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Leading the way – A new dawn for British shipbuilding
Andy Askham Cammell Laird
It’s approaching two years since Cammell Laird beat off competition from around the world to win the contract to build a new polar research ship for the United Kingdom. During that time, we’ve seen global interest and much controversy in a call for suggestions to name the ship, and a successful start of a new educational initiative – the Polar Explorer Programme – to inspire young people in STEM subjects. Meanwhile construction of the vessel is well under way.
It’s approaching two years since Cammell Laird beat off competition from around the world to win the contract to build a new polar research ship for the United Kingdom. During that time, we’ve seen global interest and much controversy in a call for suggestions to name the ship, and a successful start of a new educational initiative – the Polar Explorer Programme – to inspire young people in STEM subjects. Meanwhile construction of the vessel is well under way.
Scheduled to commence operations in late‐2019, the RRS Sir David Attenborough will be the most sophisticated floating research laboratory operating in the polar regions and will maintain the UK’s position at the forefront of climate and ocean research.
Developed by Cammell Laird in conjunction with Rolls Royce to the requirements of the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council
(NERC), the vessel will be operated by British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and has been designed to fill two major roles; it will be both a cutting‐edge research platform enabling ever more ambitious expeditions to conduct world‐leading polar research, and a logistics vessel to supply the five UK research stations in the Antarctic.
Arguably the most significant commercial ship to be constructed in the United Kingdom for more than three decades, the technically advanced vessel will have an overall length of 128m, a beam of 24m and a draft of 7m. it will carry up to 60 Scientists and support staff, and 30 crew. With a range of 19,000nm at 13 knots, it can deliver 4000 tonnes of cargo and has endurance in ice for up to 60 days.
The Class notations give a hint as to just how complex and environmentally sensitive the ‘Sir David Attenborough’ will be. It will carry Lloyd's Register's class notations, including +100A1, Polar Research Vessel +LMC, CAC1, LFPL, UMS, DP (AA), IBS, NAV1, PSMR*, ECO (BWT, GW, OW, P, NOx, SOx, IHM, R), Helicopter Landing Area, PC4, Winterisation D (‐40), H (‐40), S(C), and IWS.
It has an advanced twin screw diesel electric propulsion plant with two separate UMS Engine rooms, and full Dynamic Positioning capability in 35 knot cross winds. It can break ice at a thickness of 1m at a speed of 3 knots and, minimising underwater radiated noise, can also run silently at 11 knots – two onerous duties that push the boundaries of propeller design.
In terms of scientific capability, it features a moonpool for deployment of environmental monitoring systems and robotic submarines – including the ROV ‘Boaty McBoatface’. It will be equipped with state of the art research equipment for subsea, seismic and acoustic surveys including an acoustic
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Society of Maritime Industries Annual Review 2017
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