Page 77: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (July 1998)

the first of two sold by Stena to

Turkish operator UND, gives form to SEC's new endeavours. The naming in May of the second ship,

Sea Chieftain, signified a further broadening in the yard's interna- tional reputation, as the first of two of the series destined to be long-term chartered by Stena to the U.K's Royal Fleet Auxiliary.

There are strong indications that

Stena will extend the 4-Runner program at SEC to seven, or possi- bly nine, vessels. Capacious and fast, offering 2,715-lane m for freight on three decks, and with a 23,040 kW four-engine installation promising a 22-knot service speed, the new type is the product of exhaustive market research.

Maneuverability and turnaround times have been central considera- tions in the planning of the design, which lends itself to economic jum- boization at a future stage without penalizing main performance char- acteristics.

While Viareggio remains SEC's headquarters yard and the foun- tainhead for its commercial and technical endeavours, a strategy of fostering parallel production at various SEC-controlled premises along the Ligurian coast has been put into effect in the construction of the new RoRos.

Notwithstanding the extent of the preceding changes in its shape and business orientation, the com- pany describes last year's shifts and turns in its technical set-up and work organization as

Copernican in dimension. Certain traditional structures have been eliminated and replaced by modu- lar construction methods entailing a distributed production system and the fabrication of blocks of up to 3,000 tons.

SEC president Renzo Pozzo said, "We have to accept that the so-called Global Village is slowly taking shape and, consequently, the world market, characterized by redundancy and areas of highly concentrated productivity, is mate- rializing more quickly than was thought."

Although progress in the past had often been synonymous with multi-directional expansion, Mr.

Pozzo said that a very different strategy had been initiated to meet the new international challenge: "Our present policy tends to be reductive — while, at the same time intensifying our production versatility, production speed and endless research for new technolo- gy." These criteria were concen- trated from 1997 on the Stena

RoRo project.

Ferrari — Revival At La Spezia

Two years after from its reconsti- tution following takeover by a new group of investors, Cantiere

Navale Ferrari (CNF) has re- established itself as a vibrant part of the maritime production sector in La Spezia.

As a name synonymous with high-grade passenger vessels, a new focus for its skills has been created by the joint venture with nearby Industrie Navali

Meccaniche Affini (INMA) in the building of two, 23-knot conven- tional ferries for Tirrenia.

Due for delivery at the end of 1998, the 22,000-gt sister vessels are each intended to make two round-trips per day on the

Naples/Palermo route, accommo- dating 1,200-passengers and offer- ing 2,000-lane m for vehicles.

Construction of hull and super- structure, together with propul- sion machinery installation, has been assigned to CNF, while INMA will undertake the outfitting.

Measuring 607 x 88 ft. (185 x 26.8 m), the Tirrenia class is at the top end of the dimensional capabil- ities offered by the Ferrari yard, which has been extensively updat- 0N-B0ARD MACHINING

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