The last two years have been exciting for New Zealand''s largest net manufacturer, Motueka Nets, and the company says this is due to Dyneema.
With the high price of fuel in early 2008 Motueka Nets, with the urging of several large trawler operators, saw the need to do something to reduce these costs.
Dyneema netting had been looked at in the past and Motueka Nets had used Dyneema but with only mixed results. Now, however, with new manufacturing techniques, Motueka Nets says that the Dyneema netting available today is completely different to that available 10 years ago.
Motueka Nets uses Dyneema netting manufactured by Van Beelen of the Netherlands and the yarn from DSM, also of the Netherlands.
Van Beelen produces Dyneema twines with braiding and double twisting machines with equal tension in all Dyneema yarns - this results in Dyneema netting with the highest breaking strengths in the entire fishing industry.
In the past the problems were that with single knotting the netting would very easily distort and thus pull the net out of shape. This problem no longer exists with double knotting.
Chaffing was also a problem in the past but now with superior type Dyneema yarn available, as well as the top quality machines, the chaff resistance of the new Dyneema available is three to four times better than the equivalent in PE material.
Talleys Fisheries has been using Dyneema in its entire fleet of Sterkoder class factory vessels for the last two years and has seen significant fuel savings on each vessel. On average each vessel is saving 1000l per day - each vessel does, on average, a 42 day trip and six trips per year, which results in a saving of 252,000l of fuel per year.
It is the same story with vessels from 200hp to the 3300hp vessels mentioned above.
The other advantage is the ease of handling the trawl nets on deck as they are so light. With factory vessels this can mean freeing up man power to use in the factory, thus increasing production. It is also easier on the winches and the main engine.
Motueka Nets also uses Dyneema in the aquaculture industry and says it is excellent as a predator net to keep out seals, sharks etc. because they cannot penetrate the strong Dyneema fibre.
