Investment in employment with a well filled order book

Renovated and modernized new building quay.

With moving-out the fore ship of the m.v. Saffier on the 10th of December 2008 an important investment in a renovated and modernized new building quay, has been completed.

The original new building quay, built in the early seventies, was intended for the new building of ships with relative small sections with a weight of approximately of 30 tonnes. To optimize the new building process and to work under improved circumstances things have been changed during the last 30 years. The last decennium big blocks are assembled in the new building shed. Nowadays blocks of 250 tonnes and more are moved from the new building shed to the quay with special heavy load platform vehicles. The foundations of the new building quay however were not designed to carry these increased loads with the result that quay was sagging all the time. The transports on the quay became more difficult all the time, while, on the other hand, the demand for ships and ship blocks with greater dimensions increased. Also to guarantee the safety with these transports, the necessity to renovate and modernize the new building quay thoroughly was evident.

Nevertheless renovating a new building quay that is always occupied with assembling ships in a busy shipyard with a very tight building program is not an easy task. The full order book does not allow us to reduce or even stop the progress. The challenge was to renovate and modernize the quay without interfering the planning of the new building program. However a very tight scenario has been developed to realize this logistic puzzle by adequate planning and improvising. After an exhaustive preparation and due to a very practical approach both of the local council and the contractor the order for renovation could be concluded on the 4th of May 2007.
The project was sub divided in three phases where the first phase started in May and was ready in July. The second phase started in November and the last phase in December 2007. There was a perfect corporation between the contractor and Barkmeijer concerning the activities during the renovation and modernization. Due to a high grade of improvisation and adaptation on unpredictable circumstances and weather conditions the planning could be realized.
The most important milestone was the transport of two blocks of subsequently 400 and 670 tonnes for the newly developed vessel m.v. Saffier. On 10 December the fore ship of this vessel has been moved to the new building quay and making the vessel complete. On this way this 100 meter vessel is transported to the quay in three blocks and proves the possibilities to move ship sections and ship blocks of considerably increased weights. To launch the vessel on 8 February 2008 these moments were of crucial importance.

On the renovated new building quay vessels with a length up to 160 meter can be realized. It also gives the possibility to build two smaller vessels partly or completely simultaneously. The renovated and modernized new building quay is now 245 meters long and 18 meters wide.

Beside the practical advantages there are also organizing advantages. With the new quay the shipyard area can be utilized much more efficient because there are no transport restrictions any more. In the first place there is more (efficient) production space available and apart thereof the tuning of the building programs of subsequent vessels can be optimized.

With this investment Barkmeijer Stroobos has made a considerable efficiency stroke and is ready for the coming years with a well filled order book.

Order book

The healthy order book is consisting of different types of vessels.

Dry cargo vessels for the carriage of bulk cargoes, project cargoes, parcels and containers.

-	For the Alkmaar based Dutch owner De Bock Maritiem: a newly designed vessel with a deadweight of 5,850 tonnes, delivery April 2008.
-	For the Frisian based Dutch owner Tristar Shipping: a 4,500 tonnes dry cargo vessel. The 15th out of this successful series.
-	For the Dutch owner Flinter from Barendrecht/Paterswolde: two 5,500 tonnes dry cargo vessels, delivery end of 2008, beginning of 2009.
-	For the Delfzijl based Dutch owner Wagenborg (in combination with captain owners): four vessels of 8,200 tonnes deadweight with ice class 1A., delivery 2009-2012.

Trailing suction hopper dredger

Barkmeijer Stroobos has delivered several trailing suction hopper dredgers. These dredgers were mainly suitable for the gaining of sand and gravel. The most recent delivery was the ANDRE.L for the French owner DTM in La Rochelle in September 2005. This dredger is very successful in the sailing area on the French west coast and gives us as shipyard a very good reference in the market of dredgers.
Due to the good references and a competitive design, a contract has been concluded on the 30th of November 2007 with the Cardiff (Wales) based UK Dredging for the building of a trailing suction hopper dredger of 2,300 m3 for maintenance actibities. This dredger will be especially designed for maintenance activities in a number of harbours, estuaries, rivers, sea entrance canals mainly around the UK. Additionally this vessel will carry out dredging activities in Ireland, Germany, Holland etc.

The dredger is provided with a diesel-electric power generating plant of, in total, 3,600 kW divided over three identical diesel generator sets of 1,200 kW each. The propulsion of the dredger will be done by two fixed pitch propeller thrusters of 1,500 kW each with a propeller diameter of 2,300 mm. running in a nozzle. The thrusters are electrically driven by frequency controlled electric motors. Due to these thrusters a high degree of manoeuvrability can be reached.
Both the dredge pump and jet pump are electrically driven. Control of revolutions is also by frequency converters. The dredging system consists furthermore of two drag arms with specially developed drag heads for the efficient dredging of spoil, silt, clay, sand, gravel and loose rock. The dredger is specifically equipped with two drag arms to dredge efficiently in narrow docks, entrance canals etc. The discharging of the cargo will be executed, in most of the occasions, by the bottom doors. As an alternative the hopper can be discharged by using the dredge pump via the suction openings in the bottom door recesses and discharging via the discharge lines on port- and starboard side above the hopper.
The requirements due to the reduction of noise are very high in this dredger, both for the levels outside as in the accommodation. The dredger is often operating in areas near to the city.

The dredger has the following main dimensions and characteristics:

Length overall	75,00	m.
Breadth moulded	15,85	m.
Depth to main deck moulded	6,35	m.
Design draught moulded	4,50	m.
Deadweight at design draught	2570	ton
Dredging draught moulded (DR67)	5,60	m.
Deadweight at dredging draught (DR67)	approx. 3775	ton
Hopper capacity at upper overflow level	2300	m3.
Gross Tonnage	<3000	GT
Inside diameter of dragarm	700	mm.
Maximum dredge depth at 50 degrees of pipe angle	25	m.
Trial speed	12	kn.
3 Main Diesel Alternator sets approximate total output	approx. 3600	kW.
2 Rudder propeller units z drive by electric motor each	approx. 1500	kW.
1 dredge pump drive electric motor	approx. 800	kW.
Crew	12

The delivery of this maintenance dredger is scheduled for the 2nd quarter of 2010.