This book attempts to chronicle the develpment of the supply ship since it first appeared in the 1950s. This is not a life's work, so sometimes there are gaps in the narrative and the information, but it is also to be hoped that there is a tenuous thread from the beginning to the present day, that offers a taste of the environment. Unfortunately, even after a mere fifty years, the records are sometimes sparse, and sometimes people are just not interested in telling us what happened or even what is happening now. The American supply ship owners remain particularly reluctant to share information about their current fleets, and in some cases about their past.
It is difficult to avoid Tidewater in America, and Maersk in Europe, since both companies have had a considerable influence on the development of ships types, and both own large numbers of hips. Tidewater in particular has seen its fortunes wax and wane, but has gradually increased in size by taking over other companies. A British engineer who contributed his recollections to this book went to work orginally for international Offshore Services (IOS) and thereafter worked for two other companies, all of which were taken over by Tidewater. So in his career he was taken over three times by the same company.
This book catalogues the major strands in the development of the ship type over the 50 years of its existence. The author also provides the background to an industry that requires technical innovation and bravery on the part of those who invest in new ships, and extraordinary levels of seamanship on the parts of those who sail in them.
The chapters cover the chronology of events and aspects of the work, including supplying platforms and moving mobile units, both using tr traditional methods, and also the more advanced techniques required in the deep waters of the North Atlantic, the Campos Basin and the Gulf of Mexico
CONTERNTS:
The Offshore Industry
In the Beginning
Supply Work
The Semi-submersible
The North Sea
Rig Shifting
Deep Water
The American Revival
The New Millenium
Deep Water Mooring
The American Revival
The New Millenium
Deep Water Mooring
The Boldly Go