New Boat of the Year: Shellfish
Sponsored by WASSP 
This award celebrates innovation in the build and facilities of a new shellfish fishing vessel that entered service in the UK or Irish fleets in 2019. All new shellfish boats featured in Fishing News in 2019 will be included automatically.
Shortlist
Amberlisa UL 30
The 19m vivier-crabber Amberlisa is the biggest vessel Arklow Marine has built for the UK and the yard’s first for Scotland. Two refrigerated bait stores are arranged either side of the central trunking leading to the crabber’s 42m3 vivier hold. The vessel’s engineroom machinery includes a Scania D1 071M main engine, Reintjes 7.44:1 gearbox and two Cummins auxiliary engines.
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Carvela K 751
The Stromness-based 19m vivier-crabber incorporates a combination of new ideas. Separate shooting and hauling hatches are situated forward to starboard, together with a viewing tunnel thorough the enclosed shelterdeck that provides the skipper with a clear view of pots at the gunwale rail roller. A second pot re-toggling table, for use when Carvela is carrying several leaders of gear, is positioned at the transom.
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Dalwhinnie A 913
Of 14.65m LOA, Dalwhinnie is based on a Buccaneer 46 GRP displacement hull. The crabber is rigged for pot self-hauling and shooting. A 1.5t slave hauler operates through a load-sensing pump from the fore end of the Doosan V158TI main engine. A Sole Diesel 3-phase genset housed in a soundproofed cabinet is also installed. 130 boxes of shellfish can be stored in the chilled dry hold amidships.
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Dignity D 727
As the first of a new design of catamaran hull, the Dun Laoghaire-based Dignity marks the culmination of an extensive three-year design and build project by G Smyth Boats in liaison with Ian Macleod. Of 11.95m LOA and 5.5m of beam, the Maxus 12 uses pot self-hauling and shooting systems to fish whelks, brown crab and lobster in the Irish Sea.
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Eternal Light FR 35
The 19.2m scalloper Eternal Light is equipped with an automated catch-handling system, including outer hull tipping doors and catch hoppers/conveyors. Featuring a new hull form of under 16.5m registered length designed to deliver optimum levels of stability and fuel economy, Eternal Light works 10 dredges aside. The split trawl winches are mounted on the main deck forward, with the Gilson winches on the shelterdeck.
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Golden Dawn FR 8
The Fraserburgh fast-potter Golden Dawn is based on a Cleopatra Fisherman 33 hull. A 1.5t slave hauler and a gunwale roller are central to the potter’s self-hauling system. Golden Dawn is also rigged with five jigging machines, strippers and chutes for use during the inshore summer mackerel fishery. An FPT Iveco C90 engine coupled to a ZF 2:1 reduction V-drive gearbox gives Golden Dawn an economical working speed of 12-15 knots.
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Leah III PD 140
The Gemini 10 displacement hull catamaran Leah III features a high build specification. Vivier holds and seawater ballast tanks, served by two electrically driven clutched pumps operated through changeover valves, are built into each hull sponson. Twin hydraulic pumps enable the pot hauler to operate with optimum efficiency when Leah III is fishing in deeper water or close to the shore.
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Nicola of Ladram E 1
Operating across South-West and Mid-Channel fishing grounds before landing in to Brixham, Salcombe and Newlyn, the fully-shelter decked vivier crabber Nicola of Ladram has a LOA of 14.95m and 7m of beam. The vivier hold has a gross volume of 45,000 litres and is served by twin Desmi pumps delivering 270m³/hour at 1.5bar. Engineroom machinery includes a Caterpillar C18 main engine and two C4.4 auxiliary engines running 107 kVA generators.
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Onward PD 349
The extensive working deck on the under-10m static-gear catamaran Onward is fully enclosed by the wheelhouse roof being extended to the transom supported by three integral box-section pillar sections separated by two heavy-duty drop-down screens. In addition to being arranged for pot self-hauling and shooting, Onward is also rigged for auto-jigging, with five computerised machines mounted on the underside of the deck canopy.
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Pilot Me SH 130
Twin JCB 125 engines coupled to PRM 2.5:1 reduction gearboxes give the Bridlington 12m potting catamaran a top speed of 12 knots. Fishing up to 30 miles offshore, Pilot Me is arrangement for pot self-hauling and shooting features. A vertical stainless-steel panel mounted on the deck slightly outboard of the slave hauler keeps the hauling station clear of back ropes at all times.
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Southern Spirit LT 1056
Principally built as a beam scalloper, the 14.95m Southern Spirit also has the option to switch over to twin-rig trawling, when two net drums elevated across the transom come into play. Split trawl and pulling down winches are mounted on the main deck. Gilson and tipping winches are positioned at whaleback level abaft the wheelhouse. On tipping the dredges, the contents fall onto reception conveyors from which king scallops are selected.
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White Eagle CY 525
The 14.95 Outer Hebrides scalloper White Eagle features customised arrangements designed to give enhanced levels of working efficiency, safety and comfort. These include running the trawl wires over the top of the central shelterdeck walkway; fuel wing tanks built into the sides of the fishroom amidships and a forward engineroom. Emptied by outer-hull self-tipping doors, catches from the 8-aside dredges are moved forward by conveyors for selection under the whaleback.
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