Brilliance has six appeal

Six may not sound like a lot. But there are six cabins on Royal Caribbean?s latest ship Brilliance of the Seas from which the revenue goes straight to the operator?s financial bottom line. Six cabins that, therefore, do represent a lot.

Add up the revenue from these six cabins over the course of a year and the total is not insignificant ? upwards of $70,000 at a conservative estimate. Add on the revenue from spa treatments, shore excursions and other non-inclusive items that guests in these six extra cabins generate and the cruise line is looking at a healthy six-figure gain.

Brilliance of the Seas has 1,056 cabins; six more than its sister ship Radiance of the Seas, delivered last year. The extra cabins aren?t the big money earners ? those at the top of the ship with balconies ? but five of the extra cabins are outward facing and just one is an inside cabin.

The principal dimensions of the two ships are identical: 90,090g, 293.2m loa, 263.5m lbp, 32.2m moulded breadth and 8.15m draught. Dimensions dictated by the Panama Canal.

The crew complement is also identical at 858, according to the ship?s builder, Meyer Werft. Accommodating and serving these six extra cabins therefore comes at no extra cost, apart from some initial investment at the design stage. So how have Royal Caribbean and the ship?s Germany-based builder squeezed more into the confines of the ship?s design?

Essentially the yard, with the backing of the owner, made some changes in the crew cabin area and marginally downsized some public spaces, says a Meyer Werft spokesman. The machinery and exhaust casing are located as on Radiance.

The gain of six cabins is additional to the 50 extra cabins that gas and steam turbine generating equipment with electric Azipod propulsion is said to allow. The overall net gain in cabins on Brilliance, compared to a similarly-dimensioned ship with diesel machinery, is therefore 56, according to the shipyard.

The total cabin complement comprises 238 inside cabins and 818 outside cabins, including one Royal suite, six owner?s suites and 17 balcony suites. Each of the suites and 550 of the outside cabins has a private balcony.

The largest of the suites ? the Royal ? covers about 90m2. Its front is fully glazed and it contains comforts such as a piano, bar and marble bathroom. There are 14 cabins equipped for passengers with disabilities.

In all the cabins, the living area can be separated from the bedroom by a curtain at the very least. Standard cabin features include telephone, safe, Internet connection and individual temperature control.

The air conditioning system installed is designed for worldwide operation. The 336 air conditioning and ventilation plants onboard handle about 2.9 million m3 of air per hour. Condensed water from the air conditioning system is used in the laundry to reduce water

consumption.

All the cabins also have a colour TV. The vessel is fitted with an interactive aerial system, comprising two satellite dishes, for receiving TV pictures. The system applies Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology with fibreglass and CAT5 cables. It provides over 30 interactive programme options such as pay TV and tele-shopping. There are plans to broadcast an onboard talk show.

Some of the more staggering statistics, released by the shipyard on the vessel?s handover to its owner, relate to the amount of cabling and piping installed. Meyer Werft says that it has laid 150km of pipe and 1,900km of cable on the ship. Set in the context of a ship less than 300m long and with numerous transverse watertight bulkheads and seven separate fire zones, the statistics amply demonstrate the complexities a shipyard faces in building cruise ships.

A large part of the piping system is for the distribution of fresh water and the collection of waste water. A vacuum piping system on Brilliance collects all sewage water in four systems. This is treated in three chemically-mechanically operated sewage plants before it is discharged.

Two evaporators and a reverse osmosis plant generate up to 1.58 million litres of potable (drinkable) water per day. Potable water can also be taken onboard from ashore. The hot water circuit is heated with steam.

Steam is also used to generate power. Much of the cabling on Brilliance distributes the 58MW of power generated by the ship?s COGES (combined gas turbine/ electric/steam turbine) plant. The plant comprises two 25MW GE LM2500+ gas turbines and a 7.8MW steam turbine, manufactured by the mechanical products division of Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri. The exhaust gases from the gas turbines generate steam in exhaust gas boilers. This is transformed into energy (up to 7.8MW worth) by the steam turbine.

Up to 40MW of the power generated is required for forward thrust and course keeping via two Azipod 360 deg. azimuthing podded propulsion units. Maximum speed is 24 knots. Three bow thrusters add to the manoeuvrability, particularly in harbour situations. The helmsman can control both pods and the bow thrusters with a single joystick. He can also utilise a dynamic positioning system to maintain position and berth automatically.

The navigator has use of an integrated bridge system, by Litton Marine (now known as Sperry Marine, a unit of Northrop Grumman). The main feature is the Voyage Management System, which allows the radar display to be overlaid on the electronic sea chart. All the radar units have high resolution colour monitors.

Should the worst happen and the ship is involved in a collision, grounding or fire that requires the evacuation of its passengers and crew there are four tenders, 14 lifeboats and two fast rescue boats to accommodate the up to 3,258 persons onboard. In addition, the ship is equipped with two Marine Evacuation Systems, which enable a fast evacuation via chutes onto

liferafts.

The ship?s environmental performance, which already benefits from low NOx, low smoke producing gas turbines (emitting higher CO2 though than a diesel engine), is augmented by certain shipboard policies. Waste is separated into recyclable and non-recyclable, burnable and non-burnable streams. It is disposed of ashore or burnt in one of two shipboard incinerators. The flue gases of the incinerator are cleaned and any ashes and dust stored aboard for disposal ashore.

Another statistic released by the shipyard is the total weight of paint applied, which on Brilliance is 220t. This is TBT-free.

Both shipyard and owner point to the extent that glass has been used in the construction. The total external glazed area is 7,000m2, according to the shipyard. The owner expresses this as being nearly three acres. Aside from large picture windows in cabins and public areas, glass has been used to provide the ship with external elevators, which provide panoramic views out across the ocean as guests traverse between the decks.

The ship has eight galleys and a number of pantries and bars.

Among the highlights of the public spaces are the 11 deck high atrium into which passengers enter the ship and the Pacifica Theatre. There is also a pair of self-levelling pool tables in the Bombay Billiards Club.

The theatre has an orchestra pit, four revolving stage wagons, six scenery flies and various curtain rails. All the equipment is computer-controlled from different locations. US contractor MAVCO provided two side-stage video walls, an ultra-bright DLP video projector, robotic camera heads, computer controlled video matrix, analogue and digital playback sources and a video operator?s console for the theatre.

Net hazard

During its sea trials in the North Sea, Brilliance managed to pick up remnants of a stray fishing net. The net had become entangled around the ship?s starboard propeller.

Divers who discovered the net during a routine inspection removed it and gave the propeller and its oil seals the all clear. A subsequent trial run confirmed this to the satisfaction of the yard and owner. This meant a return to drydock was not necessary.

The incident, however, highlights the hazard that stray nets and ropes present. A return to drydock would have been costly for both yard and owner and would have left some very red-faced officials to explain a delay in delivery.

Spurs Marine, a US-based manufacturer of line and net cutters for the shipping industry, says that stray lines and nets are drawn into the oil seals around the propeller hub. The damage this causes to the seals allows oil to leak into the ocean and seawater to pass the other way. At worst, the damage the seawater causes can result in a catastrophic propeller failure.

Meyer Werft says the propellers on Brilliance have line cutters. “This was the reason why we didn?t need a drydocking,” says a yard spokesman.

Brilliance of the Seas is now engaged on a series of north-eastern US/eastern Canada cruises having been launched on a number of voyages in northern Europe out of Harwich, England.