We shall see. Who knows what’s gunna happen.
Why would they put foreign people on a US flagged construction vessel when there is a huge need for construction vessels in the Gulf?
[QUOTE=kfj;136493]Why would they put foreign people on a US flagged construction vessel when there is a huge need for construction vessels in the Gulf?[/QUOTE]
Because Norwegians are “Gods Chosen Mariners”
[QUOTE=kfj;136493]Why would they put foreign people on a US flagged construction vessel when there is a huge need for construction vessels in the Gulf?[/QUOTE]
They wouldn’t.
I think our Aussie friend was half-joking that we don’t have anyone in the US capable of running such a vessel.
[QUOTE=ClutchCargo;136497]Because Norwegians are “Gods Chosen Mariners”[/QUOTE]
The Norwegian mariner was created on the eighth day. It’s in the fine print in the Bible.
Soooo, if I have some Norwegian blood, I get first dibs on a shiny new x-bow right?
[QUOTE=Kraken;136509]The Norwegian mariner was created on the eighth day. It’s in the fine print in the Bible.[/QUOTE]
Only the ones from Sunnmøre …
Kraken,
You seeing any layoffs of mariners on the internationally operating NO or NOR registered vessels? I remember Farstad was crying about personnel costs last spring, but now have some fat contracts. As for the boys over in Heroy, I haven’t been paying attention lately …
[QUOTE=+A465B;136514]Kraken,
You seeing any layoffs of mariners on the internationally operating NO or NOR registered vessels? I remember Farstad was crying about personnel costs last spring, but now have some fat contracts. As for the boys over in Heroy, I haven’t been paying attention lately …[/QUOTE]
Have not heard of any layoffs on the offshore vessels, but Wallenius Wilhelmsen is going to layoff all the Scandinavian officers over the next two years.
[QUOTE=+A465B;136512]Only the ones from Sunnmøre …[/QUOTE]
It is enough to have grown up on Norwegian coast, the further north you get in the country the tougher are the people 
[QUOTE=Kraken;136516]It is enough to have grown up on Norwegian coast, the further north you get in the country the tougher are the people :)[/QUOTE]
Guess I’m outta luck.
Østfold and Buskerud for me, excepting Granny Rasmussen from Bergen.
But she was a German wash-ashore anyway.
[QUOTE=Kraken;136516]It is enough to have grown up on Norwegian coast, the further north you get in the country the tougher are the people :)[/QUOTE]
Does Svalbard count? 
Sure, I only lived there for a year, but I still like to think it as my “home away from home”. I’m going back again next week.
[QUOTE=Tups;136519]Does Svalbard count?
Sure, I only lived there for a year, but I still like to think it as my “home away from home”. I’m going back again next week.[/QUOTE]
Would say that everyone who risk being eaten by a polar bear, is tough no matter where they are from 
WW is laying them off? Going with Croatians, Indians, Filipinos, and whoever else eh? They have some bad ass amenities on their new ships I have seen on the discovery channel. Swedish style sauna, hotel style lobby with decorative planting, etc.
[QUOTE=MandolinGuy;136529]WW is laying them off? Going with Croatians, Indians, Filipinos, and whoever else eh? They have some bad ass amenities on their new ships I have seen on the discovery channel. Swedish style sauna, hotel style lobby with decorative planting, etc.[/QUOTE]
Improved profitability is specified, They will be offered a severance package and the possibility of relocation.
Japanese competition authorities gave a fine of $ 34 million to WW because of price collaboration. But I do not know if it had any significance on the layoffs.
Of course they can build that design, and at a better quality. Inspect the craftsmanship on the x-bows, and you will notice the difference. All of the metal work is done in Romania or Poland, then towed to Norway to be finished out. The GOM vessels are of a plain economical design and are delivered in half the time, which is the main driving force - less man hours, cheaper vessels, and acceptable risks. Times are changing and similar vessels (to foreign design)are being built in the US. Of course, it took the foreign vessels presence in the gulf and opening a market that has proven sustainable for the long term before the US operators took notice on making such an investment themselves .
Two different markets called for difference approaches in vessel design, and expected deliveries to meet customer requirements, but that gap is clearly closing. Long term charters for high specification vessels are allowing US operators to make those investments with acceptable risk, and the customers actually requesting certain design that have been proven in the North Sea.
From what I have heard, the shipyards that do the steelwork for Ulstein, VARD etc. are not particularly bad in terms of workmanship and quality. On certain shipyards that specialize in steelwork, the production lines are much more advanced than those in their western counterparts and the biggest difference comes from labor costs. What they generally lack is know-how in design and outfitting, for which reason it is still profitable to “build” ships in the west. Of course, there are bad examples as well, but quite often those shipyards don’t produce more than a hull or two before the subcontractor is changed.
Again, according to what I have heard, the problem on certain shipyards in the US seems to be that steelwork with complex geometry has to be subcontracted because the yard simply lacks the tools to produce them. This, together with the issues pointed out by anchorman, drives the prices for “European” hull forms up.
What I expect with interest is the potential continuation of Arctic offshore drilling and eventual year-round production in the US waters, and the resulting inevitable construction of ice-capable hulls in American shipyards. Will some yards invest to their steel manufacturing lines in order to be capable of economically producing “complex” hull forms (and we could perhaps see a rise of a previously little-known shipyard that just has the right tools at the right time)? Will the customers continue to accept simplified hull geometry even though it may result in additional operational costs and performance limitations?
I think that owners in the GOM are looking for maximum cargo volume in a given gross tonnage hull. In a relatively benign environment, that means a barge shaped hull. If it’s 60 feet wide, I don’t care what y’all think. It’s going to ride good enough for this cowboy. I’ve worked on some of the big UT755s, and I’d take a shit kicker south Louisiana over most anyone’s hull. As long as they’re in the GOM. Up north, all bets are off.
Lots of good comments this thread.
Steel production rates
Building simple barges at [I]1 “X” [/I] m-h per ton of steel
Build simple OSV at [I]3 to 4 “X”[/I] m-h per ton of steel
More complex hull forms to [I]30 “X”[/I] m-h per ton of steel.
“Drop” or cut off losses for complex shape structure can be up to 65% higher than for flat panel construction
It is very difficult to automate for complex panel shapes, and it is correct that many US yards do not have the tools or skill sets anymore to roll compound plates on a production scale. But they can do it or source it if it means a good order book. There is a lot of capability in the US
for this.
Every yard has an estimating department and historical records more accurate (and hopefully more efficient) than the above, but the examples show part of the cost equation everyone uses when considering a hull form. US builders have been slow adopters of the latest technology, mainly because the order book isn’t steady enough and large enough to justify the investment. Every overseas yard where I have worked has benefited from some form of governmental support to improve facilities and buy tooling, some places rather more than others.
With DP 2 & especially DP 3 vessels, a LOT more man hours are burned up on the hull construction and complex outfitting than the old style OSV.
Surface preparation and coatings can be a key area to cut costs (and future results) if someone is being sneaky. This is often a problem in yards everywhere.
Integration of subcontractors becomes key element of the process. One could write a book on all that, but we see US yards working a lot less efficiently and less closely with their subcontractors and key equipment makers than overseas yards do, on similar vessels.