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16 Maritime Professional 4Q 2011as the fiberglass reinforced ballast piping and stainless cargo piping is located above the double bottom and/or run through a protected pipe tunnel. To say she is ?built like a tank? would not be overstating the case. The bottom shell plate and main deck have scantlings nearly 4mm thicker than recent tanker deliveries and hull bending moments for hog and sag follow suit showing increased strength. All that steel is protected by an International Paint coating system of Intershield 300V IMO PSPC compliant epoxy inthe ballast spaces and Interline 994 high performancePhenolic epoxy in the cargo tanks. The choice of International Paint Phenolic 994 was made to provide the vessel with the maximum spectrum of cargo carriage avail- able. U.S. Coatings of Satsuma, Alabama was selected by the owner?s technical team to apply the coating systems at BAE Shipyard. The PSPC standard, coating materials and strictly monitored application has allowed the vessel to capture the ABS Class notation of CPS or ?Coating PerformanceStandard? and extended warranties from International Paint. Propulsion is provided by three 5,600 KW MAK 12VM32C diesel engines with Siemens IDK4543 generators.The diesel-electric power driving two 4,500 KW VEM motors with twins shafts supported by Kobelco stern and strut bearings that are water lubricated and cooled. The propulsion system is fully redundant with only two generators required in operation to achieve a 14.5 knot operating speed ? the third generator remains in standby. According to model tests com- pleted at MarineTek, one generator in operation will produce an economical speed of 11 knots. Propulsion integration, automation and navigation controls have been provided by L3 Westwood of Metairie, Louisiana. Despite the idle time that has occurred since the 2009 stop work order, major equipment and machinery recently inspected by manufactur- er?s representatives and L3 as part of the remediation process has produced reports of ?as new? conditions. Testing and tri- als are projected to occur in early 2012. With principal dimensions of 187.78 meters in length, 32.2 meters breadth and a molded depth of 18.3 meters, theAmerican Phoenix is positioned to load significantly more cargo on both design and scantling drafts as compared to sim- ilar tonnage currently in the domestic trade. Projected liftsare estimated at 39,600 MT on 34?6? (10.5m), 42,400 MT on36?0? (11.0m) and 48,900 MT on 40?0? (12.2m) with 12cargo tanks and 2 slop tanks. The vessel?s cargo piping is stainless steel with a Framo system providing 3,600 m3/hour of pumping power. Technology + Competency = Success As impressive as the ship?s equipment list may seem (and it is), the success of this project remains in the hands of thesoftware. The completion of the vessel design, its final con- struction, testing, and trials demanded a large collection of independent maritime construction consultants as the new owner?s requested that no stone be left unturned. To compare the project to a George Clooney movie, this would be the maritime industry?s ?Ocean 14? and the decades of tanker and ship construction experience of the project team easily totaled over 400 years. Adding in the new BAE management to the existing Mobile, Alabama shipyard facility and some qualified subcontractors and the ship has been placed in good hands.Vic Rhoades, Director and General Manager of BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards, said of the project, ?The suc- cessful resurrection of this new construction project is and has been a top priority for BAE Systems. This project?s suc- cess is critical not only for the future of our new construction business, but especially for the hundreds of dedicated ship- yard employees who started work on Hull 103 years ago. Now they can be especially proud of their great efforts to fin- ish the construction of the MV American Phoenix. BAE InsightsPurchased out of a Louisiana bankruptcy court auction in January of 2011 for approxi- mately $12.6 million dollars by Mid Ocean Tanker Company (MOTC), a partnership of Alterna Capital Partners of Wilton Connecticut and Mid-Ocean Marine of Norwalk, Connecticut, Hull 103 is nearing completion with a launching date of October 18, 2011 anda delivery date projected for April of 2012. MP #4 (1-17):MP Layouts 11/7/2011 5:01 PM Page 16
