Normand Aurora docks in Leith for unique steelwork project

Normand Aurora, a Norwegian PSV, entered Leith for major steelwork repairs to the underside of its hull and bulbous bow. The vessel has a uniquely shaped underwater hull area which is fabricated from cold formed 18mm carbon steel plate. At dock, a large section (estimated 80%) of the bow was removed from the vessel, along with sections of the longitudinal underwater flat bottom. Upon removal of the damaged steelwork, engineers carried out a dimensional survey for the prefabrication of new steelwork sections.

During the ongoing removal and preparation of the existing steelworks, the new bulbous bow section was fabricated. Dales Marine worked 24 hours to have all steelwork ready for the fittingto vessel. The new bulbous bow section weighed an estimated 5000kgs.

Prior to fitting the new sections, IACS-DNV arrived onsite to see the pre-setup. Upon approval, the sections were manoeuvred from the adjacent workshop to the dry dock. Dales Marine lifted these into the dock bottom, and re-rigged the bow section in order to accommodate a safe and appropriate lift into the final position.

The new bow section was secured to the existing vessel structure with tack weldsand braces, with the setup being checked closely by quality assurance. All rigging was removed and the area was cleared ready for the welders to proceed in accordance with the WPS. During the process, DNV carried out inspections alongside Dales Marine’s welding inspector. In conjunction with the outer areas being repaired, a number of internal frames were required to be repaired, so these were completed in time with the main outer repair.

Following the completion of the hot works on the affected areas, the associated tanks were cleaned and inspected, and new tank coatings were applied as per the attending paint representatives and specification instructions. On completion, final inspections were carried out, and the vessel left DMS Leith Imperial dock to address the existing charter in the North Sea.