Catamaran-Mounted Remote Controlled Net Cleaner
Cummins Vessel Reference #807
Armstrong Marine has grown out of the solid history of Northwest aluminum boat construction. Having worked their built vessels on both sides of the Canada-US border, they have earned a strong reputation for quality at the Port Angeles location. As with much of the early aluminum boat building, they started with fishing boats and have expanded to a wide range of workboats including passenger, patrol, pilot and landing craft. They build both mono hulls and catamarans.
Their most recent delivery is a remarkable and innovative vessel that illustrates their ability to excel with one-off designs. Built for Badinotti Net Services Canada, the 11.9 by 6-meter catamaran is dedicated to the in-water cleaning of salmon farm nets. The two hulls have a molded depth of 2.49 meters. With a house set well forward the vessel has a wide expanse of aft deck to support the innovative machinery for cleaning the nets.
Badinotti’s Canadian CEO Kevin Onclin explains the evolving need that the boat and its equipment are designed to meet. “In 2017 most farm companies have completely eliminated the use of antifouling coatings from their operations. As a result the traditional business model for the net service that relied upon dipping or coating of nets had to adapt and reinvent operations to keep pace. Badinotti Net Services added the department of On Site Net Washing (OSW) over 3 years ago in order to respond to our customers’ new service requirements,” he said.
The process of cleaning a net, when still suspended in the water, requires a Remote Controlled Net Cleaner (RONC) that is controlled by an operator on a boat on the surface. Initially working from the deck of a converted fishing boat, the firm spent two years researching and developing the concept of a dedicated vessel. The result is the Bravo II, Onclin explained, “We were looking to custom build a boat for on site washing that would maximize the efficiencies for the machinery, equipment and crews. We selected a Catamaran design to create a stable safe working platform for the crews and machinery as most of the hours of operation occur at the farm sites as opposed to travelling between or to sites.”
The extended design period allowed attention to detail to fully outfit the vessel to the job, For example the boat produces 750 gallons of fresh water per day which allows all of the net cleaning equipment, which is run with saltwater, to be soaked and rinsed on a routine basis. This will extend the life of all the working parts. The Bravo II is designed with accommodations for a four-person crew.
A pair of Cummins Marine QSB6.7 engines each delivering 480 HP at 3,000-RPM power the new vessel. The engines turn 28 by 24-inch four-blade dyan quad bronze props on two-inch shafts through ZF286A gears with1.962:1 ratios. With left and right tuning props mounted in each hull, together with a Imtra SH300 bow thruster, the boat has excellent station keeping abilities. The catamaran, delivered in January this year, has a top speed of 12 knots and cruises at ten knots.
The two RONCs are launched with the aide of a MPH knuckle-boom marine crane with a 1000-kilogram lift at 7.6 meters. They are controlled via CCTV monitors and joy sticks by two operators seated in a aft deck mounted compartment.
Sea trial photos courtesy of Badinotti Net Services,
Interior photos Aaron Bruce/Cummins
For further information:
Kevin R. Onclin
CEO,
Badinotti Net Services Canada, Ltd.
4266 Middle Point Dr.
Campbell River, BC
Canada, V9H 1N6
Phone: 250 830 0100
Mobile: 250 204 2351
E-mail: kevin.onclin@badinotti.com
Web: www.badinotti.com
Aaron Bruce
Marine Sales Manager
Cummins Western Canada
18452 96th Ave.
Surrey, BC
Canada V4N 3P8
Phone: 604 882 5726
Mobile: 604 220 3765
E-mail: aaron.bruce@cummins.com
Armstrong Marine
151 Octane Lane,
Port Angeles,
Washington, USA 98362
Phone: 360 457 5752
Alan Haig-Brown
Over 30 years as an author for global commercial marine and fishing publications backed with hands-on experience on commercial fishing boats and coastal freighters makes Alan Haig-Brown uniquely qualified to provide vessel reference articles for Cummins Marine. You can find him in shipyards around the world, and on his own website, www.haig-brown.com.
