Lloyds Register

Technical news and information for the marine industry

Horizons

June 2005 Issue 12

Welcome to the twelfth issue of

Lloyds Registers marine-focused
technical publication, Horizons.
As the industry prepares to travel to
Oslo for the biennial Nor-Shipping
exhibition and conference, a number
of key technical issues remain of
paramount importance, including the
the advancement of Arctic shipping.
Lloyds Register has extensive
experience with ice-class vessels, with
over 1,000 ships totalling 11 million
gt being built to Lloyds Register ice
classes over the past 25 years. Of
these, over 320 ships have the Lloyds
Register class notations 1AS or 1A.
Since our involvement with the
award-winning, ground-breaking
double-acting tankers owned and
operated by Neste Oil (formerly
Fortum), Lloyds Register has moved
from strength to strength in the field
of Arctic shipping. Our extensive
experience and involvement in Arctic
maritime research puts us in a good
position to help owners, operators
and yards with ice-class and
winterisation issues.
To find out more, please visit us on
stand D03-09 at Nor-Shipping.

Tom Hope
Marine Business Development Manager
Central Europe and Nordic Area
Lloyd's Register EMEA

2 The Arctic LNG

carrier

A guide to shaft
alignment

6 Software by design
8 Steeling ships
against corrosion

10 Optimising
container
tonnage

12 On the Horizon
- the latest news
Exhibitions and
technical papers

The future of LNG: The Arctic LNG carrier

The future of LNG:

The Arctic LNG
Developments in ice
navigation, winterisation
and tanker and LNG ship
technology are paving the way
towards the Arctic LNG carrier.
Over the past year, the industry has
seen a number of LNG firsts: the
first orders for LNG ships of
+200,000 cubic metres capacity; the
first to utilise dual-fuel propulsion;
the first to be specified with
reliquefaction plant onboard. In
keeping with the rapid pace of
change, the LNG ship has at least
one further iteration to undergo in
the near future: to take on the
transport of LNG in Arctic waters.
The interest in Arctic LNG transport
arises from the expansive, as yet

A satellite photo
of the western
Kara Sea during
the winter of 2002
shows that the
probable routes
for Arctic LNG
ship operations
will take place in
ice-bound waters.
(Photo courtesy of
NASA: Visible
Earth web site)

largely untapped gas fields in the

Western Arctic regions of Russia.
Three of the largest of these
unexploited fields, believed to have a
combined reserve of some 8 trillion
cubic metres, are found on the shelves
of the Barents and Kara Seas. It is
expected in the longer term that these
gas fields will be considered ready for
development and that this will in turn
lead to shipping requirements.
LNG ship technology is already
beginning to encompass the
possibility of future ice navigation,
with the first orders for first-year iceclass LNG vessels for Russian service
having been placed in yards in Korea
and Japan in 2005, mainly to Lloyds
Register class and for service to the
gas export terminal at Prigorodnoye
on Sakhalin Island. Three of these
ships are being built to Lloyds

Register class in Japan to the Russian

Maritime Register (RMR) LU2 ice
class, with Moss containment system.
A fourth RMR LU2 ice-class LNG
tanker is being built in Korea using
the Technigaz Mk III membrane
containment system.

Arctic LNG carriers the next step

The first-year ice-class LNG ships
currently being built and ordered
are based on existing designs with
slight modifications. It is expected,
however, that the operational
requirements for Arctic LNG
carriers, i.e. gas carriers operating
in multi-year ice, will demand a
fresh design approach. The recent
developments in large LNG carrier
design and propulsion, coupled
with the introduction of large iceclass double-acting tankers, point
towards the future direction of
Arctic LNG design and operation.
Research projects such as the Arctic
Development Voyage (ArcDev) and
Arctic Operational Platform
(ArcOp) projects have actively
looked into the operational and
design challenges presented by
Arctic seas, specifically in the
Russian Arctic. Lloyds Register, the
sole classification society
participating in the ArcOp project,
has contributed to a fuller
understanding of the dynamics of
ice interaction with ship structures.

Arctic LNG design

Basic elements to be considered in
the design of any LNG ship include
cargo tank capacity, cargo
containment system design, general
hull arrangement and number of
tanks. For Arctic LNG carriers, a
number of additional design factors
will have to be considered, including:

2 Horizons June 2005

ice interaction scenarios

ice class selection

carrier

risk reduction for new

technologies
impact of hull-ice interaction on
cargo containment system
integrity
winterisation.

Ice interaction scenarios

Ice-class Rules define a minimum
standard of safe design for hull
structural strength based on
theoretical derivations, as well as
in-service experience. Where
limited Rule-based knowledge or
service experience exists, the
adoption of
a direct design approach for the
hull and propulsion system using
realistic ice interaction and
operating scenarios can be used
to aid ship design. This approach
may be advisable for Arctic LNG
carriers where:

more severe loads are

anticipated than those derived
from existing Rules, e.g. ice
interaction scenarios on azipod
structures in astern mode for
double-acting propulsion
ice interaction occurs which is
not envisaged by the Rules, e.g.
hull bottom areas where ice
entrapment could occur in
shallow water shelf areas
specific safety-critical elements
are not explicitly addressed
by the Rules, e.g. the
possibility of hull structure
deformation and the
maintainence of LNG cargo
containment system integrity.

Selection of ice class

Lloyds Register has contributed
to projects aimed at developing
recommendations for ice-class
application to Arctic LNG carriers
and assessing existing Rules for
navigation in the Russian Arctic.
Based upon this work, it has

Double-acting ice-class tankers such as Mastera, owned by Neste Oil and classed by Lloyds Register,
point the way towards the probable future design of Arctic LNG carriers. Photo courtesy of Neste Oil.

been concluded that the appropriate

ice classes for LNG ships for yearround assisted navigation in the
western Kara Sea, based on a
winter-spring ice season, are RMRS
LU7 Ice Class or the IACS Polar
Ship Rules PC3 Ice Class.

Qualification of new
technologies
The safety case methodology is a
risk assessment approach which
has long been used in the oil and
gas sector and is now beginning to
make significant inroads into the
marine industry, pioneered by
Lloyds Register. A safety case is a
documented, inclusive way of
validating new technologies or
designs which are not yet
encompassed by an existing Rule
set or industry code.
Lloyds Register has applied this
methodology to propulsion options
for large LNG tankers and is set to
do so for a new LNG containment
system design in Korea. It is
probable that this approach will be
adopted for several aspects of
Arctic LNG carrier design.

Containment system integrity

A key design issue is the integrity
and safety of the LNG cargo
containment system under hull-ice
interaction. In previous studies, the
use of independent type B Moss
tanks for Arctic LNG ships has
been advocated. Possible
advantages of the Moss system in
this operating environment include
increased resistance to hull
deformation and vibration as
compared to membrane tanks.

Winterisation
The adoption of ship-design and
trade-route-specific technical solutions
and measures for Arctic operations,
often termed winterisation
measures, will need special attention.
Specific items that need to be taken
into consideration include:

steel grades for exposed hull

structures to withstand low
temperatures
ice accumulation on deck,
stability aspects and de-icing
measures
hull appendages for ice
operations, e.g. ice knife,
rudder stoppers
abrasion-resistant and lowfriction hull coatings for the
immersed areas of the ice belt
precautions for lowtemperature operation of deck
machinery and systems
precautions for low-temperature
operation of main machinery
and systems such as the design
and arrangement of sea chests to
prevent ice blockage
safe working access to working
areas on deck and emergency
escape routes
searchlights for ice operation at
night, when under escort or
when manoeuvring in port.

For further information contact Robert

Tustin, Technical Manager for New
Construction, Lloyds Register Asia
Email: robert.tustin@lr.org
Tel: +82 (0)51 640 5010
Fax: +82 (0)51 637 0035

Horizons June 2005

A guide to shaft alignment

A guide to shaft alignment

Achieving a satisfactory shaft alignment is paramount for the safe and reliable operation of a ship
during its lifetime. Lloyds Register EMEAs Technical Investigations provides a comprehensive
range of measurement and advisory services to help owners, operators and yards to help to
ensure that the best possible results are achieved during the process of shaft alignment.

Modern risk assessments and

technical reviews often highlight the
propulsion shafting system of a ship
as one of its most important
assemblies, especially for singlescrew ships. Powerful modern
engines often feature large-diameter
propulsion shafts and relatively stiff
shafting systems which can
adversely affect main engines and
gearboxes. On the other hand, the
more flexible shafting systems used
to mitigate these effects can suffer
from whirling (lateral bending
vibration modes). If whirling
frequencies coincide with rotational
speeds, catastrophic resonant
response results can occur.

It is clear that a delicate balance must

be struck during the processes of shaft
design, installation and alignment in
order to avoid costly repairs and
delays later in the ships life. An
unexpected shafting system problem,
for example, failure of a sterntube
bearing due to misalignment, leading
to an emergency drydocking and
consequent loss of availability, can
cost well in excess of $250,000 per
incident for a small vessel. More
serious problems, for example,
involving a bent shaft and
replacement for a larger vessel, can
cost in excess of $1 million. The risk of
lost earnings and the potential threat
to the safety of the ship make the
issue of shaft alignment a critical one
for owners, operators and yards.

Methods
The four most popular methods of
controlling shaft alignment are:

the gap and sag method

optical or laser sighting
jacking
the strain gauge (bending
moment) method.

These methods can be used either

singly or in combination.
Optical sighting is one of four popular
tried-and-tested methods used, either
singly or together, to align shafts.

After the grounding of the Keymar in heavy weather,

its owners engaged Lloyds Register to check the
vessels shaft alignment during each of the major
stages of the vessels repair.

4 Horizons June 2005

The gap and sag method uses

precalculated flange measurements
to establish the alignment, to be
carried out whilst the flange
couplings are disconnected. The
advantages of this method include
the simplicity of the measuring
equipment and the ease of control
in both the horizontal and vertical
directions. The disadvantages are
limited accuracy and the lack of
applicability in the service
condition. The latter is significant,
as it is advisable to check the
alignment of the shafting system
whilst the machinery is hot.
The optical sighting or laser
sighting method is more accurate
than the gap and sag method. It
uses high-quality sighting
equipment and is generally used
before the shafts are installed and
coupled up. Optical sighting is
often used to establish the reference
line and the position of the engine
supports and for determining how
to bore the sterntube. Alignment
and verification follows by means
of the gap and sag method and final
alignment control by the jacking
and/or strain gauge method.
The jacking method lifts the
shaftline clear of each bearing in
turn by means of a hydraulic jack
and calibrated load cell. The shaft is
lifted in steps, whilst deflections are
recorded on a dial gauge and
plotted against the applied load.
This method uses simple equipment
and is employed when the shaftline
is coupled up, ready for operation.

Lloyds Register is
able to provide
owners, operators
and yards with
effective advice and
guidance on shaft
alignment.

Checking alignment after

grounding

However, it is not suitable for the

control of horizontal alignment and
the yard may need to arrange for
special supports for the jacks.
Finally, as the jacks have to be
positioned beside the bearings,
adjustments have to be made to the
relevant calculations to evaluate the
true bearing load.
The strain gauge method requires a
combination of computation and
strain measurements. If a shaftline
rests on a number of bearings, a
theoretical distribution of bending
stress may be calculated. If the
bending stresses, determined from
the measured strains at an
appropriate number of stations,
deviate from the theoretical, this is
taken to be caused by an alignment
that differs from the theoretical
straight-line case.
Using the strain gauge method, both
the horizontal and the vertical
direction may be controlled. Loads
on normally inaccessible bearings
can sometimes be determined.
Readings can easily be taken after
the gauges are fitted, and the effects
of oil film formation and propeller
thrust may be studied. The
disadvantages are that the method
requires the skilled fitting and
operation of strain gauges and
suitable data acquisition and
analysis software and time is
required for calculations after taking
the strain readings.

It is not only during the installation

stage that shaft alignment is a critical
issue. In the event of a grounding, for
instance, small movements at the shaft
bearings can impact bearing loads,
leading to premature alignment
failure. One owner who recognised
the importance of monitoring shaft
alignment was Stelmar, following the
grounding of its aframax tanker
Keymar. In early 2003, the vessel was
blown onto the North African coast,
along with three other tankers, by
severe force 11 winds.
The grounding severely damaged
11 of the 16 double-bottom tanks
in the cargo region, leaving the ship
effectively floating on its tank tops.
The damage eventually resulted in the
replacement of over 1,500 tons of steel,
and a total repair bill in excess of
$10 million. In view of the significant
size of both the ship and the machinery
it was considered prudent by the
owners to engage Lloyds Register
EMEAs Technical Investigations to
check the alignment at several stages
during the repair process.
A first alignment check was carried
out prior to entering the shipyard
to assess whether the damage had
significantly affected the shafting
or not. The results of strain gauging
and jacking and engine crankweb
deflection measurements showed that
the alignment was still in a satisfactory
condition and that the shaftline was
unlikely to need major repairs.

A final alignment check, after

rebuild of the hull and floatation,
led to some minor adjustments to
optimise the arrangements but
again eventually confirmed that
the propulsion shafting alignment
was satisfactory. The structural
repairs and associated hot work in
the engine room had the potential
to significantly affect the
alignment, but in this instance
little change occurred.
We have carried out a large
number of theoretical and practical
shaft alignments on a wide range
of ships over many years, says
Peter Filcek, Technical Manager,
Technical Investigations, Lloyds
Register EMEA. The owner was
keen to avoid the risk of shaftline
failure, and we were able to
provide the necessary technical
expertise and capability to help to
mitigate that risk.

For further information contact

Peter Filcek, Technical Manager,
Technical Investigations, Lloyds
Register EMEA
Email: peter.filcek@lr.org
Tel:
+44 (0)20 7423 1765
Fax: +44 (0)20 7423 1804

A second alignment check, once

the ship had settled on the blocks,
showed that the significant change
of stressing in the hull during
settling had not further jeopardised
the shafting system and that shafting
repair was unlikely to be necessary.

Horizons June 2005

Software by design

Software by design
Lloyds Register is investing in the development of its
key design assessment software packages to encompass
new Rules, new ways of working and the requirements
of ship designers.

One of the key aims of Lloyds

Registers software development
programme is to provide
shipowners and shipyards with
effective design assessment tools,
whilst giving ship designers the
freedom to work with the design
tool of their choice. The ideal
design assessment software, from
Lloyds Registers point of view,
allows classification to work
alongside the design process
without unduly impacting it.

As a result, Lloyds Register is

systematically pursuing the goal of
fully integrating its existing
software packages - among them
ShipRight SDA and RulesCalc with industry standard programs
such as NAPA, Tribon and Nastran.
ShipRight SDA is Lloyds Registers
finite element structural design
assessment (SDA) tool, and
RulesCalc is used to assess
scantlings against Lloyds
Registers Rule requirements.

Our main goals in this

development work are increased
transparency and full integration
with the variety of industry
standard design packages, with the
ultimate aims of enabling users to
make ShipRight SDA and RulesCalc
a seamless part of the design process
and to give our own surveyors the
means of delivering a more efficient
plan approval service worldwide,
says Martin Pittilo, Head of Ship
Design Systems, Lloyds Register.

JTP-ready software
In parallel with the ongoing
integration work, Lloyds Register
has updated ShipRight SDA and
RulesCalc to reflect the revisions
embodied in the second draft of the
common structural Rules for
tankers released in April 2005 by
the Joint Tanker Project (JTP).
ShipRight SDA v5.0 and RulesCalc
v3.1 give the most up-to-date and
accurate reflection of the
requirements of the common Rules
and enable designers, owners and
yards to quickly and efficiently
verify the compliance of their
designs with the relevant Rules and
international statutory requirements.
ShipRight SDA will provide the
following support for the second
draft of the Rules:

automated generation of a net

scantling model from a gross
scantling model generated by
ShipRight SDA modeller

automated load case generation

tools to enable rapid application
of the loading conditions laid
out by the common tanker Rules

automated load combination

and correction tools to enable
specification of target hull
girder values to be achieved

The new update of ShipRight SDA will allow users to quickly and effectively assess compliance of their
tanker designs with the new common tanker Rules.

6 Horizons June 2005

post-processing facilities to
enable automatic stress
assessments and non-linear
buckling analyses
an enhanced MS Word
reporting tool which provides
the user with the facility to
tailor its own comprehensive
report at all stages of the
assessment process
all the tools required to import
and export a Nastran
data model and carry out an
SDA providing seamless
integration into an in-house
design process.

RulesCalc will provide support

for the second draft of the common
tanker Rules by enabling users
to perform:

global strength assessments

for bending and shear
strength along the length of
the vessel
longitudinal and transverse
structure assessments in the
cargo region against scantling
and buckling requirements,
providing both net and gross
scantling requirements

advanced buckling assessments,

using non-linear buckling
analysis to assess ultimate
strength at both the panel and
hull girder levels
stiffener end connection
fatigue assessments to
determine the design life for
all stiffener end connections
within the cargo region.

We have developed our software

from the top down, says Pittilo,
and in doing so have posed to
ourselves the question of what it is
that designers need from
classification software. Providing
ship designers with transparency of
Rule application helps them to find
the best design solution easily and
efficiently. By developing software
tailored to the needs of the designer,
Lloyds Register is able to provide
software that is transparent, easily
understandable and user-friendly.
For further information contact
Martin Pittilo, Head of Ship Design
Systems, Lloyds Register
Email: sds@lr.org
Tel: +44 (0)20 7423 1679
Fax: +44 (0)20 7423 2213

Support
Lloyds Register is committed to supporting its products. Support for licensed
users is available through Lloyds Registers plan approval centres, of which
there are 13 worldwide, giving customers access to a rapid response in their
own language and time zone. Lloyds Register also provides comprehensive
training courses for most of its software products through its Marine
Training Services Department.

In brief
The latest releases of RulesCalc,
version 3.1, and Special Service
Craft, version 5.0, software have
been updated to take into
account the changing design
approaches by todays designers
and are now compliant with
the latest Rules released by
Lloyds Register.
TmCalc, Lloyds Registers
thickness measurement
engineering software tool, is
being updated to make greater
use of the tools and data
generated within RulesCalc
during the design/construction
process, allowing it to be used
throughout the life time of
the vessel.
Naval Ship Rules (NSR) is Lloyds
Registers Rules assessment
software designed specifically
to support the naval market.
From minesweepers to aircraft
carriers, NSR provides Rule
assessment tools to allow the
designer to assess its design
with confidence, secure in the
knowledge that Lloyds Registers
technical excellence is embedded
in the software.
RulesCalc and ShipRight SDA are
being developed to fully support
the the container ships of the
21st century. Enhancements are
being added to the software to
provide wider coverage and
more complete automation,
especially in the areas of finemesh modelling, container ship
loading and whole ship model
generation. The software will
eventually provide full support
for all major ship types.

Support can also be requested through our web site,

www.support.cdlive.lr.org web site. On request, licensed users can obtain a
username and password for leaving feedback on the site.
Demonstration versions of ShipRight SDA, ShipRight FDA, RulesCalc and
other Lloyds Register software packages are available for download from
ClassDirect Live (www.cdlive.lr.org). They can be converted into full versions
by purchasing an unlock key from Lloyds Register. An application form can
be found under each product on ClassDirect Live.
Horizons June 2005

Steeling ships against corrosion

Steeling ships against

corrosion
Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd has developed a steel with improved
corrosion-resistance properties which could both reduce the risk of
cargo tank failure due to corrosion and bring down the cost of tanker
new construction.

In the cargo tanks

of oil tankers, the
underdecks and
bottom plating are
vulnerable to high
corrosion rates

SMI's research and development activities have led to the

development of a number of hi-tech ship-grade steels.

Corrosion is seen by many as a

major factor when assessing the
lifetime of a ship and can
additionally be identified as a
common cause of failure for marine
structures. The potential effects of
corrosion in crude oil tankers are
particularly acute.
In the cargo tanks of oil tankers,
the underdecks and bottom plating
are vulnerable to high corrosion
rates. The corrosion environment in
the underdeck area of the cargo
tanks is particularly severe and
arises from mixtures of inert gas,
hydrogen sulphide from the crude
oil and moisture. Underdeck
corrosion can occur at as much as
three times the rate of other areas if
the conditions are extreme. The
bottom plating can be subject to
accelerated localised pitting
corrosion at rates of up to 0.4
millimetres per year; pitting is
often but not necessarily associated
with micro-biological corrosion.
The accepted general corrosion rate
for steel in the marine environment
is 0.1 millimetres per year. If the
corrosion rate is maintained at
this level, the designed lifetime
corrosion allowance applied to
the steel will adequately cover this
loss of metal. If the rate exceeds
this, however, the owner will have
to replace steel during the lifetime
of the vessel. If not properly held

in check, corrosion can present

a serious threat to the integrity
of a vessel and, by extension,
the environment due to possible
oil spillage.
It is little wonder, then, that steel
manufacturers are looking into
ways of producing ship-grade
steels with improved corrosionresistance properties. Sumitomo
Metal Industries, Ltd (SMI) of
Japan has developed a steel called
SMICORE for use in oil cargo
tanks, which it claims reduces the
rate of deck corrosion by 25% over
conventional steel and the rate of
bottom pitting corrosion by 20%
after long-term exposure.

SMI has invested

heavily in research
and development,
and the result has
been a number of
new hi-tech
ship-grade steels
which can bring
benefits to yards
and owners
David Howarth, Lloyds Registers Global Head
of Metallurgy, Materials, Welding and Nondestructive Examination

8 Horizons June 2005

According to Hideo Okuda, VicePresident of the Steel Sheet, Plate,

Titanium & Structural Company at
SMI, the steel was developed to
help reduce the life-cycle cost of oil
tankers by eliminating the need to
coat cargo tanks.
SMICORE is a thermo-mechanically
controlled rolled steel with special
alloy additions. It can be used
without being coated and therefore
offers savings over traditional
steels that may require the high
cost of a corrosion-resistant coating.
The steel was recently approved by
Lloyds Register for use in the No.
2 and 3 cargo tanks of the 105,000
dwt double-hull oil tanker Nan
Fung being built in Yokosuka, Japan
by Sumitomo Heavy Industries
Marine & Engineering Co, Ltd. The
vessel, which is being built to
Lloyds Register class,
will be chartered to Sanko
Steamship of Japan upon delivery
in August 2005.
SMI has invested heavily in
research and development, and
the result has been a number of
new hi-tech ship-grade steels which
can bring benefits to yards and
owners, says David Howarth,
Lloyds Registers Global Head of
Metallurgy, Materials, Welding and
Non-destructive Examination.

David Howarth, Global Head of

Metallurgy, Materials, Welding and NDE

As part of the approval process,

Lloyds Register reviewed SMIs
research methodology to verify that
the controlled laboratory conditions
used in the research replicated those
inside a laden cargo tank and from
this, acknowledged that their results
produced the improvements claimed.
Lloyds Register also initiated a
separate test programme for SMI
to successfully show that welding
had no effect on the corrosion
results already seen. It was also
confirmed that the mechanical
properties and weldability of the
new steel are suitable for standard
ship construction techniques
and designs.
We intend to place the steel on a
number of pilot ships in the near
future and will then begin to
approach tanker owners and
shipyards to encourage its
adoption, says Okuda.
Future development work from
SMI also includes elucidating the
mechanism by which the alloy
additions improve the steels ability
to resist corrosion.

SMICORE, SMI's new corrosion-resistant steel, is being used in

the No. 2 and 3 cargo tanks of Sumitomo Heavy Industries hull
no. 1313, the 105,000 dwt Nan Fung.

We intend to
place the steel on
a number of
pilot ships in the
near future and will
then begin to
approach tanker
owners and shipyards
to encourage
its adoption
Hideo Okuda, Vice-President of the Steel Sheet,
Plate, Titanium & Structural Company at SMI

For further information contact

David Howarth, Global Head of
Metallurgy, Materials, Welding and
Non-destructive Examination,
Lloyds Register
Email: david.howarth@lr.org
Tel:
+44 (0)20 7423 1880
Fax: +44 (0)20 7423 1564

Horizons June 2005

Optimising container tonnage

Ship lengthening gives

China Navigation
Modification of existing container ship tonnage to maximise cargo-carrying capacity may be the
way forward for owners reluctant to commit to expensive newbuilding berths. Lloyds Register
Asia is helping China Navigation to lengthen a series of five feeder ships in Guangzhou.

With demand for containerised trade

at an all-time high, many owners and
operators have decided to take
advantage of their increased earnings
by ordering new tonnage. As the
newbuilding boom continues,
however, newbuilding slots are
becoming scarce and increasingly
expensive. This has led some owners
to abstain from ordering new ships
for the time being and to look instead
to their existing tonnage to see how it
can be optimised to carry more cargo.
Lloyds Register has carried out a
number of analyses on both a
consultancy and a classification basis
to help owners to maximise the
number of containers their ships can
carry, whilst maintaining the visibility
standards required by the International
Maritime Organization. A number of

options are open to owners looking to

maximise the potential of their ships,
from increasing stack heights to
optimising stowage arrangements to
wholesale ship lengthening.
We are able to provide a wide range
of studies to assess and validate
options for increasing the cargocarrying capacity of existing container
ships, says John McKay, Head of PreContract Services in Lloyds Register
Asias Shanghai Office, and have
done so for a number of owners,
primarily in Hong Kong.
Container ships which have
undergone some form of study or
optimisation include Katsina (Fleet
Management) and Bunga Pelangi and
Bunga Pelangi Dua (Malaysian
International Shipping Corporation).

Kiribati Chief motors through Sydney Harbour in its newly lengthened condition.

10 Horizons June 2005

The China Navigation Co, Ltd

(China Navigation) of Hong Kong
in particular has gained great
benefit from lengthening a series
of five sister ships which operate
on the companys Chief Container
Service liner trade. The ships
Aotearoa Chief, Coral Chief, Kokopo
Chief, Papuan Chief and Kiribati Chief
carry cargo between Australia,
Papua New Guinea, the South
Pacific and New Zealand and
service some 40 ports in the region.
Although sister ships, there are
variations among the five, with
the majority of the ships being
able to stack containers five high
on deck due to a raised bridge.
The Kiribati Chief, however, is only
able to stack containers four high
on deck.

Martin Cresswell of
China Navigation says
the company decided to
lengthen the series of
five sister ships based on
the demands of the
current market.

competitive advantage
The decision to lengthen the vessels
was made after carefully considering
a number of commercial and
operational factors. The main factor
was that we needed either more or
larger ships to handle our trade
flows, which meant that we either
needed to charter in more ships or
look at modifying our existing
ships, says Martin Cresswell, a
Director and General Fleet Manager
of China Navigation.
According to Cresswell, after
analysing the market and the costs
attached to both options, it was
found that lengthening the ships
would be more cost-effective than
chartering in additional tonnage.
Upon taking this decision, China
Navigation went out to shipyards in
Singapore, Korea, Japan, Vietnam
and China with a request to tender,
eventually settling upon Wenchong
Shipyard in Guangzhou. Wenchong
had never done a lengthening of this
kind before, but China Navigation
was confident that the yard would be
up to the task.
We are very fortunate in that weve
had a very long relationship with
Wenchong, says Cresswell. The
yard has carried out a number of
other modifications and drydockings
for us with good results, and because
we know them well, we knew how
much manning we needed for our site
teams and how the yard operated.

The Kiribati Chief, for instance,

now has four cargo holds rather
than the original three. To achieve
this, the transverse section of the
ship was cropped into two parts,
at frame 81.5. The new No. 3 cargo
hold was built with eight sidefolding tweendecks, designed
to hold containers as well as
breakbulk cargo, giving the ship
added operational flexibility. To
strengthen the existing structure to
help to ensure that the new section
would not compromise the overall
integrity of the vessel, the main
deck, cargo holds and shell and
bottom plating were reinforced
with doubling strips. The ships
ballast tanks were reinforced with
stiffeners on the longitudinal
bulkheads and girders, and the
floor lightening holes were
reinforced with rings.
China Navigation can now benefit
not only from the exceptional
technical outcome, but also from
the significant commercial
advantage it now feels it has in
the markets it serves. The fact that
we inserted a combi-hold gives
us more operational flexibility for
the trades these ships ply, says
Cresswell. This is a niche trade,
and it would have been difficult to
obtain suitable secondhand ships.
By lengthening, weve actually
given ourselves an added
advantage, over and above the
increased cargo-carrying capacity.

A new combi-hold was added to the Kiribati Chief, increasing its

nominal teu capacity from 646 to 876.

Lloyds Register Asia was integral

to the entire process, he says.
From the initial study it carried
out, we were able to put together
a tender to send out to the
candidate shipyards.
When you have a ship modified, it
is different to having a new one
built. The responsibility lies with you
as the owner to make sure
everything is specified correctly, not
with the yard. Any mistake made in
the design process is perceived as the
owners fault, and he is therefore
expected to pay extra to set it right.
On the whole, its a pretty risky
business for an owner, and Lloyds
Register Asia helped us to get it right
the first time.

Kiribati Chief
Of the five vessels, two have already
been lengthened under Lloyds
Register survey the Kiribati Chief and
the Papuan Chief. It is expected that
the last of the remaining three will be
completed by March 2006. Each of the
ships is being lengthened by a 28metre section, giving on average an
additional capacity of 250 teu.

Cresswell points out that

lengthening the ships will
effectively give China Navigation
a further one and two-thirds of
a ship, as each of the five ships
is being lengthened by one-third,
at a fraction of the price for a
newbuilding of similar capacity
and complexity.

For further information contact

John McKay, Head of Pre-Contract
Services, Lloyds Register Asia
Email: john.mckay@lr.org
Tel: +86 (0)21 6390 7070
Fax: +86 (0)21 6390 7327

Horizons June 2005

11

Horizons

Exhibitions and
technical
papers

Over the next three months

(June 2005 to August 2005
inclusive) we will be sponsoring
and/or exhibiting at:
Nor-Shipping 2005, Oslo, Norway,
June 7-10

On the Horizon
Lloyds Registers Classification News
delivers up-to-date information
on issues requiring urgent and
immediate dissemination to the
marine industry. Recent inspection
and statutory alerts we have
issued include:

We will be presenting papers at:

International Meeting on Naval
Applications and Materials
Technology, Nova Scotia, Canada,
June 7-9, David Howarth
Design, Propulsion and
Management of LNG Vessels, Oslo,
Norway, June 9, Jim MacDonald and
Hans-Jacob Gjerpen

Australian Maritime Safety

Authority announces focused
inspection campaign
Entry into force of amended
MARPOL Annex I Regulation
13G and new Regulation 13H
MARPOL Annex VI, Regulations
for the Prevention of Air
Pollution from Ships, to require

documents onboard from entry

into force on May 19, 2005
Indian Ocean MOU announces
new concentrated inspection
campaign on firefighting
appliances
Compliance with MARPOL
Annex VI draft port state
control inspection guidelines
US requires response plan for
non-tank vessels.

Classification News is available free

of charge. These issues, together
with the archive of alerts, may be
viewed electronically at
www.cdlive.lr.org

Horizons newsletter
Managing the Risk of Ship Control
Systems, Oslo, Norway, June 9,
Dr Jonathan Earthy and Bernard
Twomey
Ship Noise and Vibration
Conference, London, UK, June
20-21, John Carlton
The Future of Ship Registers
Choosing Between EU and Non-EU
Flags, Funchal, Madeira, June 28-29,
Robert Smart

For further information on our marine

services, please contact Nicola Baker:
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Email: marine@lr.org
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June 2005
Lloyds Register Registered office:
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Horizons newsletter is produced by
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Cover image courtesy of Neste Oil.

Horizons June 2005

12