The vessel built by Macduff Shipyards replaces the owner’s previous vessel of the same name, built by the same yard in 2016, and is the fifth trawler built by the yard for the family. The vessel is intended to fish out of Peterhead in the Northeast of Scotland, targeting primarily prawns in the North Sea region.

The FOREVER FAITHFUL is the third vessel in a series of sister ships which were all built at Macduff Shipyards Buckie site, which the yard continues to develop and invest in. All three vessels feature the same hull form and general fishing arrangement; however, each have their own unique layout to suit the owners’ preferences.

Designed between the yard and Macduff Ship Design, during the early design phase of the lead vessel the Wolfson Unit in Southampton were commissioned to run a case study of two hull forms utilising CFD technology. The first hull form was in fact the previous FOREVER FAITHFUL, the second was the new concept model featuring increased length, a gradual bustle forward of the propeller and a unique stem where the bulbous bow was not fully submerged but rather tapered gradually into the bow’s upper region. Results from the study indicated a significant reduction in hull resistance at the two test speeds of 8 and 10 knots which has now been verified, with the new vessel steaming around 1 knot faster at full engine power than the previous vessel, with both vessels sharing the same engine and available power. This increase in hull efficiency enables the owner to run the engine at a lower loading to save fuel, and in turn, reduce the emissions and environmental impact of the vessel.

To further reduce the environmental impact of the vessel, the propulsion package was very carefully considered. The vessel features a Masson Marine W6000 gearbox with a large 10:1 reduction, the largest reduction ratio the yard has fitted to date with a fixed pitch propeller. This gearbox allowed the yard to fit a 2.5 m diameter propeller, fitted within a modern profile of nozzle duct, providing high thrust at low speeds but also a slight increase of thrust at steaming speeds too compared to the previous vessel. The propulsion power is provided by a Caterpillar C18 main engine with a power output of 600 hp.

The C18 main engine on FOREVER FAITHFUL is a Tier III certified engine and as typical features a catalytic convertor and a urea/AdBlue system which enables the engine to meet the new, more stringent emission standards set by the IMO. Certification of the engine and SCR system was arranged by Finning CAT with certification provided by DNV/GL. The system was proven to work well during sea trials where the 35 dB reduction SCR silencer helped the reduce noise levels throughout the vessel. It is the third system of this design fitted by the yard to date, and the sixth vessel the yard has delivered with Tier III certified engines.

The hull of FOREVER FAITHFUL is built entirely from steel, apart from the wheelhouse and mast which are aluminium, and features a double chine hull form, transom stern and modern bow designed to cut cleanly through the sea with less energy leading to a reduction in fuel consumption and emissions along with increased crew comfort.

Although a sister ship to two other vessels, the layout of the FORVER FAITHFUL varies significantly, both inside and out. In a first for the yard, the accommodation above the deck is fitted solely to the port side, with two washrooms and the cabin access fitted aft and a generously sized galley mess amidships running forward. The starboard side features a dry locker aft centre, with the fish hopper outboard of this, immediately forward of the aft shelter where the two net drums are situated. Once the catch has been lifted onboard, it is taken forward by a hydraulic conveyor onto the working deck, where the catch is selected and washed.

The FOREVER FAITHFUL is arranged for freezing the catch at sea. Once the catch is sorted and washed, it is then packed at the forward end of the working deck, before being taken into a blast room on the forward port side, immediately forward of the galley when the prawns are frozen at -35 to -40 degrees centigrade for a period of around four hours to six hours. The blast room can hold around 1000 kg of packed product on the stainless-steel racking arranged inside.

Once the product is frozen, it is then lowered directly into the cold store below, situated in the aft part of the hold until it is landed at the end of the trip. A bulkhead with large cold store door divides the fish hold into two, and the forward part of the hold is arranged as a traditional wet fish hold with its own chilling system, and capable of holding around 250 boxes of chilled fish.

A bespoke hydraulic deck machinery package was fabricated by the yard including of a triple barrel winch featuring a Hagglunds compact CA210 motor, two split net drums complete with two Hagglunds compact CA70 motors per drum. Thistle Marine of Peterhead supplied both the MFB8 landing crane and MBK7 power block crane, both of which featuring a slew ring base. A small hoisting winch is fitted to help the move the catch in the hold when landing.

Primary hydraulic power is provided by a dedicated auxiliary engine, a Doosan/Hyundai 4AD086 with 199 kW engine power available. This engine also certified to IMO Tier III standards and features a SCR unit and urea pumping system. The auxiliary engine drives two hydraulic pumps for primary power, but the vessel also features a 45 kW electric motor hydraulic motor pump which acts as a net retrieve and can be ran in the harbour powered by either generator set.

Cooling systems for all engines and hydraulics onboard are served by box coolers supplied by Blokland Non-Ferro.

Electrical power onboard is provided by two Mitsubishi generator sets supplied by Macduff Diesels Limited, each with a rating of 98 kWe and of sufficient size to run the vessels power independently providing complete redundancy.

The electrical systems onboard were designed and fitted by R.D. Downie who also fabricated the vessels switchboard and control panels for all the pumps and motor starters. In addition to this R.D. Downie also provided the fire, bilge and gas alarm systems onboard along with the navigation light panel and assisted with the installation of the navigation equipment.

The fish processing deck features a catch handling system built by the yard and Northeast Fabricators, along with the sorting tables and racking for freezing the product.

The fish hold freezing/refrigeration systems along with ice machine were all supplied and fitted by Premier Refrigeration. The vessel features four separates set of plant, and utilises blower type units instead of traditional refrigeration pipes.

The vessel was fully painted by the yard with International products applied to a comprehensive marine spec. Davidsons Marine & Industrial Painters applied the external coatings to the vessel.

The high specification navigation package was supplied and fitted onboard by Woodsons of Aberdeen, please contact Steven Wood for full details.

A trawl monitoring system is fitted, supplied by Marport UK.

General Particulars
Length overall: 22.75 m
Length Registered: 21.83 m
Beam: 7.60 m
Depth: 4.15 m
Gross Tonnage: 224 t
Depart port displacement: 298 t
Fresh water capacity: 13,000 li
Oil fuel capacity: 25,500 li
Hold capacity: 600 boxes
Speed: 10.0 knots
Crew: 6-8

List Of Major Suppliers
Construction drawings and stability information supplied by Macduff Ship Design
Caterpillar C18 main engine supplied by Finning Power Systems, UK
Nozzle supplied by Kort Propulsion, UK
Propeller and Gearbox supplied by Masson Marine, France
Auxilliary engine supplied by Watermota, UK
Generator sets supplied by Macduff Diesels Ltd, UK
Box cooling systems for each engine and the hydraulic circuit supplied by Blokland Non Ferro, Netherlands
Pumps supplied by Azcue Pumps SA, Spain
Deck machinery equipment supplied by the yard
Deck cranes supplied by Thistle Marine, UK
Fire doors supplied by B-15 Marine Ltd, UK
Weathertight doors supplied by Winel, Netherlands
Rudder system supplied by the yard
Steering gear supplied by Scan Steering APS, Denmark
Wheelhouse windows and portlights supplied by HK Van Wingerden & An BV, Netherlands
Fish handling system supplied by the North East Fabricators, UK
Refrigeration system and ice machine supplied by Premier Refrigeration, UK
Paint system by International, UK
Wheelhouse chairs supplied by Norsap, UK
Oil fuel filter/separator and main engine oil fine filter supplied by CC Jensen, UK
Pressure washers supplied by Grampian Power Clean, UK
Anchors and chain supplied by Fendercare Marine, UK
Switchboard and electrical system supplied and installed by R D Downie Limited, UK