Record year for Department of Marine's synchrolift and Mooney Boat Ltd's travel hoist

2016 has been the busiest year ever for the Department of Marine’s syncrolift in Killybegs, with over 60 vessels scheduled to use the facility over the year, reports Pauric Gallagher.

Above: Sainte Catherine Laboure being painted at Mooney Boats Ltd in Killybegs.

Mooney Boats Ltd’s 75t travel hoist was also extremely busy, with an additional 80 vessels using the facility at the yard.

The Castletownbere-based prawn trawler Stella Maris S 22, owned by Jason Sheehan, was at the yard recently where it underwent some major works. Once lifted by the synchrolift, all the nylon sheeting around the transom area was removed along with its stern roller. Before new nylon sheeting and a transom roller were fitted, Stella Maris was taken into the syncrolift shed where its hull was grit-blasted and above the waterline a hot zinc metal was sprayed, including decks and gantry, which is a new service that Mooney Boats Ltd now provides. It has been extremely successful, with vessels in Ireland and Scotland using the service this year.

Stella Maris leaving Mooney Boats.

Stella Maris was completely painted externally and internally with its new colour scheme of orange hull, white superstructure and a blue deck. Other work included a number of modifications to the coldstore down in the freezer room to increase the vessel’s carrying capacity of frozen product.

The vessel’s wheelhouse was also modernised. Mooney Boats completed new carpentry works including building and fitting a new console, which made the whole interior more streamlined. All the electronics were inserted into the new console. Floor coverings and vinyl in the accommodation and wheelhouse areas were also upgraded.

New guide-on bars for the net drums were fitted, and on the starboard side where the lifts come in, new nylon sheeting was fitted to protect the hull plating. All the vessel’s electric wiring was inspected and the yard supplied and fitted new LED lighting externally and internally.

Before leaving Killybegs, Mooney Boats did an ultrasonic inspection report on the hull, along with a shaft lift test and bearing clearance report for class surveyors BV.

The 24.5m Clogherhead-based vessel Sainte Catherine Laboure DA 54, owned by Gerald Sharkey and Niall Connolly, was also at Mooney Boats recently.

The yard supplied and fitted two new pumps, as well as new stainless steel piping. One of the pumps is an electric 3-phase 7.5kW Desmi SA80 -70-175 bilge pump for pumping direct bilge out of the engine and fish rooms. The second pump is an Azcue CA85 horizontal closed couple self-priming centrifugal pump to replace and upgrade the old pump on the existing bilge system.

Sainte Catherine Laboure had a complete paint job, inside and out, before leaving the yard.

Mooney Boats has also just received an order for five new 2-tonne electric power net block reels, which were designed and built by the yard. Four of the reels are for Shetland pelagic vessels, two for the Antares and two for the Charisma. The fifth one is for Swan Net-Gundry Scotland.

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