibility studies, conceptual and detailed designs for tugs and offshore support vessels of all types. OSD is based in IJmuiden, The Netherlands, and has offices in Montrose, York, Appledore, Shanghai and Singapore. www.offshoreshipdesigners.com

For a PDF graphic of the Cable Layer concept see attachment or e mail john@merlinco.com

Or click this link to find downloadable photos:

https://picasaweb.google.com/103296423705491052226/OffshoreShipDesigners



For more information:

Merijn Brusselers
Offshore Ship Designers
+31 (0)255 54 50 70
brusselers@offshoreshipdesigners.com

Offshore Wind-Farm Maintenance Vessel (WMV) concept cuts costs and carbon

Anglo-Dutch company Offshore Ship Designers has launched a new offshore wind farm maintenance vessel concept which will improve uptime of deepwater wind turbines and reduce maintenance costs and carbon emissions whilst offering a solution to the logistics problem of carrying out simultaneous multiple wind turbine maintenance. The Sea-Wind WMV vessel design is for a mother ship which would remain on station in offshore deep-water wind farms providing a safe haven for multiple numbers of catamaran workboats to carry engineers to service the turbines.

Neil Patterson, managing director of OSD-IMT, Offshore Ship Designers’ UK Company, says, “The Sea-Wind design is a submersible dock ship with a large floodable dock accessible from the stern. It will provide accommodation for wind turbine engineers, service personnel, ships and support crew and can support helicopter operations in addition to its workboat deployment capability. Crew change and supplies will be carried out using a dedicated support vessel with the option to carry out crew changes by using large helicopters normally associated with servicing offshore oil installations.

“With a capability to service up to 45 wind turbines per day in up to 2.5 m significant wave heights, what we are providing is a secure offshore maintenance base from which workboats can be deployed, keeping them and their work crews safely on site in deep water wind farms far from shelter. By remaining on site rather than returning to port between maintenance visits the Sea-Wind WFM vessel design will reduce transit time and energy getting to and from the fields, and will maximise the use of good weather windows. That means savings in cost and energy used for maintenance, reduction of non-operational downtime and increased turbine availability.”

OSD-IMT is at an advanced stage with a European shipping company and UK Ship management company to deliver the concept to wind farm operators who will be constructing Round 3 wind farms around the UK and European coast. Most of these deep water wind farms will be a long way offshore, some up to 110 km, and each of the thousands of turbines require a routine maintenance program to be carried out in addition to any replacement component maintenance due to wear and tear.

The current wind farms closer to shore are serviced by fast catamaran and monohull work boats which go out from the shore in good weather. “The sheer distance and exposed location of offshore Round 3 wind farms makes service from a port difficult, expensive, risky and time wasting,” says Patterson.

“We have taken the best experience of dock ships and their use in military and commercial situations and combined it with our extensive experience in designing offshore support vessels to devise a ship which will be able to remain safely on site and deploy the workboat catamarans in significant wave heights of 2.5 m, while providing a safe haven in bad weather. The Sea-Wind concept has the engineers and working platforms safely on site, and will have an onboard capacity to carry out larger repairs without returning to land.”

In addition to the workboats, the Sea-Wind WMV vessel design also supports Autonomous Rescue and Recovery Craft (ARRC’s) which are certificated as “Places of Safety” and can support marine and helicopter operations remote from the mother ship and provide a safe haven in the event of emergency or rescue situations.

The vessels will be fitted with energy efficient diesel-electric power generation and propulsion systems and will use a number of renewable energy devices to supplement the power generation and support systems, reducing the overall carbon footprint of the vessel.

The largest version of the design will be around 187m overall length and will be fitted with a DP2 dynamic positioning capability, a dry/wet dock, helicopter support facilities, cranes for loading stores from support vessels, and will have accommodation to cater for up to 200 engineers as well as extensive catering and recreational facilities including a cinema, internet room, gymnasium with instructor, sauna, workshops, stores, galley, bakery, cafeteria style mess room, executive mess room, library/quiet room, lounges, coffee corners, doctor and dentists surgeries, first aid room, ships and client offices and briefing rooms. All accommodation will be in single-berth en-suite cabins with a mix of suites, executive client cabins, and standard cabins.

Extensive storage and workshop areas will be provided along with a waste handling plant fitted with recycling capability, waste compacting, water extraction, packaging and wet/dry incineration facilities.

OSD has been working with a catamaran builder/operator to develop a catamaran workboat specifically arranged to work with the Sea-Wind dock ship. They will be fitted with a heave compensated access walkway for accessing the wind turbines.

The dedicated support vessel working with the Sea-Wind WMV mother ship will be an IMT 9552 Wind Farm Maintenance Vessel, which has logistics support capability to carry and transfer cargo fuel, cargo potable water, aviation fuel, dry and refrigerated stores containers on deck and has also single berth accommodation for 25 wind turbine engineers, and is fitted with a crane, heave compensated access walkway and two Daughter Craft Workboats. It can be utilised for maintenance in the wind farm during periods between logistics supply runs.

OSD and its partners are currently in discussion with major wind farm developers and are seeking tenders for the construction of the vessels.

Offshore Ship Designers Group (OSD) is a global one-stop resource delivering naval architecture and marine engineering skills to the shipping and offshore energy industries. It draws on an experienced global workforce to provide high quality feasibility studies, conceptual and detailed designs for tugs and offshore support vessels of all types. OSD is based in IJmuiden, The Netherlands, and has offices in Montrose, York, Appledore, Shanghai and Singapore.

www.offshoreshipdesigners.com


You can download a hi-res graphic of the Sea Wind WMV from:

http://picasaweb.google.com/Merlinclients/OffshoreShipDesigners

or e mail john@merlinco.com


For more information:

Neil Patterson
OSD-IMT
+44 1674 678 999
neil.patterson@osd-imt.com

Merijn Brusselers
Offshore Ship Designers
+31 (0)255 54 50 70
brusselers@offshoreshipdesigners.com