Bibby Marine awards Damen Shipyards to build service operations vessel
Bibby Marine Services Ltd, part of the Bibby Line Group's portfolio of companies, has signed a contract with Dutch shipbuilder, Damen, for a purpose-built Service Operations Vessel (SOV) to serve the offshore wind market. The new ship, 'Bibby WaveMaster 1' represents the first collaboration of its kind between the two market leading companies.
Drawing on Bibby's 200+ year maritime heritage, Bibby Marine Services Ltd. has the express aim of serving the marine needs of the offshore renewables market. The company is applying its expert knowledge and experience to provide total access and accommodation solutions for the offshore wind farm sector to work access and 60 high-quality accommodation berths.
"The aim is to enable offshore wind operators to work more efficiently, more safely and in maximum comfort, for periods of up to 30 days at a time.
"The vessel is built on a stable DP-2 (Dynamic Positioning) platform so it offers very high operability. It will provide safe offshore transfers for personnel by way of a motion compensated access system (Walk to Work). Equipment will be securely transferred by way of the heave compensated offshore-rated knuckle boom crane.
With technicians on standby in the field 24/7, wind farm operators can act immediately to rectify expensive outages, even in the toughest of weather conditions."
Stephen Blaikie, Chief Executive Officer, Bibby Marine Services Ltd., explains, "Bibby WaveMaster 1 is a custom-designed 90m LOA (Length Overall) SOV, with walk been carefully planned in terms of storage, workflow and logistics to ensure that the movement of both people and goods is smartly optimized.
The vessel has been specifically designed to be as 'green' as possible, with minimal emissions and low fuel consumption. Whilst both safety and efficiency are integral features, comfort is also paramount. The Comfort Class 2 standard accommodation comprises 60 individual ensuite berths, all of which are equipped with TV and Wi-Fi, and are complemented by class-leading leisure facilities.
As well as offering a high standard of living, the vessel hull form has been designed with comfort in mind, ensuring exceptional seakeeping abilities, and minimizing motion sickness to ensure technicians are fit for work.
Bibby WaveMaster 1 is being built at Damen's Shipyards Galati in Romania and is expected to launch in mid-2017.
Stephen Blaikie explains the thinking behind this latest investment: "Having served the maritime industry for over 200 years, Bibby's ongoing success lies in staying one step ahead, recognising new opportunities and leading with innovative solutions.
"With significant growth expected in offshore wind over the coming years, Bibby WaveMaster 1 represents our first step toward becoming a major player in the offshore wind access and accommodation sector."
Arnout Damen, Chief Commercial Officer of the Damen Shipyards Group adds, "It's a pleasure to work with Bibby Marine Services on the development of this new vessel. The Bibby Line Group has a proud reputation in the maritime world and we are confident that this vessel will help to maintain and further this. The offshore wind industry is developing and this brings with it fresh challenges. We have worked closely together to design this vessel specifically with these in mind. We look forward to continuing to build on our relationship in the future."
Bibby Marine Services Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bibby Line Group Limited. Its express aim is to serve the marine needs of the offshore renewables market. Bibby WaveMaster 1 is the first vessel to be commissioned by Bibby Marine Services Limited. Its key features are:
Offshore transfers for special personnel and equipment by means of a motion compensated access system and heave compensated offshore-rated knuckle boom crane on a stable DP-2 vessel platform
90m LOA
Comfort Class 2 accommodation - 60 individual ensuite berths
Helipad
Class-leading leisure facilities
Daughter craft and CTV landings
Bibby Line Group is a diverse and forward-looking family business with over 200 years' experience of providing personal, responsive and flexible customer solutions. It is one of the longest established family-owned companies in the UK. From its roots in shipping Bibby has grown into a £1.7bn business, operating in more than 20 countries, employing 6,500 people in industries including retail, offshore, finance, distribution, shipping, marine-based businesses, plant hire and woodland burials. Since 2007, Bibby employees have donated over £8.4 million to over 1,000 charitable causes.
Damen Shipyards Group operates 32 shipbuilding and repair yards, employing 9,000 people worldwide. Damen has delivered more than 5,000 vessels in more than 100 countries and delivers some 160 vessels annually to customers worldwide. Based on its unique, standardised ship-design concept, Damen is able to guarantee consistent quality.
Damen's focus on standardisation, modular construction and keeping vessels in stock leads to short delivery times, low 'total cost of ownership', high resale values and reliable performance. Furthermore, Damen vessels are based on thorough R&D and proven technology. Damen offers a wide range of products, including tugs, workboats, naval and patrol vessels, high-speed craft, cargo vessels, dredgers, vessels for the offshore industry, ferries, pontoons and superyachts. For nearly all vessel types, Damen offers a broad range of services, including maintenance, spare parts delivery, training and the transfer of (shipbuilding) know-how. Damen also offers a variety of marine components, such as nozzles, rudders, anchors, anchor chains and steelworks. In addition to ship design and shipbuilding, Damen Shiprepair & Conversion has a worldwide network of 15 repair and conversion yards with dry docks ranging up to 420 x 80 metres. Conversion projects range from adapting vessels to today's requirements and regulations to the complete conversion of large offshore structures. DSC completes around 1,500 repair and maintenance jobs annually.
This article was originally published on Marine & Industrial Report newspaper Vol 38 No.1 Issue last February 29,2016.
