Tracor Marine Awarded $1.7-Million Contract For R/V Conrad Overhaul

William C. Moyer, Ph.D., Group vice president of Tracor, Inc., Austin, Texas, recently announced the company's subsidiary, Tracor Marine of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has been awarded a $1.7-million contract for overhaul and modernization of the Research Vessel Robert G. Conrad. The R /V Conrad, a 209-foot-long, 13,370-ton AGOR-class vessel, is owned by the U.S. Navy and is assigned to and operated by Lamont- Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University. During her 19 years of operation, the R /V Conrad has been among the most productive research vessels in the world, with an average of about 300 days per year actively engaged in research cruises.

In addition to regular hull and mechanical Classification Society survey and repair work, the overhaul will extend the operating life of the Conrad 10 to 15 years by enabling the installation and operation of the most advanced oceanographic research equipment and greatly improving her safety, habitability, and reliability.

Improvements include: additional laboratory space, a marine sanitation system, new ship service generators and power distribution system, more powerful seismic survey equipment, improved deck handling systems, and more habitable berthing and messing facilities.

The R /V Conrad overhaul and modernization is being funded by the Navy, Lamont-Doherty, and the National Science Foundation, and is under the direction of Dr. Mark Langseth of Lamont- Doherty, who is supported by Robert G. Gerard, Lamont's marine superintendent, and James P. Ollander, the Conrad's captain and on-site representative. The detailed design package was developed by Rudolph Matzer and Associates, naval architects of Jacksonville, Fla. Completion of the work at Tracor Marine's Port Everglades shipyard is expected by November.

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First published in 1881 Maritime Reporter is the world's largest audited circulation publication serving the global maritime industry.