Newport, Oregon-based fishing vessel ‘Miss Berdie’ has recently completed a project to increase the vessel’s capacity.
The vessel was built by Rodriguez Boat Builders of Bayou LaBatre, Alabama in 1987 and had a registered length of 77-feet and a 27.8-foot registered breadth with a molded depth of 11.5 feet. The owner approached Fred Wahl Shipyard in Oregon and naval architect Hockema & Whalen Associates (HWA) to increase the hold capacity from just under 4,000 cubic feet to 7,000 cubic feet and to improve freeboard.
Naval architect Paul Monical, of HWA explained how these goals were met: “To achieve these gains, both the yard and HWA felt it would be best to build an entirely new aft section of the boat (aft of the engine room) where the beam was increased to 39 feet and the deck was raised approximately 15 inches to bring the molded depth to 12.7 feet. Forward of the engine room, sponsons were added to the existing hull, fairing between a newly reworked bow and the new aft section.”
Since the overall length could not be changed, the rake in the bow stem was reduced giving the boat a longer waterline length relative to the overall length, which is set by the vessel’s fishery permits. “This gain in waterline length was essentially added to the midships area which could be used to best advantage toward increasing the hold capacity”, Mr Monical explained.
The boat’s 78-inch diameter bulbous bow was shortened to maintain the boat’s overall length. The final dimensions for the vessel are within the limits of the regulation fishery permits. It now has an 80.6-foot overall registered length, a 39-foot breadth and a 12.7-foot molded depth.
The trawl gantry was moved aft to allow a longer working deck. To improve towing performance and offset the increased displacement, it was further decided to increase the vessel’s horsepower. The existing V-12-cylinder Cummins KTA 38-M, which delivered 1200 HP, was replaced by a V-16-cylinder EPA tier 3-compliant Cummins QSK50-M delivering 1800 HP at 1900 RPM. The propeller diameter was increased to 90 inches and fitted with a NautiCAN Integrated Propulsion System that includes the propeller, a high efficiency nozzle, pre-swirl stators and triple high-aspect ratio rudders.
Miss Berdie is expected to complete sea trials in January 2015 and leave the yard shortly after.
