Astilleros Gondán has been awarded the international tender for the construction of a new Oceanographic Research Vessel for the Institute of Marine Research (IMR) of Norway. The contract is going to be signed on March 20th. The new vessel will replace the existing Oceanographic vessel “Dr. Fridtjof Nansen”. This vessel, whose ship length and breadth will be 74.50m and 17.40m respectively, has been designed by the Norwegian engineering company Skipsteknisk AS.
The vessel will be able to perform, among other things, oceanographic and hydrographic tasks, marine biology and geological studies, analysis of biomass, etc. Besides, she will be able to launch and recover buoys for data gathering, ROV and AUV operations as well as load handling operations and logistics, without leaving out the training of students from other countries. The vessel is intended to operate in joint missions with scientific institutions of developing countries.
The efficiency of the sophisticated electronic equipment available in the vessel as well as the fishing research campaigns imply that the “underwater acoustic signature of the vessel” shall be lower than the strict limits defined by the ICES Nº209, besides the compliance with the Comfort Class Notation COMF-2 from DNV. All of this carries a high technological level and a vast technological complexity, which is a challenge for the shipbuilding activities of Astilleros Gondán.
Proof of the above is the Technical Specification drawn up by Skipsteknisk AS, which is, among the specifications for Oceanographic vessels, one of the most technically qualified as well as one of the most demanding within the known specifications with regard to Noise and Vibration control and Underwater Radiated Noise of the vessel. Moreover, the owner contractually required the tenderer shipyards to have a contractual undertaking with a Noise and Vibration Consultant, with a proven experience in this field, which assists and supports them during all the design and constructions stages of the vessel. TSI would like to thank Astilleros Gondan for having put its trust in the fulfilment of this task.
This example of synergy between Spanish shipyards, highly qualified, and engineering companies specialized in the design and construction of Silent Vessels, such as TSI, which has designed five (5) oceanographic research vessels, is a real proof of what is called “Spain Brand”, and the Spanish Shipbuilding capabilities to attend the most demanding international tenders.
