IHC Merwede recently launched and christened the self-propelled cutter suction dredger Artemis. SWZ Maritime's editor G.J. de Boer visited the ceremony and made the pictures you find in the eclosed Artemis photo album. The Artemis will also be featured in "Maand Maritiem" in SWZ Maritime's August edition.
The Artemis is being manufactured for Van Oord and is one of the largest cutter suction dredgers ever built in the Netherlands for a Dutch dredging company.
Ceremony
The ceremony was performed by Mrs A.B. van den Driest-Sorgdrager, who is the wife of Mr C.J. van den Driest, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Van Oord.
Contract
The contract for the design, construction and delivery of the vessel was signed between Van Oord and IHC Dredgers, part of IHC Merwede, on 20 December 2010. The ship will be delivered in the first half of 2013.
Particular Features
A particular feature of this vessel is the spud carriage with hydraulic buffering which makes it possible to work for longer periods in bad weather. As a result of the close cooperation between Van Oord and IHC Merwede, much attention has been paid to ergonomic design. For example the deckhouse will be mounted on air springs to minimise noise and vibrations in the accommodation section.
Picture: Launch of the Artemis (by SWZ Maritime/G.J. de Boer)
