Working in close collaboration with shipbuilder VT Halter Marine of Moss Point Mississippi, a fixed pitch propeller and steering gear solution has been designed and supplied to suit the challenging requirements of a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) four vessel programme.
The 40-day endurance 63.8m fisheries survey vessels, called the FSV-40 class, are state-of-the-art research ships capable of conducting a variety of fisheries and oceanographic research. With cutting edge low acoustic signatures they will allow NOAA scientists to monitor fish populations without altering their behaviour. The vessels are also able to conduct bottom and mid-water trawls while running physical and biological-oceanographic sampling during a single deployment.
To meet the low noise requirement, Rolls-Royce and VT Halter designed a bolt on fixed pitch propeller that combined a ‘silent running’ approach with modularity for maximum maintainability. R622 steering actuators and the propeller and shaft line, also supplied by Rolls-Royce, have met the specification for quiet running, enabling hydroacoustic surveys to be undertaken at speeds between 0 and 11 knots.
During construction of the second vessel, Hurricane Katrina flooded the shipyard. Due to the neighbouring location of the Rolls-Royce Pascagoula factory rapid inspection and repair of water damaged equipment was possible, enabling the “Henry B. Bigelow” to be commissioned last autumn.
When all four vessels are in service there will be state-of-the-art fishery research capabilities along all the US coasts.
