The biggest story in the world currently remains Coronavirus, and the impact it is having on every part of our lives. PCE-International’s sister magazine, DryDock, has all the ship repair news and comment from around the world, including:-
We are certainly living in strange times, and COVID-19 has definitely had, and it is still having, an impact on ship repair. In the Market Intelligence article by Clarksons Research, we hear that due to the narrowing of the price spread between HFO and LSFO (caused by Coronavirus), the number of reports of postponements and rumours of scrubber cancellations have increased. This has also been confirmed by some yards around the world.
Many cruise ship companies have also cancelled major upgrades. “In these unprecedented times, in addition to voluntarily suspending our global operations, port closures and travel restrictions have also affected the possibility of moving forward with our amplifications of Explorer of the Seas in Brest, France and Allure of the Seas in Cadiz, Spain this spring,” a Royal Caribbean spokesperson told DryDock. “Both amplifications have been put on hold at this time. With global developments rapidly evolving, we are reviewing all options to bring Explorer and Allure into drydock this year and determining the extent of the enhancements we can implement.”
Harland & Wolff has not been immune to the impact, and in Face the Facts, John Wood, Chief Executive Officer at the yard’s parent company, InfraStrata plc, explains how the newly-acquired yard has been coping and how he sees its future.
In On the Line we hear how Subsea Global Solutions has managed to keep operating around the world whilst it navigates a pandemic.
In Market Intelligence, Stephen Gordon, Managing Director of Clarksons Research says; “After a relatively positive 2019, and even though some yards are still protected by forward orderbooks, ship repair volumes are generally trending downwards, influenced by a mix of both operational and economic factors. We estimate an up to 10% decline in ship repair activity ytd.”
In Focus finds out how COVID-19 has affected the major marine coatings companies Hempel, AkzoNobel and PPG. It also looks at the need for innovation in antifouling coatings, and features and article on superyacht painting.
The Spotlight in this issue is again focused on the Cruise & Ferry repair sector, which has obviously seen a huge downturn since the start of the pandemic. We hear how YSA Design is supporting a cruise sector revival, how Remontowa and Grand Bahama Shipyard are coping, and Toby Walters, CEO of Elite Exhibitions takes a look at the impact on the cruise industry as a whole.
Area Review features Southern Europe, and updates from Lisnave, Navantia, Naval Rocha, Palumbo and Cardama.
In Analysis, we hear how drones are revolutionising the way ship inspections are carried out, and how ABS is developing the role of the 3D model for use in ship repair
Mechanical Matters features work carried out by Marineshaft on a 164-year-old paddle steamer, a milestone LPG conversion involving DNV-GL, and a pioneering turbocharger service concept from ABB.
Worldwide features yard updates from ST Marine, Damen, Colombo, Oresund Drydocks, Besiktas and A&P.
The issue concludes with a SeaFirst Special which features an update from Haynes & Boone, who provide some sound legal advice for ship repair yards trying to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, and a roundup of news stories from the Special Seafirst COVID-19 online response site which can be found at SeaFirst.
Read the latest issue of DryDock here:- DryDock