A&P Falmouth
Diversifying from ship repair to marine renewables
A&P Falmouth, part of A&P Group, has long been one of the UK’s leading ship repair companies. Ideally located in the deep waters of Falmouth and operating the largest ship-repair complex in the UK, the company is diversifying its current offering to service the growing offshore marine renewable energy industry.
The company has recently completed a major contract and feat of engineering, for Gardline Geosciences - to convert a deep seismic vessel into a geotechnical survey vessel with a 40 tonne ‘moonpool’ and the most technologically advanced equipment. This has been a successful progression into the offshore renewable energy sector for A&P Falmouth and a welcome addition to the growing cluster of renewable energy companies operating from the Falmouth area. Peter Child, A&P Falmouth Managing Director said: “We believe that Falmouth Docks has the supply chain and professional expertise available to provide total support to the offshore marine industry of the future.”
A&P have successfully converted the 87-metre vessel, rechristened ‘Ocean Discovery’ and previously used for obtaining information from the sea bed, into a vessel for use in the offshore renewable energy industry. ‘Ocean Discovery’, owned by Gardline Geosciences, will be used to conduct geotechnical investigations of the seabed, including core sample and bore holes to support the deployment of offshore renewable energy technologies, including wind turbines.
A&P Falmouth’s Marketing Director, Jez Littlejohns said: “The renewable energy industry is really starting to take off, and will be a key source of work for Falmouth Docks in the future. By working on projects such as this we are ensuring that we are at the forefront of this rapidly evolving industry.”
A&P Falmouth have equipped the vessel with state-of-the-art resources, in addition to a full refit and accommodation upgrade. The contract included the complicated procedure of fitting the 3.5 metre moonpool (a permanent opening in the hull of the vessel) and a twin tower drilling derrick above the moonpool which then allows direct access to the seabed beneath the vessel.
A&P Falmouth also works closely with Marine Designs Ltd, owned by the A&P Group since 2006. The company operates from Falmouth Docks providing specialist marine access solutions. This includes design, manufacture and installation of large pontoons and floating piers for a variety of operators, ranging from ferries to rescue services, port operators and more recently the offshore wind industry, including in Barrow where Marine Designs have completed 4 major contracts for wind farm operators in the last 12 months.
The company employs 450 highly skilled staff including onshore and offshore naval engineers to provide on-site engineering, electrical, paint and fabrication and their repair portfolio is growing rapidly. A&P have three large graving docks and extensive alongside deepwater berthing providing capacity for vessels up to 100,000 tons. They provide a complete range of marine repair services including an extensive supply chain of specialist contactors and OEMs located in the docks. A&P have a retained a number of prestigious partnering customers for many years including the Ministry of Defence, P&O, Grimaldi Group, Serco Denholm,Condor Ferries, Gardline and Hanseatic to name but a few.
www.ap-group.co.uk/APFalmouth/