Dundee Marine Completes 1st 'shark' High Speed offshore crewboat
Dundee Marine & Industrial Services Pte Ltd (Dundee), has successfully completed a 39-metre Fast Crew/Supply Transporter, "DM ASCENTIA", at its shipyard in Pioneer Sector 1, Tuas, Singapore.
Dundee's Managing Director, Mr SW Tan brought along his more than 40 years of industry experience to ensure that the boat was built to premium quality. The full aluminium alloy hull and superstructure boat was built in accordance to Bureau Veritas Classification Rules with notation BV, I +Hull +Mach Crew Boat, Sea Area 3. She is the first prototype model of the SHARK 39 crew boat series, developed by Dundee's in-house naval architects and built at its own shipyard.
"DM ASCENTIA" have successfully gone through all required trials and tests, exceeding performance expectations in which she was originally designed for. The high speed vessel was designed and built to assist in fast transfer of offshore personnel and supplies from shore to offshore installations at reduced travelling time and operation cost.
"DM ASCENTIA" complements a total of 72 business class recline-able seats with generous leg room. 3 Euro train style tables with foldable table top and electrical power sockets for laptops are installed at the VIP seating area for working on the move. The main deck passenger saloon has the flexibility to upgrade up to 102 seats, depending on charter requirement.
The propulsion package consists of 3x 1500 BHP Baudouin 12M26.3 P2 (heavy duty) engines driving 3 fixed pitched propellers through ZF 3050 gear box. The vessel completed sea trial with maximum speed recorded in excess of 32 knots. The official speed trial average was 30 knots @ 100% MCR with 31.5 tons deadweight.
General Manager Mr Spenser Tan, (Dundee), said, "We believe it is unprecedented for crew boats of similar size to achieve 30 knots at similar deadweight with only 4500 BHP, utilising fixed pitched propellers."
Sharks are highly efficient, lean, fast and agile swimmers. Their bodies are streamlined to reduce drag and require minimal energy. The in-house naval architects of Dundee, led by Mr Patrick Neo, Engineering Manager, took the challenge to design a new series of crew boats that possess the attributes of sharks. The team underwent research, including computational fluid dynamics analysis and scaled model tank tests to develop this efficient hull form that demands lesser power to achieve the required speed. Focus was also made on controlling hull weight while not compromising strength, resulting in effective reduction of lightship weight and increase of deadweight capacity.
Mr Patrick Neo, Engineering Manager commented, "This is by far the lightest ship weight that I have designed for crew boats of similar size"
The full-width layout of the passenger saloon allows it to be shorter, hence more room for aft deck with approximately 110 square metres of clear deck space. Below main deck is fitted with accommodation for 8 crew, coldroom and chiller alongside with galley, mess and other living amenities. Fuel oil tankage is approximately 82,000 litres and freshwater capacity is approximately 30,000 litres. With vessel length of 39m, "DM ASCENTIA" can rival specifications of other bigger crew boats.
"Some industry insiders commented that this will be the new bench mark for offshore crew boats." Mr Spenser Tan added.
On the bridge, ALPHABRIDGE forward and aft control stations are installed, keeping things neat and tidy with all controls within Master's hands reach. A touch screen integrated alarm monitoring system with data logging and tank monitoring system is also provided on the forward console. A FIFI monitor is fitted at aft of wheelhouse deck with remote control in the aft wheelhouse console.
The SHARK 39 crew boat series is a Formidable New Force for offshore crew and supplies. The high speed vessel is fast, energy efficient and boasts of remarkable reduction in operating costs. It can also be deployed as security boat or patrol boat, search and rescue, emergency response, firefighting etc. The second boat of the series is currently under construction. Third and fourth shipsets are in discussion phase with major equipment suppliers.
Mr Jensen Tan, Project Manager (Dundee), said, "The project budget was exceeded for the first boat, due to the extra efforts on quality and aesthetic. However, we are confident that we will be able to streamline the process for subsequent builds to make this a commercial success."
The interviewee team was tight-lipped when asked about future R&D plans or projects but Mr Patrick Neo said, "We will continue to push the envelope and work towards developing efficient hull forms. We are also currently working with Marine and Offshore Technology Centre of Innovation of Ngee Ann Polytechnic to develop hydrodynamic tools or appendages to increase efficiency."
This done through an Enhanced Internship Programme, which provide opportunities for students to be involved in R&D projects while undergoing internship, and hopefully, Singapore will have a bigger local talent pool in R&D for marine industry, in future.
Both Mr Spenser Tan and Mr Patrick Neo are also volunteer mentors of the industry Mentors' Network, a joint-polytechnic programme where an industry practitioner provides professional and industry guidance to a group of 3 to 4 students to help them in their personal growth, development and career.
Established since 1977, Dundee specialised in shipbuilding, ship repair and marine consultancy. It operates a fully equipped shipyard with all ship building and ship repair essentials. The shipyard was specifically designed and built to bridge the gap between large scale multi-national shipyards and small scale local owned shipyards. Facilities include 1 no. 39m x 190m slipway with 2 cradles and 2 covered workshop for aluminium boat building.
This article was originally published on Marine & Industrial Report newspaper Vol 38 No.3 Issue last June 30, 2016.
