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Ship & Boatbuilding Technology WaveMaster's Nansha No. 23 At The Forefront Of Fast Ferries, With 43-Knot Speeds WaveMaster International, the Australian fast ferry builder, has delivered a ferry which is report- edly not only at the forefront of the speed category, but which also achieves high standards of refine- ment and passenger comfort. Nansha No. 28 is a 137.8-ft. (42- m) symmetrical catamaran which carries 385 passengers at 43.7 knots. WaveMaster built the vessel to the order of the Panyu Nansha Port Passenger Transport Company Ltd. for the superfast Hong Kong - Nansha City route, one already served by earlier WaveMasters. Panyu Nansha was the devel- oper of the city itself, and was eager to establish a ferry link to Hong Kong as part of the city's attraction. With this vessel and the earlier de- livery Nansha No. 18, WaveMaster claims, Panyu Nansha has the fast- est ferry link in South China. The needed speed and reliability, plus the vessel's night-time opera- tion, dictated special engineering, equipment and crewing. The ferry's power is provided by four MTU 16V 396 TE74L diesels, tandem-mounted in each hull. The power plant drives four KaMeWa 63S waterjets through special offset Reintjes gearboxes, used to allow straight drivelines. This is WaveMaster's third use of the concept, which allows 36 knots to be maintained even if one engine is down. Failure of a waterjet unit similarly causes little trouble, as there is insufficient spacing for full independent traverse of its partner. Transiting Hong Kong harbor at night with no reduction in speed is eased by a design which figures in a four-member bridge crew — one more than might be expected for this type of vessel. The fourth mem- ber will be a full-time Vistar night vision observer. A radio handset and controls have been integrated into the console of the engineer, who handles radio traffic at night. Passenger accommodation uses main and upper decks, and report- edly offers exceptional quality of fitout. Traveling at speeds in the mid- forty knot range creates substan- tial water slap and wind buffeting, creating sound and residual vibra- tion which WaveMaster went to great lengths to reduce: a floating floor was fitted to the after half of the main deck; the inner floor is mounted on a rubber grid inter- posed between it and the structural deck; and the rest of the deck, plus trunkways and other sound conduc- tors, have been clad in acoustic ma- terial. In addition, more material, energy, rather than sound-absorb- ing, has been placed over surfaces passengers could contact under heavy deceleration. The vessel is classed by the China Classification Society, ZC, in accor- dance with IMO Resolution A373X, 1978; and designed with observance of Det Norske Veritas HSLC Rules 1991 + 1A1 Passenger R3 EO. For more information on WaveMaster Circle 31 on Reader Service Card Nansha No. 28 Specifications Length 137.8 ft. (42 m) Beam (molded) 39.4 ft. (12 m) Depth (molded) 12.1 ft. (3.7 m) Max. draft 4.9 ft. (1.5 m) Nansha No. 28 Equipment Main engines MTU Auxiliary engines MTU Gearboxes Reintjes Waterjets KaMeWa 40 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News
