Bakker Sliedrecht will replace the propulsion drives of the Scottish Marine Protection Vessels (MPV) Jura and Minna before the end of the year. As a result, the service life of the vessels will be extended, and the Scottish Government can continue their inspections at sea.
Marine Scotland, the Scottish Government directorate responsible for the integrated management of Scotland’s seas, awarded the tender to Bakker Sliedrecht. The system integrator previously supplied the propulsion drive for the MPV Minna, which entered service in 2003. Afterwards Bakker Sliedrecht also carried out maintenance on the installation. The familiarity with these types of vessels, the expertise in the field of diesel-electric propulsion and the ability to have the work completed by the end of the year and before the end of the EU Exit Transition Period was an important criterion in the choice of the Scottish Government. The date constraints for the completion of the contract required precise project management and flexibility from our Bakker employees according to both Account Manager John Hollemans and Project Manager Fred Hordijk of Bakker Sliedrecht.
The MPV Minna and MPV Jura were built at the beginning of this century. Just like the third ship MPV Hirta, they are used in Scottish waters to carry out marine protection duties, including fisheries inspections.
Lifespan extension Minna and Jura propulsion drives
The vessels have diesel-electric propulsion. The frequency drives that drive the electric motors of the vessels have reached the end of their lifespan and are no longer supported by the supplier. Bakker Sliedrecht is replacing them with the modern ACS880 modules. In addition to the frequency drives, a cooling water system, control and other necessary equipment are also built in the new control cabinets. “Our prediction is that by renewing the cabinets, the lifespan of the propulsion system and thus of the entire ship will be extended by ten to fifteen years,” Hollemans and Hordijk state.
Project commissioning at the end of 2020
The installations are built and tested in Sliedrecht. If all tests are positive, the control cabinets will be transported to the UK. A local shipyard removes the old equipment and places the new cabinets on board. Bakker Sliedrecht disconnects the old installation on site and installs and commissions the new one. The projected work on the MPV Jura will take place in mid-November and at the MPV Minna at the beginning of December. “It is quite a rush job, but we are even ahead of schedule,” says Hordijk.
