Shipbuilding industry has been fundamental to prosperity of Gdansk for centuries. Sometimes the shipyard was the main scene for political events in Poland, like it was in the '80s, sometimes the industry was affected by troubles, like it was in the '90s. Nowadays, it's is one of the fastest growing branches of our economy. What's more, it brings so much needed innovation to Poland.
Bringing innovation, better market recognition and flexibility to the industry was the main cure for the slowdown that affected shipbuilding in Gdansk in the 90s. Instead of concentrating on mass production of relatively simple, standarized vessels, our shipbuilders took more ambitious path and currently Gdansk is renowned among international fleet owners as a place where innovative special purpose vessels are built.
Last days brought us the news about two very innovative vessels already built in Gdansk.
Remontowa Shipbuilding has just delivered to Norwegian fleet owner a cable lay vessel "Siem Aimery", which is considered the most technologically advanced (and the most expensive, too) vessel ever built in Polish shipyards.
The vessel of 95.3 m length is purposed for installation and maintenance of submarine cable systems for offshore renewable energy, oil and gas markets. Professionals from Gdansk were responsible for workshop documentation and construction of the innovative hull equipped with diesel-electric propulsion and navigation systems. Strict environmental and safety standards were met during the construction process.
The second interesting unit is an arctic vessel "Ivalo Arctica" for Danish fleet owner. This one will be operating mainly on routes to Greenland, therefore technical requirements were very demanding. The vessel for delivering containers is able to operate on waters with ice floe, in temperatures reaching even -35 C. Other 4 arctic vessels will be built as a part of the contract.
The diversity and flexibility of the ship-building industry in Gdansk is really amazing. Many other vessels are constructed in Gdansk, including - sailing ships for training purposes, like this one below for the Algerian navy:
