1 1 4 INTERV IEW Fast and furiously in demand Incat Crowther’s Dan Mace and Astilleros Armon’s Ricardo Garcia tell Alice Chambers how their companies are collaborating to meet the increasing demand for fast ro-pax ferries Travelling between destinations quickly is becoming a necessity rather than a luxury. To accommodate this demand in the ferry industry, ship design companies must be ahead of their game and work closely with shipyards that have the facilities and equipment to build large vessels. That is why marine engineering and ship design company Incat Crowther is strengthening its nine-year partnership with Astilleros Armon shipyard in Navia, Spain. The two partners have worked on dozens of projects together, including the design and build of Baleària’s innovative 123-metre-long, dual-fuel ro-pax ferry Eleanor Roosevelt, which debuted in 2021. Incat Crowther works directly with operators to develop their ideal ferries, incorporating speed, range and sustainable features into concept designs. For very large ro-pax vessels, it engages with Astilleros Armon, a Europe-based shipbuilder in the fast ro-pax market, to construct the vessels. “Incat Crowther designs are operationally led, allowing customers to fully customise ferries to meet their operational demands,” says Dan Mace, technical manager at Incat Crowther. “We offer an end-to-end service that starts with us defining a bespoke vessel before proceeding to the creation of a full digital model of a ship to support the vessel’s construction. “The availability of a Europe-based builder such as Astilleros Armon is a game-changer, offering gains across the board, as the largest market for fast ropax vessels is Europe. Local construction offers much closer client interactions and negates the cost of delivery from the other side of the world.” Defining a vessel in a preliminary design can often be time-consuming, but Incat Crowther engages with clients as early as possible to ensure the vessel exactly addresses the customer’s needs. Astilleros Armon, which is known for specialising in a large range of vessel types, has substantially increased its capacity specifically targeting increased capacity construction of these large high-speed ropax ferries, by acquiring a second shipyard in Vigo, Spain. By doing so, the company has established itself as a ship designer and builder that can offer insights across the shipbuilding process. “The new facility has enormous experience in ferries, car carriers and Dan Mace and Ricardo Garcia are excited to continue the partnership between Incat Crowther and Astillleros Armon, after having worked on dozens of projects together
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