MOD Landing Ship Docks (New Builds)
In December 2000, Swan Hunter was awarded the lump sum contract by the UK Ministry of Defence for the design, procurement, construction, outfitting and commissioning of two Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) vessels. Two further vessels were built in another yard to the same Swan Hunter/Royal Schelde design. The ships, over 176m long and 27m beam, with a deep displacement of over 16,000 tons are powered by a diesel electric propulsion system and can carry over 490 men including crew and marines. The vessels have a helideck that can accommodate twin helicopter operations and a large stern dock for offloading of landing craft.

These vessels started their life in the engineering office of the Shipyard with the shop production drawings being extracted from the 3D computer model that had been created in our Nupas/Cadmatic CAD system. Electronic data from the drawing office was digitally transferred to the burning and cutting machines in the plate preparation hall, with these plates being fed into the automated panel line where hundreds of fully stiffened panels were produced. These panels were then built-up into large sub-blocks which were then outfitted with pipes, hangars, cable trays, etc. before being incorporated into the main ring sections.

The main hull of each vessel was built in 12m wide Ring Sections, which after final primary outfit and painting were transferred by wheeled trolleys individually into the specially prepared floating dock at Wallsend. The sixteen ring sections of each vessel were then welded together in the floating dock to form the basic hull shape. All interconnecting pipes and cables were then installed together with the propulsion units and other hull appurtenances being fitted.

The complete superstructures, each containing the bridge, mess rooms, offices and crew accommodation were constructed at our Port Clarence facility on Teesside totally under cover in one of the four large fabrication halls on the site. They were loaded out onto flat top barges using wheeled trolleys and transported to the Wallsend yard. Using a specially designed lifting frame, each superstructure, weighing approx. 1000 tons, was lifted onto its respective hull section by a large floating crane before being finally welded to the hull section ready for all interconnecting services to be effected between the two units.

When each vessel was structurally complete, all hull painting finished and all tank inspections accomplished, the floating dock was moved into the river Tyne. On an appropriate high tide the dock was ballasted down enabling the vessel to float out. The vessels were subsequently berthed alongside the fitting-out quay for final outfit and commissioning.