General News

Aker Finnyards is to build what it is claimed will be the largest ropax ferry in the world when it is delivered to Irish Ferries in early 2001. The order for the…

Tokyo-based classification society Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) is to make its database of information about ships` hulls, including examples of damage and casualties, available to the maritime industry. It has brought the…

Representatives of Europe`s shipyards are demanding urgent action by the EU to protect them from what they claim are unfair practices in Korea, and claim that protective measures - such as a…

Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven is to build a 2,000 passenger cruise ship for Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). Due for delivery in September 2001, the newbuilding will be of similar design to NCL`s…

A Sonardyne USBL (Ultra-Short Base Line) acoustic positioning system has been chosen by submarine cable company Global Marine for installation aboard its new cable layer Bold Endeavour. The 5,500t vessel is designed…

The German-owned fleet (1,737 vessels totalling 26.1 million dwt) is the world`s seventh biggest, but includes by far the largest capacity of container ships - over 21 per cent of the world`s…

Bylock & Nordsjofrakt (B&N) in Sweden and Palkkiyhtyma in Finland have ordered a pair of 14,800 dwt roll-on roll-off/lift-off (roro/lolo) vessels from Stocznia Gdynia in Poland. Along with Finncarriers, B&N and its…

The new STN Atlas SES 4000 series of engine room simulators are based on real-time physical mathematical models instead of traditional look-up tables, says the company. The simulators cover all aspects of…

As yards move into the next Millennium the desire of shipbuilders - faced with an increasingly competitive market - is to increase efficiency and productivity. One prime aspect that will need attention…

The first engine tested was one of ten seven-cylinder 98cm bore units, and will power a 4,800 TEU container ship for Hapag-Lloyd. MAN B&W says that the tests had been particularly successful,…

LR is warning shipowners to ensure all engines fitted into newbuildings comply with IMO`s NOx emission standards. While it does not expect the relevant regulations to come into force until 2002, once…

Marking an important diversification away from its traditional focus on building sophisticated military craft, the Cherbourg yard Constructions Mecaniques de Normandie (CMN) delivered the multi-purpose offshore supply vessel, Kiesse, on September 7…

Philadelphia Gear has landed its largest contract to date in the form of $35 million order for transmissions from FastShip. The company will supply 21 gearboxes, ,five per ship, plus one spare,…

Repairs to the 15 x 6m hole in the port side of container vessel Ever Decent were carried out afloat at Blohm+Voss Repair. The yard also repaired a smaller penetration higher in…

This year`s ShipRepair & Conversion exhibition takes place at Olympia on November 10-11. Organisers report another increase in the number of companies exhibiting at the show, which covers two floors of Hall…

3M has introduced a fire protection material for cable penetrations in bulkheads and decks that it says maintains the integrity of fire-rated structures for up to an A60 (IMO) and H60 (UL)…

Repairs to the four Pielstick 12PC3V-480 main engines on DFDS passenger ferry Princess of Scandinavia are underway at MAN B&W`s Servicecenter Frederikshavn. The engines, which have logged about 160,000 running hours over…

An epirb which failed to function has raised concerns with Canadian Coast Guard. The failure came to light in a report into the search and rescue operation following the loss of Flare…

Seillean FPSO, operating at 1,853m on the Roncador field, Brazil, uses an Alstom triple voting dynamic positioning system and is the first continuous dynamically positioned FPSO to operate in waters of this…

Cammell Laird`s Birkenhead yard has won the hotly contested contract to convert the 52,926g Italian cruise ship Costa Classica. Valued at £51 million ($84.15 million) to the yard, this is said to…