Upturn in German repair work for Gibdock

The Peter Döhle-owned, 2,785 teu Rita, Ahrenkiel Steamship’s 1,300 teu AS Fatima and the 3,091 teu Louis S, owned by Schepers Rudolf Reederei, all spent time in drydock in the fourth quarter for varying maintenance and repair programmes.

“Business has been picking up and container vessel owners and operators have been attracted to the yard by our location, close to key trade lanes, as well as by our reputation for quality work and on-time delivery,” said John Taylor, operations director, Gibdock.

“Our regular ferry refit season starts soon and we are getting more enquiries from the offshore market, so the first quarter of 2018 is already looking promising.”

Tight schedule

Rita was docked for 14 days in October, for a drydocking schedule that included a total of 11,000m2 of hull treatment with blasting over an area of 5000m2.

The 166m long AS Fatima was primarily docked for work to address a stern tube issue, whereby the propeller blades and blade carriers, as well as the propeller hub itself, were completely overhauled.

During the AS Fatima’s 21 day stay at the yard, Gibdock also conducted a complete overhaul of the vessel’s main engines.

Schepers’ 220m long Louis S was drydocked in the yard’s dock No 1 for around a week. The container vessel came in with a stern tube issue, requiring the propeller unit to be dismantled.