Page 55: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 1995)

EUROPEAN UPDATE "Limo" RoRo for

Middle East

Building a small RoRo ferry for a

Middle Eastern client proved an interesting challenge for the

Scottish yard, Corpach Boatbuild- ing Co., as the owner called for a vessel capable of carrying two lim- ousines that were able to be loaded from either a concrete ramp or a sandy beach. The ferry had to have shallow draft at both ends, be sim- ple to operate with a small crew, and fulfill a demanding build spec- ification.

A design by a local Scottish firm of naval architects, A.G. Salmon &

Co., resulted in a hull shape which met the draft requirements of 2.7 ft. (0.85 m), propeller protection, stability, and load carrying capaci- ty. At 55.7 ft. (17 m) x 15.5 ft. (4.75 m), the vessel — named Shilala — has a double articulating ramp fit- ted forward and aft with all remote, auto-sequenced controls in the wheelhouse. The latter is ele- vated and offset to starboard with 360-degree visibility, and a center island console from which the helmsman can easily steer when facing either forward or aft.

Hull construction is of 6-mm steel plate, longitudinally framed with two watertight bulkheads and sev- eral deep ring frames. The wheel- house is also of all-steel construc- tion, with stowage space and engine room access via watertight doors below wheelhouse level, above the main deck. Outfitting is robust, including 3.2-ft. (1-m) high bulwarks with handrails on the car deck, and D section fendering on the mid-length section. Lashing points are fitted for security and lifting eyes are incorporated for shipment and craneage.

Choosing suitable propulsion machinery led the design team to

U.K.-based Kort Propulsion. An all-hydraulic package was devised, using two Vickers piston pumps in tandem, driven directly by a 300- hp Scania diesel. The system pow- ers two propulsion units de-rated to about 100 hp each, together with a 30-hp bowthruster and bow and stern ramps, which each require about 6 hp. Three Danfoss propor- tional valves receive all the output from the two pumps, provide a feedback signal into the pumps to monitor their output to the level required, and monitor the hydraulic fluid to the five services according to the signals received from the wheelhouse. The complex engineering necessary to achieve this is hidden in a small number of integrated assemblies, some of which have been specially designed and manufactured, resulting in a simple layout and minimum pipework.

The ramps are long in relation to the vessel, and are more complicat- ed than typical vehicle ferries.

This is because the outer leaf stows underneath the inner leaf in order to avoid a height restriction on the car deck. Lowering or raising the ramps is a sequenced operation activated by pressing a single but- ton in the wheelhouse and the sys- tem includes provisions for the ramps to change angle while low- ered to allow for tide or turbulence.

Care has been taken to ensure smooth lowering and avoidance of the instability which is possible with proportionally controlled sys-

Circle 247 on Reader Service Card tems.

Kort Propulsion supplied the complete hydraulic package, including pumps and valves, for the propulsion motors and switch- es, with Corpach carrying out installation. Control for the

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Circle 277 on Reader Service Card 57

Circle 263 on Reader Service Card

November, 1995