Schiffstechnik | Ship
Schiffstechnik | Ship Technology Cars and Rolling Stock? Cattle and Lifestock! From a car carrier to a lifestock carrier - what may seem somewhat exotic at first glance could develop into a series. A Case Study The car ramp had to be replaced by one suited for animals 34 HANSA – International Maritime Journal 08 | 2020
Schiffstechnik | Ship Technology © IR Class Built in Japan in 1999, operated on the world’s oceans – a frequent guest in German ports, among others – sorted out, sold, converted in Turkey. This is how the life story of a ship reads which, after more than 20 years of service, is being repurposed. Because lifestock is to be transported in the future instead of cars and RoRo cargo, the freighter had to undergo more than just a cosmetic overhaul. The former »City of Paris«, a 99 m long and 20 m wide car carrier, originally had a capacity for 800 CEU at 9.950 GT. But from now on it will not transport vehicles but animals. Nissan Car Carrier and Euro Marine Logistics respectively used to send the ship to the German coast. This is now over as the companies’ car carrier fleet is being modernized. But the oldie did not go to the scrap yard. With Etab Shipping and Safe Sea Services from Lebanon, new owners and managers were found. For the extensive conversion project, they went to the Desan shipyard in Tuzla, Turkey, supported by the Indian classification society IR Class, which gave HANSA some insights into the project. With »Jouri«, IR Class has now classed its first vessel under the Lebanese flag. The complicated conversion included structural modification, plan approval and reapproval of stability conditions. »The project took around four months to complete, including overcoming technical challenges like the location of permanent ballast and arrangement for storage of cattle feed to take into account the stability of the vessel,« IR class stated after the conversion. The single steps for class First, IR Class received a request from the owner for a conversion from »RoRo (Vehicle Carrier)« to »Livestock Carrier« along with change of vessel class. Moreover, the flag was changed from Isle of Man to Lebanon. • All vessel plans (hull, machinery, electrical and statutory) were reviewed for compliance with relevant rules and regulations. This took approximately three weeks. • Transfer of class as per classification rules. Timeframe: Approximately two weeks. • Approval of plans towards conversion from vehicle carrier to livestock carrier. Timeframe: approximately two weeks. • Survey towards conversion including location of permanent ballast, inclining and stability verification. Load-line survey as per the convention: Approximately eight weeks. • Scantling re-evaluation towards revised draft carried out due to the conversion and related surveys: Approximately one week. • Complete surveys towards change of class / change of flag / conversion plan approval were all completed in approximately four months. Challenges New lifestock loading area As the »biggest challenges« IR class names vessel compliance with the stability requirements. After considering the effects of the shifting of livestock and various other external and internal factors it was decided to put in permanent ballast. Another challeng arose with the placement of the permanent ballast including the calculation on the weight and its location. »Since it is a closed livestock carrier and all the animals pens are located within the holds and internal decks of the ship, we had to verify and certify that the arrangements provided ensured adequate ventilation, lighting, watering and feeding,« IR Class explains. Hence, additional ventilators were installed on board. Stages of conversion »Jouri«, ex »City of Paris« For the classification society, the conversion includes different stages like plan approval process, on-board verification, sea trial and certification. At the initial stage, the plan approval team carried out a feasibility study towards the regulatory compliances and requirements based on the plans submitted by the client. A group of experts in structural, machinery, electrical and stability disciplines scrutinized each plan and document indepth and identified any flaws in the design and provided solutions and modifications to comply with the rules. More focus on the arrangements for the livestock was required, such as: • Structural integrity of the vessel due to conversion • Arrangement of livestock in pens • Access and escape routes from livestock pens / decks • Ventilation system • Storage and distribution system for fodder and water for the animals HANSA – International Maritime Journal 08 | 2020 35
