MADONNA at FINCANTIERI BAY SHIPBUILDING HULL #789 - UPDATE 5.0

Madonna hull shape apparent here,
with considerable car deck overhang in the bow the most
apparent feature.  Since this photo was taken Monday, Nov. 4
by Steve Propsom, the first two hull plates were added
midships, in the vicinity of the worker wearing a light green shirt.
(Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding photo)

Detroit Harbor, Washington Island -

Rich Ellefson, Ferry Line VP and Operations Manager, has begun making regular trips to the shipyard to observe construction progress, and to confer with Construction Supervisor Steve Propsom, Seacraft Design Naval Architect Mark Pudlo, and U. S. Coast Guard Marine Inspection Supervisor Sarah Reid.  With the exception of the lead photo all other photos were taken by Rich  November 5.

During the past several weeks a great deal of progress has been made with hull construction.  A second shift, mostly welders, began working on the hull.  When large ship sections for Van Ekenvort Tug and Barge of Bark River, Michigan, were recently moved to the graving dock, surplus manpower was shifted over to the Madonna, for a total of 30 assigned steelworkers.

As more steel is added the number of corners and confinement 
increases.  A welder is shown here between frames.
(Each of following photos taken by Rich Ellefson.)

Piping runs for bilges shown here.  Openings
are looking aft toward engine room.

Piping manifold (in white paint) shown in approximate location on forward
engine room bulkhead.  Open square in foreground minus flatbar stiffeners
will be for openings ("soft patches") cut later, to give engine room access
for engines and  transmissions. Removable patches will be
framed with heavy girders that will carry deck load. 

The forward half of the vessel is coming along nicely.  The bow section, up to the first bulkhead, will soon be ready for visual weld inspection by the Coast Guard.  Once that has been successfully completed, cleaning of welds and seams will be followed by priming.  That general routine will be repeated in the coming weeks, working bow-to-stern, as sections between bulkheads are completed.

Decisions on the order of work are based on the yard supervisor's weekly and daily assessments, him order to keep the project moving steadily ahead, yet allowing the various trades optimum work opportunity without interfering with one another.  As of this date, the completion of the two hull halves could be ready for removal from the building for roll-over by Nov. 27.  Then the joining of the two halves will take place.  This work is estimated to happen during the last week in November and will represent a gain of several weeks in time from the original estimate.

Piping has also begun with runs of two-inch bilge piping and stainless hydraulic lines (for ramp winches), and the placement of the Engine Room manifold.  The piping manifold becomes a junction for bilge and fire piping, and the controlling valves that lead to belowdeck voids and ballast areas.  From that one location, pumps can dewater one or more spaces (or fill a ballast section).

This would be the starboard bow corner (inverted here during construction) 
and the flat rail section, temporarily held in place with tabs and come-along,
later will become the rub rail.  Two C-shaped sections are being 
fabricated to run the entire length of the vessel, continuous
from bow to stern.

 Other ongoing work in preparation for later stages of construction include items such as:

  a) Stainless propellers and shafts are in house at Kahlenberg Bros., Two Rivers, for machining.
  b) Main CAT engines have been received at Fabick, Green Bay, and await the arrival of Twin Disc transmissions later this month.
   c) Northern Lights gensets were recently delivered to Burger Boat, Manitowoc distributor.
   d) A number of plans were submitted to the U. S. Coast Guard Plan Review Office in Washington and await approval;  other prints with detail have either been produced, or will soon be, by Seacraft Design of Sturgeon Bay.  These steps are critical for continuation of the brisk construction pace at Bay Shipbuilding, and for a final product that will meet federal passenger vessel design and construction guidelines.  (Materials, systems and equipment must also meet federal standards.)

-  Dick Purinton