Specialisation pays

Dutch shipbuilders have had a few excellent years with a record intake of orders in 1999 and 2000 with a value of f2.2 million ($920,000) and nearly f4.5m respectively. As expected after last year?s bonanza, new orders are now more difficult to obtain. This is not only due to the deteriorating world economy, but due to the scrapping of the tax-advantageous Commanditaire Vennootschap (CV) for vessels as from January 2001 and by the uncertainty regarding EU subsidies for shipbuilding. Although the government promised to consider an alternative for the CV, nothing has been decided so far. In some cases a CV on the basis of the tonnage tax has been offered to investors, but it is considered unlikely that this will be a structural solution. As a result, ship owners have delayed new orders, the more so because the European Commission may again introduce a 6% shipbuilding subsidy for some types of vessels. The shipbuilding industry hopes that a decision will be forthcoming on both issues in the near future so that they can replenish their order books. The Netherlands remains opposed to direct subsidies to shipyards, preferring aid for innovation, research, the development of prototypes and financial instruments. However, economic affairs minister Annemarie Jorritsma said recently to Parliament that she feared losing this subsidy battle. Considering that France now also wants to subsidise large LNG tankers, her fears seem justified. The uncertainty surrounding new orders is already evident with the recent developments around the ailing Friesian shipyard, Welgelegen. When Bodewes Volharding of Foxhol took over the yard in September, Gert-Jan Bodewes had already agreed with the unions that the newbuilding division would be closed for one or two years to give him time to develop new business for the yard. Nevertheless, there are some specialised niches in Dutch shipbuilding which are still flourishing, particularly yacht and dredger building. There are a number of builders of large, luxurious yachts which have increased capacity lately. Amels Makkum, having a length problem, last year obtained a new facility at the old yard of Schelde Vlissingen where larger motor yachts can be constructed. Both yards belong to the Damen stable. Feadschip of Aerdenhout is also length constrained at its two existing yards and has, therefore, taken over Slob Papendrecht where it can construct yachts up to 130m long. Meanwhile, Tille Kootstertille announced that it will shift partly from short sea cargo vessels to the construction of hulls to be supplied to the major yacht builders. Ever larger suction dredgers IHC Holland has benefited from many large infrastructure projects around the world which require large trailing suction hopper dredgers. The race for ever larger trailers started about 1994 when DEME of Belgium obtained the 17,000m3 Pearl River from IHC Holland, soon followed by the 18,000m3 Gerardus Mercator for Jan de Nul, also of Belgium. Boskalis followed in 1996 with two even larger suction dredgers, both with a hopper capacity of 23,425m3. This order went to Verolme Heusden which, not having dredger experience, lost too much money on building them and went bankrupt. At the time, IHC Holland experienced capacity constraints in Kinderdijk with only one building berth, limited in breadth. This was solved with the takeover of Merwede Shipyards and Van der Giessen-de Noord. Both yards continue to construct other vessel types, such as ferries and offshore vessels at Van der Giessen and river cruise vessels at Merwede, also a booming niche market. Van der Giessen is currently building a 173m long ferry for Brittany Ferries of France, scheduled to be delivered in June 2002, and another for SNCM with delivery planned in December 2003. In 1997, Merwede built the 18,000m3 Amsterdam for Ballast Nedam, followed in 1998 by the Volvox Terranova, constructed at IHC Kinderdijk, for Van Oord/ACZ and the Queen of Penta Ocean, both of 20,000m3, which Van der Giessen delivered to Japanese owners. In 1999, there was only one delivery of a large dredger, the Nile River, a sister of the Pearl River. This year, two dredgers have been completed, the Rotterdam (21,500m3) for Ballast Nedam and the HAM 318 (23,700m3). The 40,600t HAM 318, delivered in October 2001, will be operated by HAM Dredging Ltd. in the UK. The vessel has two suction tubes, each with a submerged dredge pump, allowing dredging up to a depth of 70m. If required in future, the dredging depth can be extended to 110m. The two main engines, each of 12,600kW, drive the adjustable propeller, giving a speed of 17.3 knots, and the main generators which provide power to the pumps, other dredging equipment and two bow thrusters. The vessel has two inboard pumps (2 x 2,750kW), submerged dredge pumps (2 x 2,500kW), shore discharge pumps (2 x 5,500kW) and jetpumps (2 x 1,100kW). Meanwhile, Jan de Nul obtained the record in dredger size with its Vasco da Gama of 33,000m3, built in Germany. However, it will not keep this record long, because Boskalis has decided to enlarge the WD Fairway, one of the two completed in 1996 by Verolme Heusden, from 23,425 to 33,500m3 hopper capacity. The vessel will be lengthened to 227m by adding a mid section of 54m. Moreover, the depth will be increased from 13.1 to 16.8m. About 6,200t of steel has to be added which includes 950t for strengthening the bottom. The original design was based on a combination of sand and sludge being dredged with a stowage factor of 1.4t/m3; the enlarged vessel will be a sand dredger whereby this factor is increased to 1.8t/m3. Since 1997, the WD Fairway is employed in Singapore where mostly sand is being transported. It was, therefore, not surprising that the conversion job went to Sembawang Shipyard of Singapore which will redeliver the vessel mid 2002. Integrated bridge The large dredgers are nowadays equipped with sophisticated, automated systems to optimise the dredging operations. Apart from equipment such as 3D depth meters, wave compensation, measurement of the overflow, side-scanning sonars and DGPS, IHC Systems has developed, together with Imtech Marine & Industri, a fully integrated bridge which will make it possible to combine the functions of dredging operator and navigation officer. An essential part of the integrated bridge is the Dynamic Positioning and Tracking system (DP/DT) which is basically a simulator which is connected to the steering system. DP/DT constantly checks the power on the suction head and the velocity of current and wind to make corrections to the prepared program in the simulator. The system works much faster compared with feeding the system with data obtained through DGPS. The first, still rather experimental DP/DT was installed on the Lange Wapper of DEME, which also made a contribution to its development. Revival of smaller dredgers The drive for jumbo suction dredgers appears to be subsiding, however. President Van Sliedrecht of IHC Holland already remarked recently: “Demand for trailer suction designs will not continue at its present level”. DEME ordered in January 2001 a 13,700m3 dredger with IHC Holland which will have the same design as the Lange Wapper, delivered in 1998. These vessels are, however, not earmarked for major infrastructure projects, but for maintenance dredging of waterways, such as the Western Schelde. They have a low design draught of 8m which was obtained by installing only one suction tube. With a large hopper, constructed to prevent overflow as much as possible, the vessel is also suitable for dredging contaminated sludge. Although small compared with today?s jumbo trailers, these two vessels also present a jump forward, maintenance dredging having been done mostly by smaller dredgers of 8,000-10,000m3. Dutch dredging companies even use smaller vessels which are also suitable for work in minor harbours and for sand suppletion to beaches. In 1994 HAM ordered the 3,500m3 HAM 311 for these jobs, followed in 1997 by the HAM 312 and in 2000 by the HAM 317 of 4,400 m3. Other dredging companies, probably too much occupied by their drive to ever larger dredgers, refrained for the time being to follow HAM?s example. However, in January 2001 Boskalis obtained the 4,900m3 dredger Waterway from Merwede Shipyards. To get the low dredging draught of 6.58m, the vessel has a breadth (mld) of 23m with a length of 97.7m only (L/B ratio of 3.656). The forward part is strengthened to allow safe beaching. A minimum draught forward is maintained during sand discharging. Meanwhile, IHC Holland continues to have new orders from many countries for its standard Beaver designs and for small dredgers, mainly for port and river operations. Among the deliveries in 2001 are the Hansakawa, a 1,200m3 suction hopper dredger ordered by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, and the 10,500kW cutter dredgers Al Mirfa and Kattouf, delivered to the National Marine Dredging Company of Abu Dhabi. India and China are also regular customers.