Day 7 - "Set a goal, never say no"
Day 7 - "Set a goal, never say no"
The day began, as it has done on a number of occasions now, with getting up early so that we could have breakfast and get ready to go to the CIMC Raffles shipyard. One thing that has surprised me for most of this trip, is how well we're coping, as students, with getting up really early, having long days, and then going to bed late on mattresses as hard as rocks! I think the time difference does help, which is why I have a feeling that upon return to the UK we shall transition back into student mode, and struggle to wake up yet again!
Our first stop was at the CIMC Raffles Offshore Engineering R&D building, which is a large glass structure about 30km from the shipyard. Once there, they showed us many models of the various different rigs and ships they've produced, and gave detailed explanations about each type. It was very useful to be able to see a 3D model whilst the particular rig was being talked about, as we could use it to try and understand the different design features that each one has. One thing that I found interesting was the quantity of azimuthing thrusters on each rig, which around 6 for each one; these are used for both dynamic positioning (basically keeping it still in the water without any anchors), and for self-propulsion on case it needs to go somewhere a short distance away.
We were then shown an office section, where we saw people working on AutoCAD, a 3D modelling software that we use in Southampton, and so it was good to see that we're learning tools that actually are used in industry (though I couldn't help noticing they were using a much earlier version of the software than we use!).
After this, we headed onto the coach to head down to the CIMC Raffles Shipyard, with a very quick stop-off to collect some hard hats. As the yard came into view, it became apparent that it's of a different style to the CSIC yard; CIMC seems to have a very streamlined production pipeline, that is quite clearly geared towards the oil rigs that they produce, whereas CSIC seemed to all be rather general purpose, which needs specialist equipment to be moved whenever anything needs producing. The first thing that catches your eye upon arrival is the giant gantry crane called "Taoshan", which can carry a total of 20,133 tonnes, which makes it the largest capacity crane in the world! It's located in a dry dock, so the crane can operate to the precision that's required for raising and lowering very large objects. We started off in their exhibition room, where we saw the same models as in the HQ, and saw a safety film.
We then made our way onto one of the rigs in the dock. The rig itself is huge. Unless you've ever actually seen one, you'd be unable to imagine the size of these behemoths that help us fuel our world. As we ascended the ladders to board the 40m tall rig, the rest of the shipyard seemed to fade away, and the sheer magnitude of this feat of engineering was revealed to me. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to take any pictures of the interior of the rig, but we did take some of the outside, and on the helipad. Unlike most ships, and particularly the Naval vessel we visited earlier in the year, the rigs do not consider space a luxury, and so everything is very spacious and well set-out. The cabins seemed to be rather pleasant, though considering the crew would be onboard for a couple of months at a time, they would have to be! A welcome sight was the English signs everywhere, including on the computer systems; this was because this particular rig is destined for the Norwegian North Sea, and so everything is in English for the crews there. We took a very interesting tour of the whole rig, including the engine rooms, the helipad, the galley, mess deck, cabins, officer's quarters, ROV room and the drilling deck. I was particularly interested in the ROV rooms, where they can deploy small unmanned submarines through the bottom of the rig to examine where the drill is operating. After around an hour we departed the rig, and headed for lunch, which turned out to be Western style, with chips! This was a rather welcome sight for most of us, and we all enjoyed the interesting combination of noodles, chicken nuggets, rice, pizza, stir fry and soft drinks.
With lunch over, we headed towards the luxury yacht warehouse that they also have on site. Again, no pictures were allowed by us in there. The yacht itself is 88.8m long (8 is a lucky number in China), and is a super yacht, due to be finished early next year. Walking through the semi-completed hull, and seeing all the different rooms and compartments, it came as no surprise to us that this kind of yacht would cost upwards of £220 million, and with an upkeep of 10% of that annually, we realised that our dreams of a shippy party boat needed a slight amount of down-sizing! The owner of the yacht has an entire floor devoted to them, with bedrooms, bathrooms, wardrobes, powder rooms, and dressing rooms for both the owner and their partner! To me, this seemed a tad excessive, however for the billionaire owner, I doubt anything could seem too exuberant! We were then given a tour of one of the new ferries meant to take passengers between some Chinese islands. They were quite nice to look at from the exterior, and the interior was tastefully decorated, however the seating was not as comfortable as I thought it would be! (We were later informed the seats are made deliberately like that so the passengers will be more tempted to get up and spend money in the on-board shops!)
Upon leaving the ferry we had a brief video about how the oil rigs are assembled, and then we headed back to the hotel. Some groups went to the nearby cuttlefish restaurant (where all they served was cuttlefish!), whereas others went to the street market in town, where we experimented with different street foods, and purchased a few small souvenirs However, we did not stay out too long, as the next day brought an early start (yet again), and so an early night was a welcome decision! Until tomorrow!
P.S. The lack of photos in this one is due to the world's worst wifi connection that we have at this new hotel! Ill see if I can add some later tomorrow.
The day began, as it has done on a number of occasions now, with getting up early so that we could have breakfast and get ready to go to the CIMC Raffles shipyard. One thing that has surprised me for most of this trip, is how well we're coping, as students, with getting up really early, having long days, and then going to bed late on mattresses as hard as rocks! I think the time difference does help, which is why I have a feeling that upon return to the UK we shall transition back into student mode, and struggle to wake up yet again!
Our first stop was at the CIMC Raffles Offshore Engineering R&D building, which is a large glass structure about 30km from the shipyard. Once there, they showed us many models of the various different rigs and ships they've produced, and gave detailed explanations about each type. It was very useful to be able to see a 3D model whilst the particular rig was being talked about, as we could use it to try and understand the different design features that each one has. One thing that I found interesting was the quantity of azimuthing thrusters on each rig, which around 6 for each one; these are used for both dynamic positioning (basically keeping it still in the water without any anchors), and for self-propulsion on case it needs to go somewhere a short distance away.
We were then shown an office section, where we saw people working on AutoCAD, a 3D modelling software that we use in Southampton, and so it was good to see that we're learning tools that actually are used in industry (though I couldn't help noticing they were using a much earlier version of the software than we use!).
After this, we headed onto the coach to head down to the CIMC Raffles Shipyard, with a very quick stop-off to collect some hard hats. As the yard came into view, it became apparent that it's of a different style to the CSIC yard; CIMC seems to have a very streamlined production pipeline, that is quite clearly geared towards the oil rigs that they produce, whereas CSIC seemed to all be rather general purpose, which needs specialist equipment to be moved whenever anything needs producing. The first thing that catches your eye upon arrival is the giant gantry crane called "Taoshan", which can carry a total of 20,133 tonnes, which makes it the largest capacity crane in the world! It's located in a dry dock, so the crane can operate to the precision that's required for raising and lowering very large objects. We started off in their exhibition room, where we saw the same models as in the HQ, and saw a safety film.
We then made our way onto one of the rigs in the dock. The rig itself is huge. Unless you've ever actually seen one, you'd be unable to imagine the size of these behemoths that help us fuel our world. As we ascended the ladders to board the 40m tall rig, the rest of the shipyard seemed to fade away, and the sheer magnitude of this feat of engineering was revealed to me. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to take any pictures of the interior of the rig, but we did take some of the outside, and on the helipad. Unlike most ships, and particularly the Naval vessel we visited earlier in the year, the rigs do not consider space a luxury, and so everything is very spacious and well set-out. The cabins seemed to be rather pleasant, though considering the crew would be onboard for a couple of months at a time, they would have to be! A welcome sight was the English signs everywhere, including on the computer systems; this was because this particular rig is destined for the Norwegian North Sea, and so everything is in English for the crews there. We took a very interesting tour of the whole rig, including the engine rooms, the helipad, the galley, mess deck, cabins, officer's quarters, ROV room and the drilling deck. I was particularly interested in the ROV rooms, where they can deploy small unmanned submarines through the bottom of the rig to examine where the drill is operating. After around an hour we departed the rig, and headed for lunch, which turned out to be Western style, with chips! This was a rather welcome sight for most of us, and we all enjoyed the interesting combination of noodles, chicken nuggets, rice, pizza, stir fry and soft drinks.
With lunch over, we headed towards the luxury yacht warehouse that they also have on site. Again, no pictures were allowed by us in there. The yacht itself is 88.8m long (8 is a lucky number in China), and is a super yacht, due to be finished early next year. Walking through the semi-completed hull, and seeing all the different rooms and compartments, it came as no surprise to us that this kind of yacht would cost upwards of £220 million, and with an upkeep of 10% of that annually, we realised that our dreams of a shippy party boat needed a slight amount of down-sizing! The owner of the yacht has an entire floor devoted to them, with bedrooms, bathrooms, wardrobes, powder rooms, and dressing rooms for both the owner and their partner! To me, this seemed a tad excessive, however for the billionaire owner, I doubt anything could seem too exuberant! We were then given a tour of one of the new ferries meant to take passengers between some Chinese islands. They were quite nice to look at from the exterior, and the interior was tastefully decorated, however the seating was not as comfortable as I thought it would be! (We were later informed the seats are made deliberately like that so the passengers will be more tempted to get up and spend money in the on-board shops!)
Upon leaving the ferry we had a brief video about how the oil rigs are assembled, and then we headed back to the hotel. Some groups went to the nearby cuttlefish restaurant (where all they served was cuttlefish!), whereas others went to the street market in town, where we experimented with different street foods, and purchased a few small souvenirs However, we did not stay out too long, as the next day brought an early start (yet again), and so an early night was a welcome decision! Until tomorrow!
P.S. The lack of photos in this one is due to the world's worst wifi connection that we have at this new hotel! Ill see if I can add some later tomorrow.
Great blog Harry - good to see that you are getting some excellent visits and surviving the travel and early mornings. Prof Turnock
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