Because what Eco does up north and how well they do it will effect lots of people and lots of jobs for us in the future.
If you are going to spend a couple million on ship like that, why not spend a few more on something that can work worldwide.
If you’re going to work worldwide, why would you build the ship in the US where the costs are insanely high?
[QUOTE=Tups;145512]If you’re going to work worldwide, why would you build the ship in the US where the costs are insanely high?[/QUOTE]
You know that I do not believe at all that it cost more to build a very large subsea or anchorhandler in the US than it does on Norway (unless the hull comes from Poland or Romania and even then it is likely not insanely higher). Norwegians are willing to spend very big to have their vessels built at home. You certainly don’t see them marching lockstep to China to get them built for cheap!
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Norwegian construction costs are quite reasonable for what you get.
One advantage is that Norway based designers, suppliers, contractors and shipyards work very closely coordinated across multiple multiple projects, gaining efficiency. This goes right down to form of drawings, invoices and commercial specs so they get turned around very quickly and uniformly. You can get every main supplier and subbie to pass through your office with informed proposals in a very short time.
The hulls may be built locally or brought over from Poland, or any combination thereof, depending on the yard.
In Norway, they use a lot of Polish welders and fitters that live in camps, working in yards, flying home every few weeks at yard’s cost (with Norwegian social benefits for them and their families thrown in to boot).
The thing in Norway is that shipping, fishing and shipbuilding are a main part of the national economy, so people pay attention to it and are interested in it, When a contract is signed, or boat is launched, it is in the local paper, and on completion it is displayed prominently in the Owner’s hometown for a public christening. With so few citizens, it seems everyone from Fredrikstad to Tromso has a family member or friend involved in the industry.
Shipping out is perceived well as an upper middle class profession, including commercial fishing, so there are a lot of people interested in it.
Now that we’re speaking about other designs, what do you think about these concepts. I admit not all of those are “true” AHTSs, but you could probably add that functionality without major changes to the design. Also, I have no idea how they compare to each other because not all data is available from each concept.
http://www.vard.com/offshore/other/Pages/IBSV-07.aspx
http://www.akerarctic.fi/publications/pdf/aker%20arc%20107.pdf
In addition ot these, there’s of course a bunch of ships that have already been built.
[QUOTE=Kingrobby;145501]Because what Eco does up north and how well they do it will effect lots of people and lots of jobs for us in the future.[/QUOTE]
This is the important point.
But for ECO putting Kulluk on the rocks, we would probably already have a new oil boom in Alaska with a lot of state of the art vessels being built for it. Now, we may not ever get permission to drill in the Arctic again.
[QUOTE=tugsailor;145599]This is the important point.
But for ECO putting Kulluk on the rocks, we would probably already have a new oil boom in Alaska with a lot of state of the art vessels being built for it. Now, we may not ever get permission to drill in the Arctic again.[/QUOTE]
if it wasn’t for such a “good ol’ boys club” in the oil industry, Shell might well have sued ECO for breach of contract and damages which could have been proven to be many billions Shell lost when the KULLUK went on the rocks. Loss of the rig, loss of future revenues, and loss of FACE!
That’s what I think as well. While Shell’s first drilling season in the Arctic did not go as smoothly as it should have been, it was Kulluk’s failed tow from Alaska to Seattle that put an end to offshore drilling in Alaska. While that happened in the frigid waters off Alaska, in my eyes it has nothing to do with the Arctic itself. It could have easily happened if they had attempted to tow something like Kulluk from the Kara Sea (where ExxonMobil is drilling with the Russians) through bad weather in the North Sea with similar towing setup.
Anyway, I wonder what would have happened if everything had gone smoothly. If Shell could have continued in 2013 and perhaps found oil off Alaska that year or this year, someone could have already ordered the next generation Arctic drilling unit or even an Arctic drillship…
your insight and commentary on Arctic vessels and operations is very appreciated by this correspondent Tups…
here is a paper I just discovered in case you haven’t seen it yet
haven’t read it yet myself but intend to do so later today
I hope everyone interested in offshore operations in the Arctic would read that and realize why it’s important to have the vessel properly winterized for the harsh climate and cold ambient temperatures.
4.6.2 should have included a warning that it may be tempting to climb down to cuddle the polar bear. I almost did that…
[QUOTE=Tups;145700]I hope everyone interested in offshore operations in the Arctic would read that and realize why it’s important to have the vessel properly winterized for the harsh climate and cold ambient temperatures.
4.6.2 should have included a warning that it may be tempting to climb down to cuddle the polar bear. I almost did that…[/QUOTE]
and I quote from the paper
4.6.2 Polar bears
Polar bears are large, carnivorous bears that are well-adapted for life in their frozen Arctic environment. They have no natural predators in the Arctic and therefore fear nobody and present a great danger to humans.
A polar bear’s sense of smell is acute and it is the most important sense for detecting prey. Any food wastes generated by the vessel should preferably be encapsulated in plastic to prevent smells escaping.
A plan should be in place to ensure that a lookout is kept for polar bears. Refuge areas should be provided and an appropriate alarm warning given to ensure that all routes into the accommodation are sealed, should a bear manage to climb on board. Particular care is required when working outside during evening hours and hours of darkness, or when fog or blowing snow reduces visibility. Personnel should remain within lit work areas.
now is this special Polar Bear plan to be an appendix to the vessel’s VSP or does it need to be a stand alone plan of its own? Is there to be a special password in place to be used aboard the vessel that the Polar Bear could not know? What about inspecting the Polar Bear’s person for weapons or explosives? What about his baggage?
of course there is always this particular threat
4.6.5 Walrus
The main risks to walruses are of injury through collision with offshore vessels. This is particularly acute during migration periods when they move in large concentrations which may comprise of many thousands of individual animals.
Vessel operators should be aware of migration patterns and likely routes, for example from the Bering Sea into the Chukchi Sea through the relatively narrow Bering Strait.
the seastory I have is from my dad who was mate on one of the Crowley tugs on the Prudoe Bay Sealift during 1976…he says he was on watch somewhere off Wainwright when he suddenly witnessed two Walrusses (or is it Walrusai?) copulating in the water immediately ahead of the tug. With no way to turn in time, he hoped they would swim clear but the thud as their bodies were hit by the bow told a different story…he then went on to say that next was the thud as the props turned their bodies into seagull chum. Can anyone of us imagine such an experience?
Stand alone Polar Bear Security Plan.
We offer the Plans, as well as recognized 12 day training courses in Amsterdam, for the Polar Bear Security Officer (PBSO) and VPPBSD endorsements, including upon payment of all fees, a free personal duty log to be maintained. The one time course fee is 8750 euros, per candidate. This includes free smoking materials and unlimited nightly entertainment just off Dam Square, from local hosts, for each participant. Alternately we can arrange training in Rotterdam or Hamburg where similar facilities exist.
Our Electronics Division offers a dedicated Bear Alerting Security System (BASS) installation, including un-interruptible power supply, the secret activation push button, submittals to flag and class and all type approvals.
We also provide a subscription 24/7 monitoring service at our UK offices (billing annually in advance, in GBP only) - to ensure all polar bear alert signals are dealt with on a priority basis, ensuring that the shore based Alert Security Specialist (ASS) at your Company Headquarters is notified of the existence and nature of the emergency - such as Bear Boarding, Galley Hostage Situation, Fur Allergy or Consumption of various Crew Member(s).
We feel your Polar Bear Security needs can be met for an initial set up fee of euros 124,000, a per vessel monthly subscription fee of GBP 2750 and a fleet enrollment charge of CHF 37,500 to initialize the service.
[QUOTE=+A465B;145727]Stand alone Polar Bear Security Plan.
We feel your Polar Bear Security needs can be met for an initial set up fee of euros 124,000, a per vessel monthly subscription fee of GBP 2750 and a fleet enrollment charge of CHF 37,500 to initialize the service.[/QUOTE]
tears are running down my cheeks sir and beer is coming out my nose…Thank you!
I’ll get you a PO in the morning for your very acceptable quotation…can’t be too careful when you are dealing with Polar Bears who we all know are all sleeper cells for global terrorists. One comes aboard and BOOM! You’re swimming with the Walrusai!
do want to make one small request when it comes to the training course venue…
can the course be offered in Pattaya, Thailand instead? I’ll get my boss to approve an extra charge if necessary…PLEEEZE?
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To ensure vessel personnell maintain awareness of Polar Bear hazards, we will interface the BASS to the vessel’s existing BWNAS. This will ensure the polar bear security duties are performed at least every 20 minutes, unless the optional motion sensor is fitted (add euros 3500).
Polar Bear tracking can be accomplished by highlighting the target bears using the BASS interface to the ship’s radar.
Once suspect bears are “painted” using our patented radar reflective paint balls (rifle euros 875, propellant charges euros 90 per pc, and paint balls at euros 52 each) they will show up on any standard X band radar to a distance of not less than 3 miles on flat ice. The targets can then be tracked using our proprietary software that works with all major electronics manufacturers operating MS-DOS based systems. (Upgrade to other standards optional upcharge, NEMA interface not included). If your Polar Bear Plan requires unique identification of bears to ensure problem bears are reported to the relevant port state(s), we offer a Special Transponder Dart (STD) that can be used in our standard paint ball rifle after fitting an upgrade kit. (euros 9500).
The STD will spread a message to every subscribed system user and the port state(s) ensuring the bear’s reputation and experience with other users is made known. Our STD meets all relevant national and international standards regarding prevention of harm to arctic wildlife, and is type approved in 2014. Documentation is provided with each STD, in rubber lined sealed foil packet.
[QUOTE=+A465B;145731]The STD will spread a message to every subscribed system user and the port state(s) ensuring the bear’s reputation and experience with other users is made known.[/QUOTE]
can a problem bear’s real time location be satellite uplinked as with an LIRT so they can be globally tracked and warnings sent via GMDSS to all vessels in a threat zone? What about calling in the nuke icebreakers armed with the heavy caliber ordinance to blast the bears to little bits?
[QUOTE=c.captain;145732]can a problem bear’s real time location be satellite uplinked as with an LIRT so they can be globally tracked and warnings sent via GMDSS to all vessels in a threat zone? What about calling in the nuke icebreakers armed with the heavy caliber ordinance to blast the bears to little bits?[/QUOTE]
No.
Information obtained via STD can only be transmitted to the designated ASS at the subscriber’s office, and port state authorities via our UK based uplink station.
However, we do offer limited Bear Track information to non-subscribers via popular internet sites such as “beartraffic.com” Note: Our terms of service, malware download, user data and cookies must be accepted.
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Note there is a Euros 87.50 charge for each initial STD transmission to the Company’s ASS, however subsequent transmittals are included in the monthly service fee, assuming the STD option is selected at initiation of the subscribers BASS service.
[QUOTE=+A465B;145733]No.
Information obtained via STD can only be transmitted to the designated ASS at the subscriber’s office, and port state authorities via our UK based uplink station.
However, we do offer limited Bear Track information to non-subscribers via popular internet sites such as “beartraffic.com” Note: Our terms of service, malware download, user data and cookies must be accepted.[/QUOTE]
screw it then…I want to know where all the bad news bears are all the time or no deal! And I want big guns to blast em too!
but I am not a harsh man…while your bosses are coming up with a new proposal, can we keep discussing the training sessions in Pattaya?
How many instructors do I get for the night?
[QUOTE=c.captain;145734]screw it then…I want to know where all the bad news bears are all the time or no deal! And I want big guns to blast em too![/QUOTE]
Our Stavanger office does offer problem bear resolution services in accordance with the terms and conditions of the London Maritime Arbitrators Association.
Unfortunately, our London legal department has advised that any activities intended to “blast em” are not in accordance with the terms of the applicable Convention, and may result in the assessment of significant penalties and or incarceration of the master.
Please refer to your P& I coverage data to verify a valid Polar Bear Rider is in force, as all policies on the London market now incorporate an Exclusion.
Our brokerage is pleased to assist in placement of appropriate coverage to ensure bears do not become a pain for the Company or its designated ASS ashore.
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[QUOTE=c.captain;145734]screw it then…I want to know where all the bad news bears are all the time or no deal! And I want big guns to blast em too!
but I am not a harsh man…while your bosses are coming up with a new proposal, can we keep discussing the training sessions in Pattaya?
How many instructors do I get for the night?[/QUOTE]
We do ensure that for any customers in the Asia Market that are contemplating operations in the Polar Bear Zone A-69, we offer specialized training in our East Asia facilities. Depending on the nature of your requirements, we offer combo packages that can be sandwiched into your schedule, all necessary riders and for the adventuresome, even a surprise “package” detectable upon first use.
I’ll take nrs. 1 & 3 for a soapy.