yard profile
in 2000, having previously been under the auspices of the Western Marine Group since 1994. Starting with a 10,000m2 site, the premises have now expanded to 160,000m2. Vessels up to 120m long and 12,000 dwt can be built there. It was only in 2003 that it began constructing passenger vessels, as Mr Khan explained, “Some interested parties approached us to build passenger ships at that time and we took on the challenge.” The first vessel was for domestic owner, Keari Tours & Services. Built to Germanischer Lloyd (GL) class, the 37m Keari Sindbad was delivered in May 2004. “This was a big challenge for us as we had to comply with stricter regulations and class requirements than the cargo vessels we were used to,” said Mr Khan. “But we did all the design drawings ourselves and this led to more offers for passenger ship construction.” Indeed, Keari Tours & Services returned to Western Marine in 2005 to order a sister vessel, Keari Karnaphuly, which was completed in 2006. In total, the yard has constructed eight passenger vessels so far (the HR ferry will increase this to nine). This includes Sarina Cruise – a 40m cruise vessel for the Dhaka-based Sarina Hotel, and a ferry for Bangladesh’s local government engineering department. Western Marine also delivered a 32m catamaran
for the Chittagong Boat Club in January. Designed by Cyber Marine of Singapore, the vessel is able to accommodate 200 passengers and eight crew at a speed of 12 knots. “This is our first catamaran and we are hoping to get more orders of this type,” said Mr Khan. The double-hulled vessel will be cruising along the Karnaphuli River and incorporates a conference room, a restaurant on the sun deck and a children’s playground. The most recent passenger ship deliveries were a pair of 30m ferries for Karachi Port Trust, which were completed at the beginning of January. Each vessel can carry 215 passengers and 10 crew. This contract was won following an international tender in 2010 involving yards from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka. “We built these ships to BV class so we spent time ensuring the design was approved,” said Mr Khan. “After a few class recommendations we achieved this.” Western Marine also constructed the largest ever
roro ferry built by a Bangladesh yard. Delivered in July, the 60m Birsrestho Ruhul Amin was built for
42 I Passenger Ship Technology I Spring 2012
Western Marine is currently constructing this 50m ferry for Hundested-Rørvig Færgefart
the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corp and deployed on a route between Chorjanajat-Mawa and Madaripur. The GL-classed vessel can accommodate 370 passengers, 27 crew and 27 trucks. The yard prides itself on the professionalism of
its staff, as Mr Khan explained, “Most of our heads of department are ex-seafarers. Our senior engineers worked for international owners so we know ships inside out. Our head of design is from Germany and has 40 years’ experience in the industry.” The design department comprises 22 naval architects and the yard employs 3,000 staff in total. Mr Khan reported that 99 per cent of the
workforce is local. “They are being trained up by
experienced managers,” he added. “As
international shipbuilding was not very pronounced in Bangladesh until the past couple of years we needed to give our staff vigorous training to pick up the correct techniques. I think when more shipyards begin international shipbuilding in Bangladesh, we may initially face a shortage of workers but it can be overcome by an intensive training programme as there is abundance of human resource.” Going forwards, Western Marine is hopeful
that the HR ferry in particular will act as a demonstrator project for other international owners. “HR itself is even talking about ordering another vessel from us,” commented Mr Khan. “We are very confident we can build high quality ships that match anything built in Europe.” The yard attends international exhibitions such as SMM and Marintec to market its range of services, and intends to continue this strategy. Mr Khan concluded, “We have expanded very quickly, considering our first foreign orders were only placed in 2008. As long as the orders are there, we will keep on expanding.” PST
www.passengership.info
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