Page 29: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (July 2004)

German RoRo Bastion

Having logged fresh orders from existing clients UN

RoRo (formerly UND) of Turkey and Denmark's

DFDS group, Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft has taken its tally of RoRo trailerships contracted in recent years to 23. The volume of business puts the German yard to the fore in European RoRo freight vessel con- struction, with a prolific, current output rate of four such newbuilds per annum.

FSG's assumption of a high profile in the RoRo cate- gory is a mark of thecompany's meticulous attention to production processes, materials and equipment pro- curement and logistics, build quality and design added- value. Measures aimed at ensuring cost competitive- ness in the international market are complemented by the maintenance of a large, in-house design resource, relative to the yard's modest size, and by an energetic commitment to research and development. Production is focused on a single, fully-enclosed building slipway, where hull dwell times have been progressively reduced.

Flensburg has emerged as a showcase for the com- petitive production of mercantile vessels in Europe, coupling investment in technological tools with the best German traditions in industrial enterprise, to give the lie to widely-held perceptions that Europe has no future in building ships of trade. For sure, FSG's posi- tion has been hard won, and its absence of complacen- cy is a strength, signified by new design endeavors and by a readiness to apply its concept to other fields of construction in the event of a fall-off in RoRo demand.

The string of export contracts for high-capacity trailerships has added significance for the con- siderable inroads made into the European mar- ket by the Chinese shipbuilding industry, which has taken great strides in the RoRo domain, not least among Nordic owners.

The latest business secured by the yard com- prises a sixth ship in the Tor Magnolia class of 3,831 lane-m North Sea RoRo for DFDS Tor

Line, and a repeat contract from UN RoRo for two trailerships of 3,735 lane-m capacity.

Following completions of the first three DFDS ships. Tor Magnolia. Tor Petunia and Tor

Primula, the new influx of work has boosted the present workload to seven RoRo freight ves- sels, comprising three of the new generation for

DFDS, plus four of the latest design for the

Turkish client.

The delivery program has thereby been extended to mid 2006. The Tor Magnolia series, known as the 'Flower' class, has brought a 37% hike in unit lane-m capacity, at just a small

Investment in Design increase in length and breadth, in comparison with the

Fincantieri-built Tor Selandia trailership type intro- duced in 1999 and 2000. Accommodating 253 trailers of 14-m length, the 'Flower' RoRos allow for year- round scheduling on the North Sea at 22.5-knots, about half a knot more than that of the Tor Selandia trio.

The width of the new ships is the absolute maximum for transiting the lock linking the tidal Humber with "Now with leak detection

Smart Radar Level

Sensor with Generic

RS485 Output

The first flat array antenna for liquid tank gauging.

This software driven array allows for each sensor to remotely configure itself for the type of product as well as the structural characteristics within each tank. It is completely self-diagnostic and is factory calibrated using a laser interferometer to ,1mm. It is designed for the harshest environments and can be provided in a high temperature version to 385°F. it is intrinsically safe with Class 1, Div. 1,

Group D & C approvals. As a smart sensor, all processing calculations and software are resident in the device itself, only a high level generic data output, i.e., RS485 (or others on request) is sent to the cargo control area.

Options: • Multiple alarm set-points • Temperature • PV Pressure • I.G. Pressure • Tank Management Software • Automated draft and trim

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SYSTEMS, INC. 800 Ferndale Place

Rahway, NJ 07065 »• Call today for more information! 732.382.4344 732.388.5111 fax [email protected] e-mail http://www.emsmarcon.com

Circle 222 on Reader Service Card

July 2004 29

Tor Begonia, the lastest of an innovative RoRo class for DFDS Tor Line.