[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Durban ship repair yard Dormac
Marine and Engineering has launched a €18.6 million 155m floating dry dock that the company says will boost capacity by 45 dockings a year.
The ferro-concrete dock was built by Pallada in Ukraine and is the first composite floating dock in Africa. Dormac has built a 175m long deep-water quay for the floating dock, allowing it to submerge to 12.3m within a few meters of the quay.
Chris Sparg, managing director, Dormac, said: “Dormac has been turning away between four and seven ships every month due to the lack of ship repair facilities. The new dock vastly increases Dormac’s docking capacity and flexibility and will enhance the existing Port docking offering. This asset will go a long way toward meeting the demand for ship repair in South Africa’s busiest port.”
The dock has a lifting capacity of 8,500 tonnes and total submersion depth of 11.8m. It houses two
7.5 tonne portal cranes, two high-voltage transformers, four ballast electric pumps, two fire service electric pumps and six capstans with a traction force of eight tonnes each.
The company opted for a concrete dock instead of steel because they are designed for harsh tow conditions and require no maintenance of the pontoon deck. A steel floating dock would have required docking every five years as a result of corrosion, and would have had to be towed to Cape Town, the only dock in South Africa wide enough to accommodate the 32.4m wide vessel.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
