The Scotsman's Transport Correspondent, Alastair Dalton onboard the troubled Caledonian Isles ferry.
Alastair speaks to Craig Ramsay, Fleet Management Director at CalMac Ferries Limited about the ongoing repairs and the return of the ferry to service.
Alastair speaks to Craig Ramsay, Fleet Management Director at CalMac Ferries Limited about the ongoing repairs and the return of the ferry to service.
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00:00I'm Alistair Dalton, the Scotsman's Transport Correspondent at the Dales Marine Yard in
00:28Greenock beside CalMac's biggest Clyde Ferry, the Caledonian Isles, which has been out of
00:34service since January for major steelwork repairs.
00:39Now the 31-year-old ferry should have been back in service more than two months ago,
00:45but within hours of it due to return to CalMac's busiest route to Arran, significant further
00:52repairs were found to be needed to do with steelwork that has been bent out of shape
00:58and needs replacing.
01:01We've gone on board to speak to the people in charge of this further major repair that
01:07could either take, at best, until December, but could keep this ferry out of service until
01:14March.
01:15So the vessel's been out of service since January of this year.
01:19It was due in for a planned overhaul period of two to three weeks, which has been extended
01:28multiple times following the discovery and work to resolve some significant structural
01:35steelwork issues found in the double bottom area of the vessel, which is a sort of honeycomb
01:41structure making up the backbone of the vessel.
01:44So the vessel completed repairs back in August, transited from the Mersey to the Clyde, including
01:50trials and tests on route, was very close to restarting passenger service within 12
01:56to 14 hours.
01:57The vessel was at Ardrossan ready to start the next morning.
02:00Some proactive engineering the evening before uncovered signs of a significant issue in
02:06one of the vessel's gearboxes, which necessitated further investigation.
02:12The vessel was removed from the plan for reinstatements, and where we've got to since
02:16then is that issue we're now finding looks to be a symptom of a wider issue around structural
02:25deformation in the aft part of the vessel.
02:29This manifests itself both in the gearbox issue but also in issues with stern tube bearings.
02:35That's the point at which the main propeller shaft exits the hull towards the propeller
02:39in the aft part of the vessel.
02:41We're talking about really fine tolerances here, so fine tolerances within a finely engineered
02:46gearbox and a finely engineered stern tube bearing at the other end.
02:52What we suspect is that structural deformation in the middle of that arrangement, so the
02:56aft part of the vessel, and it's probably a bit like taking a shoebox and twisting it
03:02and seeing that the alignment of each end of that shoebox is now no longer plumb or
03:08square.
03:10What I would add is that prior to departure from the Mersey, following the long period
03:14of repairs, the correct and the proper alignment works were done under our supervision and
03:20the supervision of the equipment manufacturer to the satisfaction of all parties.
03:26It looks like the source of the deformation and the deformation itself appears to have
03:30been sustained or at least worsened between that departure and the gearbox issue in our
03:39draw soon that served as the first proper symptom.
03:43We've clearly got a lot of work to do in diagnosing what the root of this is.
03:48We're seeing the symptoms, we're battling the results of those symptoms and the need
03:54to ultimately resolve our gearbox issues and stern tube issues.
03:59We're now well into the repairs themselves of the steel structure, but what's absolutely
04:05crucial here is that we understand the source of this deformation.
04:09The source of the stresses that led to this deformation so that when the vessel does go
04:13back into service, we can have absolute confidence for our customers that she's going to achieve
04:19a satisfactory level of resilience.
04:22It's a dynamic picture at the moment to say the least.
04:25We have a number of moving parts from spares availability through to service support availability
04:33through to dry dock availability.
04:36Our ship repair colleagues and support here at Dales have been accommodating in the past.
04:42We're currently working with them closely to understand what dock availability looks
04:47like for the short to medium term, but the long and the short of it is possibly within
04:53the next six to eight weeks and worst case as publicised, possibly the duration of the
05:00winter timetable period.
05:02We are of course working to worst case.
05:05Recent experience with this vessel and with other vessels tells us that these issues are
05:09often never as straightforward, not as straightforward as they first appear to be and can grow in
05:16scope.
05:17So it's probably sensible in practical, technical terms to plan for the worst, but at the same
05:21time put our resources into accelerating that timeframe as soon as we possibly can.
05:28It is a very dynamic situation.
05:30We are progressing the things we can progress today to the fullest possible degree, but
05:35the biggest unknown is the root cause of what we're dealing with.
05:39We can't fully identify the full scope of work until we understand that.
05:44We don't have all the information.
05:45We don't fully understand as yet the root cause of the deformation that we're seeing.
05:54What I mean by that, we've had this vessel out of the water for the last 11 months and
05:59I am fairly confident that at least indirectly, if not directly, that is a strong link to
06:08the issues that we're seeing.
06:10We are committed to learning from this.
06:13This is a new situation for all of us.
06:18This is new ground for all of the technical expertise, both internally and externally
06:23to some degree as well.
06:25We will know more about this vessel and vessels of this vintage in general when we get to
06:32the end of it and how that might or may not relate to the rest of our fleet.
06:36Arran Islanders are really depending on an end to this and an improvement to the service.
06:43They absolutely are and understandably so.
06:48We feel there, we feel and hear their frustration acutely.
06:52We are doing everything we possibly can.
06:55We're standing here on board today.
06:58You've seen the work going on.
06:59You've seen the repair work, the stuff we can get on with, being gotten on with.
07:03We are working around the clock to do those things in preparation for the other things
07:08becoming clearer to set ourselves up for returning this vessel to service as soon as we possibly
07:14can.