An innovative, bowless heavy lift cargo ship presently under construction has won the Royal Association of Dutch Shipowners (KVNR) Award.Heavy transport expert Dockwise realised that offshore exploration and storage platforms are increasing in size, and at the same time there is an increasing demand for such structures to be transported in their entirety, due to the relocation of the oil industry towards deeper water and more remote areas.
Michel Seij, manager of engineering at Dockwise said that first of all, the company looked at whether its present fleet had the ability to transport this type of cargo. “Our conclusion was that they had insufficient capacity and inadequate deck area, the bow and the accommodation is usually in the way."
So, the company got together with consulting and engineering specialists Deltamarin to design a unique semi-submersible vessel that had extra deck space. In fact, it has been designed so that its deck area equals the main dimensions of the ship. The DockwiseVanguard is 275m long and 70m wide, and the lack of a conventional bow means there is much more load flexibility. The ship also provides space for a sideways overhang of cargo along 170m of its length. Under construction at the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard both the deck and the keel are double skinned, with steel thicknesses of 45 mm, allowing the vessel to carry extreme loads of up to 110,000 tons.
One of the main problems was current regulations, leading the companies to work in collaboration with MARIN, Det Norske Veritas and the Dutch Inspectorate for Transport, Public Works and Water Management to get the required exemptions for a ship that really isn’t ship shaped.
Another area that needed special attention during the design process was the distribution of safety zones. Normally both port and starboard rescue stations are required. Because of the longitudinally placed accommodation which is located entirely on the starboard side, the safety zones adapted to front and aft zones in the accommodation, which can be seen in the position of the davit-launched lifeboats.
Costing some $240m, the ship is being built in Korea and is expected to enter service in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Tineke Netelenbos, chairman of the KNVR Shipping Award said, “Dockwise has thus a true technological innovation. The first and only. No other vessel is designed like this.”
So, the company got together with consulting and engineering specialists Deltamarin to design a unique semi-submersible vessel that had extra deck space. In fact, it has been designed so that its deck area equals the main dimensions of the ship. The DockwiseVanguard is 275m long and 70m wide, and the lack of a conventional bow means there is much more load flexibility. The ship also provides space for a sideways overhang of cargo along 170m of its length. Under construction at the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard both the deck and the keel are double skinned, with steel thicknesses of 45 mm, allowing the vessel to carry extreme loads of up to 110,000 tons.
One of the main problems was current regulations, leading the companies to work in collaboration with MARIN, Det Norske Veritas and the Dutch Inspectorate for Transport, Public Works and Water Management to get the required exemptions for a ship that really isn’t ship shaped.
Another area that needed special attention during the design process was the distribution of safety zones. Normally both port and starboard rescue stations are required. Because of the longitudinally placed accommodation which is located entirely on the starboard side, the safety zones adapted to front and aft zones in the accommodation, which can be seen in the position of the davit-launched lifeboats.
Costing some $240m, the ship is being built in Korea and is expected to enter service in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Tineke Netelenbos, chairman of the KNVR Shipping Award said, “Dockwise has thus a true technological innovation. The first and only. No other vessel is designed like this.”
Do you have a picture of the ship in building?
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