Amongst Digital Dry Dock’s latest projects have been a charitable job for the MV Balmoral Trust. With the help of Sunbelt Rentals, who kindly loaned us two Leica RTC360 laser scanners and software licences, we were able to provide the Trust with up-to-date and highly accurate point cloud data and 360 panoramic images to help assist with the management of the vessel moving forward.

VIEW THE DATASET HERE

The MV Balmoral is celebrated as one of the last surviving examples of a traditional British coastal excursion vessel. Its history reflects the changes in British leisure travel over the decades and the challenges of preserving maritime heritage. It was fitting that she should be dry docked in the historically significant Albion Dock in Bristol.

The MV Balmoral Trust is actively working to preserve and restore the vessel so it can be operational again in the near future.

History of MV Balmoral

The MV Balmoral is a historic excursion ship with over seven decades of maritime service.

Construction and early years (1949-1959)

Built in 1949 by the shipbuilding company John I. Thornycroft & Company, her original purpose was as a passenger ferry between Southampton and the Isle of Wight.

Bristol Channel Service (1959-1980s)

After ten years of operation, the ship was purchased by P&A Campbell. The MV Balmoral became a popular vessel for day trips from Bristol to coastal resorts in South Wales and the West of England. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s she was well-known to holidaymakers looking for short cruises.

Withdrawal and rescue (1980s-1990s)

With the decline of passenger numbers on ferry excursions, the ship was withdrawn from service in 1980 and used temporarily as a floating restaurant. In the late 1980s, the MV Balmoral was saved from potential scrappage by the charity Waverley Steam Navigation Co., who saw value in preserving the vessel as a heritage excursion ship.

Return to service (1990s-2000s)

Following significant restoration work, MV Balmoral resumed a schedule of coastal excursions around the UK in the mid-1990s. However, mounting financial and operational challenges have led to several temporary withdrawals from service.

Current status

Since 2017 MV Balmoral has been moored alongside at Bristol Harbourside near the SS Great Britain. She has a growing roster of educational activities onboard, becoming a floating classroom and interactive environment for schools in the region. In recent years the future of MV Balmoral has become uncertain, and the MV Balmoral Trust is doing great work to preserve the ship, alongside public support and Heritage Lottery funding grants.

Why donate 3D digital scans to an out-of-service vessel?

After some years out of action, we hope to assist the MV Balmoral Trust to get the ship back in commercial sea-going classification in line with MCA (Maritime Coastguard Agency) regulations.

Over four hours Digital Dry Dock was able to provide full survey data, including 131 scans and 1.1 billion data points.

This data can be used to update all ships plans, including the General Arrangement Plan and the Fire and Safety Plan, so that the vessel can become operational. Scans can also be used to model the hull and used to predict her stability to get a new stability book.

Get involved

If you’d like to visit the MV Balmoral or contribute to the restoration and preservation of this historic vessel, there are regular volunteering days and opportunities to donate.

If you’re interested in our 3D digital imaging services, please get in touch or visit our website to learn more.

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Isles of Scilly Passenger Ferries

The Isles of Scilly is a remote archipelago, 28 miles from the Cornish mainland. With over 140 islands, the smallest no larger than a rock and the largest no bigger than three by two miles, the inter-island passenger ferries are an essential part of life in this remote corner of the United Kingdom. The ferries run services between the five inhabited islands – St Mary’s, Tresco, St Martin’s, Bryher and St Agnes. They also run routes to Samson, the largest of the uninhabited islands.

Earlier this year, five of the inter-island passenger ferries had their draught mark positions in question by the surveying authorities – the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and a naval architect. Draught marks are used by the master to ensure that the vessel is not overloaded, as according to its stability book datums, before leaving port.

Digital Solutions for Complying with Naval Architectural Standards

 Being in a remote location, traditional methods of checking draught mark positions require boat owners in the Scillies to spend multiple days, or even weeks, travelling to mainland boatyards and having work carried out. To save the time, hassle and costs of doing so in addition to their annual haul out and maintenance period on the mainland, the ferry owners asked Digital Dry Dock if we could complete the work alongside the routine maintenance work.

By conducting a 3D laser scan survey of the vessels, we were able to create an accurate ‘as-built’ digital twin for each vessel, working around other contractors who were conducting GRP modifications, engineering works, antifouling and painting work. After scanning, we applied the stability book datums to the models, to determine where the draught marks should be compared to where they had been marked so far on the hull.

The next step was to produce a 2D CAD drawing which could be used to show the correct position, size and spacing of the marks. This drawing included measurements taken from the digital twin, which allowed us to position them with far greater accuracy than traditional methods calculated by hand, as well as saving ferry owners time and money by limiting their time on the dry dock.

The Result

With our method approved by the MCA we were able to CNC laser cut new marks and install them on the beach in St Mary’s, saving the vessel owners an additional trip to the mainland. Our methods also made it possible to avoid the arduous, time-intensive and costly process of manually levelling the vessels to ‘real world level’ before positioning the marks. By using 3-axis laser levels with a survey grade elevating tripod to lay them out, we were able to position the marks within an hour. These positions were then verified by the MCA before we installed them on the GRP hulls with a permanent mastic adhesive.

As a result, the naval architect and MCA are now satisfied that all five ferries’ draught marks comply with naval architectural standards.

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It’s great to have our work acknowledged by Leica Geosystems. Follow the link below to see how we are using their amazing instruments and software to solve naval architecture and boat building problems, faster. https://leica-geosystems.com/en-gb/case-studies/reality-capture/digital-dry-dock-20-metre-classic-race-yacht-performance-study  

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These projects are excellent examples of how versatile 3D digital scanning can be. The two vessels we worked on – M.V Conway Castle and Lantic Bay – were in very different locations geographically, one of which required the completion of work within a short time frame.

As naval architects, it’s projects like these which inspired the creation of Digital Dry Dock. We understand that being able to complete work in short time frames without compromising on precision is crucial to effective vessel construction and maintenance operations.

We were able to deploy at short notice and work around normal shipyard operations, meaning that site activities were able to continue whilst we were on site surveying. As a result, both project outcomes included huge time and cost savings for the client, compared to traditional dry dock measuring techniques.

The case studies below provide more information on each of the projects.

Case Study: M.V. Conway Castle

The vessel: The MV Conway Castle is the largest passenger vessel on the River Severn (104 ft), licensed for up to 195 passengers with 2 exterior and 2 interior decks. She was based in Arctic Road Dry Dock in the Isle of Wight earlier this year, when work commenced.

 The job: To provide dimensional data used to facilitate the rapid conversion of the vessel from a passenger river cruise vessel to a high end floating restaurant. Our purpose was to scan her hull and superstructure to produce data used to calculate her stability characteristics. This was to allow the design team to quickly draw up and manage her steelwork modifications, enabling the new superstructure to be built off-site and to the correct size.

The challenges: The project needed to be completed within a short time frame (as soon as possible), with work being split between two different yards. This was necessary to enable the removal of the existing superstructure and the construction of a new one to be carried out simultaneously.

What we did: MV Conway Castle was scanned twice. The first survey of the deck and interior took place in Sharpness (December 2020) whilst the vessel was afloat. Drawings were provided within two weeks, over the Christmas period. The second survey of the hull and superstructure took place in the Isle of Wight dry dock, with drawings provided two days afterwards. Using Digital Dry Dock’s point cloud data, a new superstructure was built in aluminium.

 The outcome: The data collected made it possible to complete stability simulation analysis within a short time-frame before works commenced. Without 3D laser scan data the client would not have been able to build the new superstructure and modifications in a different location to the vessel.

Case Study: Lantic Bay

The vessel: Lantic Bay is a 95ft dredger based in Polruan on the Fowey Estuary. She is owned by C. Toms and Son Ltd and is known as one of the most successful builds of Brazen Island shipyard. Lantic Bay has undergone multiple previous modifications to enable her to move vast quantities of dredged material from Fowey Harbour.

 The job: Working with the shipyard, Fowey Harbour Commissioners and a naval architect to oversee Lantic Bay’s refit and the installation of a new digger mounted on her forward deck. Our role was to scan the hull to provide the basis for updating her stability book and to check if the deck structure was strong enough to support the new digger.

 The challenges: Whilst a relatively straightforward scan, we aimed to complete work within one day whilst navigating the underneath of the vessel, narrow hatchways and ladders.

 What we did: After completing the necessary health and safety checks, we scanned the vessel upon the same slipway she was originally built. 130 scans of the hull were completed within 7 hours using a laser scanner, to produce a digital twin. All scans were carried out without causing any disruption to the yard team or the yard’s workflow. The yard manager was able to see the data on an ipad before we left the site.

 The outcome: Data was available to the client (M2ED Ltd.) within three days of the scanning survey being completed. The data provided a model of the hull and deck of Lantic Bay in a format which could be used to assess the vessel’s stability characteristics and update her stability book. This made it possible to determine how much load she can safely carry, influencing the design of the new digger. Without 3D laser scanning, the client would have been required to spend several days taking manual measurements to produce an estimate of the hull shape, or to rely on original (and potentially outdated) stability data. The overall result was a significant time and cost saving, plus improved accuracy and a better stability book, making for a safer vessel.

 Testimonial: “What they can achieve in a short time period is not only far more accurate than existing techniques, the cost savings are also very significant” – Miles Pinchin, Naval Architect, M2ED Ltd.

Follow this link to watch a ‘Fly-Thru’ movie of the Conway Castle and Lantic Bay data sets…

The post Case Studies: Stability Analysis on 100ft+ Steel Commercial Vessels appeared first on Digital Dry Dock Ltd.

We are proud to announce that our co-founders Ollie Graffy and Benjamin Barton are now recognised members of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects (RINA).

An internationally renowned professional institution, RINA was founded in 1860 in London to ‘advance the science of ship design’. Its members are recognised as demonstrating the achievement of the highest standards of professional competence in naval architecture.

Both Ollie and Benjamin have been awarded membership in their own right, with each of them being deemed as meeting the required standards.

Ollie Graffy

Ollie was first noticed by RINA whilst studying Engineering Marine Technology at the University of Plymouth. In 2016, his final year project was awarded first prize in the RINA – BAE Systems Student Naval Architect Award.

Last year, he presented the Digital Dry Dock laser scanning technology to RINA and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST). Ollie has since been made a member of RINA and received endorsement from IMarEST.

Benjamin Barton 

Ben has recently finished studying Naval Architecture at The Lloyd’s Maritime Academy. He has extensive experience in major refits and dry dock periods, plus ten years experience in skippering sail and motor yachts up to 30 metres in length.

Ben has worked as Chief Mate on two large motor yachts and completed a number of challenging passages to remote corners of the world.

He received his membership to RINA at the beginning of 2021.

Moving forwards, Ollie and Ben are looking forward to learning from and contributing towards RINA, whilst continuing to improve efficiency throughout the build, refit and lifetime of vessels using 3D laser scanning technology.

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