118 REPORT Cruise ship repair yards Passenger ship operators must regularly repair, refurbish and upgrade their vessels to ensure that they remain safe, operational, aesthetically appealing and compliant with the latest environmental regulations. Amber Hickman profiles some of the shipyards offering these services around the world EUROPE BLRT Grupp Turku, Finland The dry dock at BLRT Grupp’s Turku repair yard is 265 metres long and 70 metres wide, with a depth of 7.9 metres. It has four cranes that can lift between 30 and 150 tons. The team can conduct afloat repairs to steelwork, safety equipment, anchor and chain replacement, safety equipment repairs, propulsion system maintenance and deck machinery servicing. They can also provide retrofitting, conversion and inspections. Damen Shiprepair Brest Brest, France Damen’s repair yard in Brest has three dry docks. The smallest is 225 metres in length and has one crane with a 30-ton capacity. The largest dock is 420 metres long and 80 metres wide and has three cranes with lift capacity ranging from 50 to 100 tons. There are also five mobile cranes, with lift capacity from 40 to 120 tons. Like the other yards in the Damen Group, the facility carries out maintenance, repair, refits and conversions. Emden Dockyard Emden, Germany Emden Dockyard has two floating dry docks, one of which is 136 metres long and 17 metres wide and one which is 176 metres long and 27 metres wide. There is also a 218-metre-long graving dock, which is 30 metres wide. Cranes for the floating docks have a lift capacity ranging from three to 10 tons, and the graving dock has a lift capacity range between 10 and 45 tons. Damen Shiprepair Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands Damen’s Amsterdam shipyard has four dry docks with lengths ranging from 140-250 metres in length. Each dock has two cranes, with lift capacity ranging from 15 to 90 tons. There are also four berths with three cranes with a 15-ton lift capacity, plus a load-out berth with a crane that has a 90-ton lift capacity. It conducts maintenance, repair, refits and conversions. Harland & Wolff Belfast, Northern Ireland Harland & Wolff’s 327,795-squaremetre shipyard has two dry docks, one at 556 metres long and 93 metres wide, and the second at 335 metres long and 50 metres wide. The first dock has two gantry cranes with working loads of 840 and 900 tonnes. There is also a fabrication and block facility, and painting and blasting cells. The yard is located six miles from the end of the Victoria Channel, which has a water depth of 9.1 metres.
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