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Enormously exact The “E.R. Benedetta”, the 100th ship in the E.R. Schiffahrt fleet, was built in Korea at the
world’s largest shipyard. The speciality of Hyundai Heavy Industries is breathtaking
precision, as a look at the everyday life of the Site Team shows
Moving only fractions of a millimetre at a time, the
golden, glittering 110-tonne propeller edges to-
wards the cone of the propeller shaft. Once it
reaches its final position – after moving a total distance of ap-
proximately two thirds of the length of a matchstick – it will be
so tightly fitted that it won’t budge
under any circumstances. In fact, the
word “approximately” is quite out of
place at this shipyard where utmost
precision is always the focus, despite
the enormous dimensions. That is
why E.R. Schiffahrt is having the
“E.R. Benedetta”, the 100th vessel
in its fleet, built in Ulsan, where noth-
ing is approximate, but rather very,
very precise.
Ivo Bozanic, an E.R. Schiffahrt in-
spector at the Hyundai Heavy Indus-
tries shipyard in Korea, explains what
this means in concrete terms: “To en-
sure that the right contact pressure is
achieved, the shipyard workers had to
shift the propeller exactly 28.46 mil-
limetres. As precision is so important,
Germanischer Lloyd and ourselves
were present in person too.”
There is plenty of action in Dock 8,
where the “E.R. Benedetta” is being
built. The “Benedetta” is the first of
eight sister vessels that, with a capac-
ity of 13,100 TEU, are among the
largest container vessels in the world
and whose keels will have been laid
down at intervals of two to four weeks.
A cacophony of sound from the
piercing warning signals of the
cranes, the clanging of heavy ham-
mers from the nearby shipbuilding
hall and the whining of several angle grinders pervades
the scene. It takes a closer look to understand why parts of the
bow still have supports: the sections of the hull have not
yet been fully welded.
“The segments are constructed with such precision that
hardly any realignment work is re-
quired when the ship is assembled.
When a segment is inserted, it is at
most 16 millimetres from the existing
segments on either side. We call this
OTS or “one time setting,” explains
Jung Man Seo, Project Manager at
Hyundai. In addition to the computer-
controlled cutting of the steel plates
and a great deal of experience on the
part of the employees, this approach
also encompasses the ongoing super-
vision of the exact specifications.
“Heavy industry with the precision of
the tiny gears in a clock – that is a de-
gree of quality that deeply impresses
every one of us,” Waldemar Soltysiak,
Site Manager for E.R. Schiffahrt, adds.
Together with his team of 16 inspec-
tors he can always be found some-
where in the docks, supporting and
supervising the ship construction.
The specialists for hull (entire steel
construction), paint, electrical instal-
lations and machinery have hun-
dreds of individual inspections to
carry out – appointments with the
shipyard employees and the classifi-
cation society to monitor the prog -
ress of specific construction phases
and to initiate the next stages of
work. Soltysiak gives an example:
“Each individual ship has 76 tanks.Precision in the 100th of a millimetre range: Ivo Bozanic in front of the propeller 8
Phot
os:
Bern
hard
Hub
er
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Supported bow section –the hull has not yet beencompletely welded
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The first thing to be carried out after completion of steel and out-
fitting works is the tightness test. Then – before the first coat of
paint is applied – the surface preparation is checked, and, depend-
ing on the coating system used, there are up to five application
inspections – which in turn depends on the respective function
of the surface.”
An access opening in the hull just above the waterline enables fast
access from the edge of Dock 1 to the engine room of the “E.R. Vega”.
The “Vega” is the third vessel of the series. Hull Inspector Bum Su
Kim discusses the upcoming tightness test of the HFO service
tanks. A draft on the floor shows the procedure: in a string of sev-
eral adjacent tanks, every second one must be kept unpressurised
so that the welding seams can be inspected from all sides. Soapy
water from a pressure cylinder is used as an indicator: if any air
escapes the inspectors will see bubbles form. Focused and well
practiced, Kim and a shipyard employee check the seams – no
bubbles, so no faults found.
The men release the pressure from the tanks, and a long hissing
sound fills the room. Then they open the manhole and both
climb inside the tanks to inspect the remaining construction
issues. Sounds dull, almost as if underwater: the blows of the ham-
mers have lost their metallic clang, everything is muffled. The
intense beams of lights from the torches shine on steel surfaces,
welding seams and a ladder leading down to the next level. No
faults here, so everything passes this inspection.
The men are dazzled by the sudden sunlight when they leave the
engine room. Blue sky after days of grey clouds and rain – further
east, typhoon “Roke” had passed through, raging at wind speeds
of up to 120 knots. It had brought waves many metres high to the
Korean Eastern Sea, their spray surging over the breakwater. Now,
calmness has returned, and fishing boats have headed out for the
first time in days.
The “Il Shin” is docking now, stern first. The flat special-purpose
ship with two stern doors supplies the shipyard depot with ship-
building steel. At over 100 vessels constructed here annually, which
Inspection of the HFO service tanks: Bum Su Kim
Connecting the fly wheel and the propeller shaft
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Checking the welding seams on theouter shell: lifting platforms are
indispensable here
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Highest precision as a goal: Zdzislaw Glinski and Jung Man Seo,Project Manager at Hyundai
Sectional construction: hull segment including HFOtank and cell guides
means that a ship is delivered approximately every three and a half
days, the “Il Shin” has to supply a lot of steel. The shipyard won’t
say how much exactly, and it also won’t comment on the weight of
the sister vessels. This would allow conclusions to be drawn about
the strength of the steel that is used, and the shipyard wants to keep
this expertise to itself.
A “Scheuerle” block transporter moves slowly closer and stops.
These flat, yellow vehicles have up to 76 wheels. They can lift ele-
ments weighing up to 1,000 tonnes and bring them to the construc-
tion docks, and if even bigger components have to be moved – for
example, an entire accommodation block, fully fitted with bridge
electronics, galley, built-in furniture and lifeboats, two transporters
can be positioned parallel to one another.
Right now, the segment on the “cockroach”, as the inspectors
call it, shows the black–red line on a ship’s side – clearly a section of
the port-side shell of the “E.R. Vega”. Specifically, the section with
the white “M” of the charterer, MSC. The deep box behind the
ship’s side is one of the 18-metre-high HFO tanks with a total capac-
ity of 12,600 tonnes that are fitted beneath the accommodation
block. Cell guides for cargo hold no. 4 are visible on its front.
One of the shipyard’s eight “Goliath” gantry cranes at this loca-
tion lifts the segment from the transporter. Then, in slow motion, it
straightens and hovers slowly across the dock to the port side of the
“Vega”. Here, the workers with the green helmets are in charge.
They give instructions to the crane operator so that he can set down
the segment in the correct position.
Just minutes later, the new segment is in place – and looks as if it
has always been there. The gantry crane is back in motion already,
picking up the corresponding component for the opposite side of
the hull. Segment erection is always carried out in parallel.
Over in Dock 8, in the engine room of the “E.R. Benedetta”, every-
one’s attention is currently focused on connecting the fly wheel and
the propeller shaft. This component, which is screwed on, is re-
sponsible for transferring the gigantic torque produced by the MAN
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(98,246 hp). To ensure that there is no clearance at all, a shrink fitting
is being carried out: bolts that are minimally too large for the bore-
holes in the propeller shaft’s flange and in the fly wheel are cooled
down, inserted into the holes and then expanded again through
the ambient temperature. During the process, the men measure the
temperature of the components in the presence of the inspector from
Germanischer Lloyd and Iegor Makrushych from Soltysiak’s team.
Construction for the “E.R. Cristina” in Dock 9 has progressed the
furthest. The ten-metre-high rudder gleams in its coat of red silicon
paint. The surface feels like a newly waxed ski. “The rudder’s surface
is so smooth that not even water will find an angle of attack. The
combination of asymmetrical shape and the silicon paint coating
provides extremely effective protection against cavitation,” says
Paint Inspector Lee. Mr Lee is almost always seen with a paint dry
film thickness gauge in hand for checking how thick the total appli-
cation is at various locations on the ship. “According to the specifi-
cations, for example, it must be 0.75 millimetres thick on the under-
water hull,” Lee explains. And this must be comprised of two layers
of anti-corrosive paint, the tie coat and three layers of antifouling.
Moreover, his eyes systematically scan up and down the various
sections. Are there faults on the surface, is reworking required? “The
condition of the surface is obviously also important. A new ship is
a new ship – all surfaces simply have to be perfect,” says Lee. The
checks on the outside of the ship only account for a fraction of his
tasks, however. Every section of the surface, inside and out, of the
366-metre-long, 48-metre-wide and 66-metre-high ships must be in-
spected before the primer is applied and then again after the appli-
cation of each coating.
Exact inspection is also carried out on every device that either
generates or consumes electricity, all the measuring instruments and
indicators, and on the 28,750 metres of cable that connect them.
This is Zdzislaw Glinski’s specialty. Routine visit to the bridge of the
“E.R. Cristina”: the windows are still taped following painting work,
but the light of the glaring sun falls on the navigation deck. Above
the middle window, the indicators for the rudder angle and the speed
Everything in the right place? The permanent controlensures an extremely high construction quality
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Site Manager Waldemar Soltysiak (2.f.l.) and histeam: “Rely on your own personal experience”
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First heave-up of thealmost 22-tonne anchor
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log are being connected. Three satellite communication systems,
ECDIS (but there are nonetheless still drawers for the charts), radar –
everything here is state-of-the-art. “The ship’s automation systems
make it possible for the engines to operate unattended. Control of
the main engine can be carried out from the bridge directly, even
during manoeuvering.” Glinski can only really “get going”, however,
once the ship “lives” – when her own electricity supply system is
running and the systems can be put into operation, one by one.
In the engine control room, shipyard employees gather around
an employee from Kongsberg who is installing the alarm system.
The transformer station is in the room next door. “Our four aux-
iliary diesel engines provide 6,600 volts, which are transformed
here into a working voltage of 440 volts for pumps, compressors
and centrifuges. The lighting, bridge and communication all use
220 volts. Only the bow thrusters and reefer panels use the 6.6 kV,”
explains Glinski.
The dock gradually empties. All the boom lifts are gone, leaving
a large, deserted area beneath the “E.R. Cristina”. Mooring lines at
the bow and stern leave a clue though: after seven and a half
months of construction the moment when the ship will meet her
element for the first time is finally approaching – the launch.
The anchor chain goes taut. The “E.R. Cristina” has 14 shackles –
385 metres – on each side. The port-side anchor, weighing 21,750
kilogrammes, drags a few metres over the surface of the dock and
then pulls upright. After a few turns around its own axis it slowly
moves towards the hawsehole. The ship is ready.
For vessels in the ultra large container class two additional
months or so usually pass between the launch and taking delivery
of the ship. At the end of June 2012, when the last of our eight ships
leaves the shipyard, the Site Team will have inspected 3,200 blocks,
examined the functionality of over 240 kilometres of piping, and
checked 8,288 kilometres of welding seams – in total, that is approx-
imately the distance between Frankfurt and Seoul.
Approximately? Hardly. Everything is very, very exact during the
construction of the “E.R. Benedetta” and her seven sister vessels. n
14 shackles on each side: the a nchor chainof the “E.R. Cristina”
Shortly after the launch: “E.R. Benedetta” and “E.R. Cristina” at the outfitting quay
Phot
o: S
abin
e Vi
elm
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