Page 52: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2004)

Piping • Valves • Fittings • Valve Automation • Metrics • Metals

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A Future in Composites

Initially developed to provide impact resistant plating for offshore structures and ice islands in the Beaufort Sea.

Sandwich Plate System (SPS) technol- ogy has seen a steady evolution over the past 10 years, with a growing uptake in the commercial marine field as well as in civil engineering. Much of the marine work generated to date has entailed the reinstatement of corroded or operationally damaged structure such as tank tops, ramps, bulkheads and decks, using SPS Overlay. However, recent penetration of the newbuild mar- ket is expressed in the adoption of SPS panels in the funnel casings of DFDS

Tor Line's new Tor Magnolia-class

North Sea RoRo trailerships, ordered from Flensburger Schiffbau-

Gesellschaft of Germany.

Anglo-Canadian company Intelligent

Engineering developed SPS in conjunc- 30,000 sq. m. in decks, tank tops, bulk- heads and funnel casings.

Affording an insight into future scope for the technology in the marine domain, Welch identified a number of newbuild and conversion design proj- ects and studies that were under way.

One of the initiatives relates to a scheme for the "double hulling" of existing, single-hull vessels, by using prefabricated SPS panels to form the inner hull plating. IE has also devel- oped UR S21-compliant SPS hatch covers for panamax and capesize bulk carriers, and is working with industry partners on lightweight vehicle decks for dedicated vehicle carriers. The com- pany is also advocating SPS for the inner hulls and tank covers of LNG car- riers, on the grounds of the system's attributes as regards vibration dampen- ing, space saving, and insulation and

A w

Above: Convetional Plate • Below: SPS Plate tion with industry partner Elastogran, a member of the BASF Group, and with its licensees. SPS comprises two metal plates bonded to a continuous elas- tomer core, and is claimed to form a much stiffer and stronger system than a single stiffened plate, precluding local buckling and eliminating the need for closely spaced discrete stiffeners to provide in-plane strength. It is said to make for a simpler structure, and reduces the overall welding require- ment. hi a presentation to the RoRo2004

Conference in Gothenburg, Denis

Welch, the SPS Overlay Director for

Intelligent Engineering in the UK. advised delegates that SPS had achieved total references in service on some 34 ships, amounting to more than blast protection characteristics.

Furthermore, Kawasaki's shipbuild- ing arm and IE are preparing SPS scant- lings for the revolutionary Sea Arrow bow. It is anticipated that use of the sys- tem will engender a structure able to withstand high impact loads from the sea, while ensuring that the bow col- lapses in a controlled manner in the event of a collision, so as to minimize damage to both the inflicted and inflic- tor. IE has commissioned a study by the

University of Strathclyde, to investigate the economics of using SPS in the pro- duction of superstructures According to

Welch, initial results indicate that labor costs could be cut by over 50 percent by employing prefabricated SPS panels relative to the conventional, all-steel alternative. 52

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