AAL
AAL is a global multipurpose shipping operator that serves the breakbulk, heavy lift, and project cargo industry.
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HANGING WITH THE BUOYS
AAL delivers 680 mt of floating buoys to offshore anchorage in the Persian gulf
Singapore, Tuesday 2nd November 2021: The 31,000dwt ‘mega-size’ heavy lift vessel, AAL Kobe, recently transported two heavy lift single-point mooring (SPM) buoys along AAL Shipping’s (AAL) ‘Europe – Middle East / India – Asia Monthly Liner Service’ (EUMEIA), from Jebel Ali in Dubai to offshore anchorage in the Persian Gulf. The buoys each weighed 340 metric tonnes and measured 16.4 x 15.9 x 14 metres. They were transported on behalf of DHL Industrial Projects and enable offshore interconnection with tankers, loading or offloading gas, and liquid products.
As well as the issues of an extremely tight delivery schedule, and offshore wind and visibility considerations at anchorage – when discharging the two buoys in open water – the cargo’s shape and size posed load-spreading challenges for AAL’s engineering team when planning safe stowage on the vessel’s 3,000 square metre weather deck space.
Yahaya Sanusi, Deputy Head of AAL’s Transport Engineering Department, explained, “Planning took six weeks. The operation demanded exacting stowage requirements, including extensive load-spreading calculations, strict protection of filling pipes protruding from the bottom of both units and pin-point positioning by the Master and his crew to ensure optimum load and discharge space. In solution, temporary platforms were designed and constructed for the buoys to sit on, comprising 750mm thick tweendeck panels, additional heavy load platforms (HLPs) and wooden blocks.
He added, “We originally planned to ship only one buoy, so our solution was completely re-designed at some point. Despite this, sea fastening and lifting of both units proved no issue at all and was possible with our ship’s equipment. However, COVID restrictions meant that none of the engineering team could attend discharge, which put pressure on the AAL Kobe’s formidable crew – especially with a constant risk of bad weather offshore. The operation ultimately proved a success and strong collaboration between the engineering team in Singapore, our Project Engineer Monique Haehre at AAL Hamburg, and Columbia Shipmanagement colleagues manning the ‘Performance Optimisation Control Room’ (POCR) facility in Cyprus – whose 24/7 weather routing calculations and prognoses significantly helped sailing efficiency and operational safety.”
Andy Tite, Global Commercial Head, DHL Industrial Projects, concluded, “The close partnerships DHL holds with our carriers is imperative to our safe and effective operational performance. In this instance, AAL completed the operations to the highest standards, which is not only a requirement of DHL but also of our clients. This was all the more impressive as we were placed under some quite considerable pressure due to restrictive timescales and the addition of twice as much cargo as originally booked, AAL responded in a positive and supportive manner. We appreciate greatly their approach technically and operationally, as well as their overall professionalism.”
About AAL Shipping
AAL is a leading premium project heavy lift carrier, focused on long-haul project cargo solutions for majors within a wide range of dynamic industry sectors, including oil & gas, mining, energy, construction, and agriculture.
Highly awarded for its services and with 30 years’ experience, AAL employs heavy lift MPVs with superior cargo intake and heavy-lift capability (max 700mt), offering shippers economies of scale on every sailing. With a sterling reputation for safety, reliability, and customer service, AAL is committed to transparency in its ESG activities and to being as sustainable as possible across all operations, land and sea.
Today, AAL owns and controls the majority of its operating fleet, one of the multipurpose sector’s largest and youngest, enabling its teams to develop sailings and solutions that best suit customer demands. Its vessels carry any cargo from project heavy lift, breakbulk and dry bulk commodities to general cargo – and all at the same time.
A significant percentage of the AAL fleet is employed across AAL’s monthly Liner Services and regular Trade Lane Services, the latter affording greater port call and scheduling flexibility. These services connect Oceania with Asia, India, Middle East, Europe, and the Americas.
The rest of the fleet delivers worldwide Tramp Chartering Solutions: tailormade sailings for project stakeholders, offered either on a single sailing or on a longer-term basis.
With 11 representative offices on four continents, AAL’s team combines over 25 different nationalities and 35 spoken languages, ensuring a local 24/7 service in key trading hubs and supporting major trade lanes worldwide.
For further information on AAL and its services, visit aalshipping.com or email marketing@aalshipping.com.
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HANGING WITH THE BUOYS
AAL delivers 680 mt of floating buoys to offshore anchorage in the Persian gulf
Singapore, Tuesday 2nd November 2021: The 31,000dwt ‘mega-size’ heavy lift vessel, AAL Kobe, recently transported two heavy lift single-point mooring (SPM) buoys along AAL Shipping’s (AAL) ‘Europe – Middle East / India – Asia Monthly Liner Service’ (EUMEIA), from Jebel Ali in Dubai to offshore anchorage in the Persian Gulf. The buoys each weighed 340 metric tonnes and measured 16.4 x 15.9 x 14 metres. They were transported on behalf of DHL Industrial Projects and enable offshore interconnection with tankers, loading or offloading gas, and liquid products.
As well as the issues of an extremely tight delivery schedule, and offshore wind and visibility considerations at anchorage – when discharging the two buoys in open water – the cargo’s shape and size posed load-spreading challenges for AAL’s engineering team when planning safe stowage on the vessel’s 3,000 square metre weather deck space.
Yahaya Sanusi, Deputy Head of AAL’s Transport Engineering Department, explained,
“Planning took six weeks. The operation demanded exacting stowage requirements, including extensive load-spreading calculations, strict protection of filling pipes protruding from the bottom of both units and pin-point positioning by the Master and his crew to ensure optimum load and discharge space. In solution, temporary platforms were designed and constructed for the buoys to sit on, comprising 750mm thick tweendeck panels, additional heavy load platforms (HLPs) and wooden blocks.
He added, “We originally planned to ship only one buoy, so our solution was completely re-designed at some point. Despite this, sea fastening and lifting of both units proved no issue at all and was possible with our ship’s equipment. However, COVID restrictions meant that none of the engineering team could attend discharge, which put pressure on the AAL Kobe’s formidable crew – especially with a constant risk of bad weather offshore. The operation ultimately proved a success and strong collaboration between the engineering team in Singapore, our Project Engineer Monique Haehre at AAL Hamburg, and Columbia Shipmanagement colleagues manning the ‘Performance Optimisation Control Room’ (POCR) facility in Cyprus – whose 24/7 weather routing calculations and prognoses significantly helped sailing efficiency and operational safety.”
Andy Tite, Global Commercial Head, DHL Industrial Projects, concluded, “The close partnerships DHL holds with our carriers is imperative to our safe and effective operational performance. In this instance, AAL completed the operations to the highest standards, which is not only a requirement of DHL but also of our clients. This was all the more impressive as we were placed under some quite considerable pressure due to restrictive timescales and the addition of twice as much cargo as originally booked, AAL responded in a positive and supportive manner. We appreciate greatly their approach technically and operationally, as well as their overall professionalism.”
Latest from AAL
About AAL Shipping
AAL is a leading premium project heavy lift carrier, focused on long-haul project cargo solutions for majors within a wide range of dynamic industry sectors, including oil & gas, mining, energy, construction, and agriculture.
Highly awarded for its services and with 30 years’ experience, AAL employs heavy lift MPVs with superior cargo intake and heavy-lift capability (max 700mt), offering shippers economies of scale on every sailing. With a sterling reputation for safety, reliability, and customer service, AAL is committed to transparency in its ESG activities and to being as sustainable as possible across all operations, land and sea.
Today, AAL owns and controls the majority of its operating fleet, one of the multipurpose sector’s largest and youngest, enabling its teams to develop sailings and solutions that best suit customer demands. Its vessels carry any cargo from project heavy lift, breakbulk and dry bulk commodities to general cargo – and all at the same time.
A significant percentage of the AAL fleet is employed across AAL’s monthly Liner Services and regular Trade Lane Services, the latter affording greater port call and scheduling flexibility. These services connect Oceania with Asia, India, Middle East, Europe, and the Americas.
The rest of the fleet delivers worldwide Tramp Chartering Solutions: tailormade sailings for project stakeholders, offered either on a single sailing or on a longer-term basis.
With 11 representative offices on four continents, AAL’s team combines over 25 different nationalities and 35 spoken languages, ensuring a local 24/7 service in key trading hubs and supporting major trade lanes worldwide.
For further information on AAL and its services, visit aalshipping.com or email marketing@aalshipping.com.