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Insights especially as you are trying to apply them to power hun- As we work on many different vessel types and different gry applications such as a high-speed ferry. markets such as ferries, wind farms support vessels, crew

New technologies such as a hybrid systems, batteries boats for oil and gas, patrol boats, ? reboats and so on, or alternative fuels all come with strings attached, such we have an ongoing thread of work leveraging develop- as higher capital costs or less ? exible vessel pro? le. It is ment across markets and applying it to new applications.

therefore important to select the option among many that Beyond that, we have specific projects addressing provides the right bene? ts to a given application or route. emerging market requirements, and I can give you a

Over the years BMT has designed LNG vessels and hybrid couple of examples. As we talked about autonomy, one crafts, and in each case it was very important to consider good example is a new concept we recently released. the cost bene? t of each option. As a simple example when This takes the form of a new pentamaran design spe- considering capital costs, you may look at LNG bunker- cifically developed for very long range applications. ing that is cheaper than gasoil, or we’ve designed hybrid Beyond the long-range requirements, we also worked systems that can save you money in term of maintenance. on the many aspects associated with an autonomous

Ultimately, and especially in this challenging time, an op- vessel, such as system reliability and the often over- erator needs to ensure when considering new technologies looked optimization on shore that goes with the ab- that it actually makes sense for their business, and we are sence of crews.

certainly happy to help with that process. Another example is the outcome of some work we did a couple of years ago on the mini SOV design. The ves-

I am sure that investment in research and sel will offer increased transfer capability in wind farm development at BMT is ongoing. Can you markets compared to typical crew transfer vessels, but it discuss what you’re looking at today for also offers a signi? cantly lower cost base for accommoda- tomorrow, or discuss a couple projects that tion and transfer of wind farm technicians compared to you think best illustrate the direction that a traditional monohull SOV. The ? rst vessel is now in you’re heading?

operation in the rough seas of the Taiwan’s Strait, and it’s

SJ: We’ve got quite a lot of interesting projects going on. a good example of what we do.

The BMT-designed 36-meter service accommodation transfer vessel (SATV) has commenced operations and maintenance activities at the Formosa 1 offshore wind farm project in Taiwan. 16 | MN April 2021