The Netherlands: DCI DREDGE XIX Crew Completes Equipment Training

On Friday, October 12, 2012, seven crew members of the DCI DREDGE XIX successfully completed their equipment training at Training Institute of Dredging’s (TID) new training location in Krimpen aan den IJssel, The Netherlands.

The DCI DREDGE XIX, a 5,500m³ trailing suction hopper dredger, was successfully named and launched at IHC Merwede’s shipyard in Krimpen aan den IJssel, on April 2, 2012, the same yard where the training took place. The vessel, which is nearly finished, is being built for Dredging Corporation of India Ltd. and is the first in a series of three vessels.

The training programme was completed during the commissioning of the dredger. The day to day programme was focused on construction planning, which was designed to meet the needs of the trainees and take into account the situation onboard. Now that the participants have finished the program, they are familiar with their new vessel and have the skills necessary to operate and maintain it to achieve the best possible results.

The crew, comprising a total of seven persons, were divided into three training groups; Electrical Engineers, Engine Room Officers and Dredge/Maritime Officers. Each group attended specialized training, developed specifically for their position. The training was set-up so information regarding good operational practices could be exchanged efficiently. During the five week training programme, majority of the sessions took place in Krimpen aan den IJssel. However; the engine room officers also attended a five day programme on the on board engines, at MAN, in Germany. Furthermore, there was at three day training included, at Wärtsila, in the Netherlands, and a day training at PON Power. For the mechanical engineers, electrical engineers and dredge masters a second training period is planned to develop their operating system skills onboard their own vessel. This programme allows them to better integrate procedures and working methods into their operational activities.

Nicoline de Ruiter, Project Manager of Training Institute for Dredging and in charge of this training: “Vessels get more and more complex these days, due to the advanced technologies being used. To be able to operate the equipment in the most effective and safe way it is necessary to be familiar with the equipment’s possibilities and limitations. For that, a good training programme is essential. That is one of the reasons DCI crew members of the next two vessels in the series, the DCI DREDGE XX and DCI DREDGE XXI, will follow a similar training pogramme.”

Equipment training is one of the specialties TID and part of the integrated solutions IHC Merwede offers to its clients. In the months leading up to delivery, IHC Merwede enables its customers to bring their crew on board. While IHC Merwede finalises its work and optimises all of the equipment, the crew becomes acquainted with the vessel and gradually assumes control. As a result, the vessels are fully deployable from their maiden voyage, maximising the value of IHC Merwede.

[mappress]

Press Release, October 18, 2012