Dry Dock question!

[Topo Gigio]

Why do Royal Caribbean dry docks her ships every 5 years, when other cruise lines do it like every 2 to 3 years?

[littlesteelo]

Why do Royal Caribbean dry docks her ships every 5 years, when other cruise lines do it like every 2 to 3 years?

 

Most lines do it every 4 or 5 years. RCI, Celebrity, P&O, Carnival and probably others do this.

Other lines, such as Princess and HAL do it more frequently. Princess sometimes does wet docking as well.

 

The thing is, it is a very expensive process, and unless the ship needs it, there is no point. I think Princess take their ships out of the water too frequently. 4/5 years seems to be the average, and as long as the ship is well maintained in service, then there should be no reason to do it any more often.

 

When a ship looks 'tired' when in service, it is because it is not being maintained properly. Painting, cleaning rust stains from the hull, replacing carpet/furnishings/lights, varnishing rails etc. can be done when in operation. Yes, taking the ship out of service allows for a very thorough refit, but that is no reason to let the ship get run down in between that.

[ehfl]

It depends on the ship, the materials used, where it normally sails, types of engines and running gear, age, etc. Each case is unique....you don't need the barnacles scraped if the ship mainly sails in an area without barnacles. You don't need azipod maintenance if the ship does not have azipods, etc.

[Kamloops50]

Many cruise lines are doing upgrades to be more fuel efficient . These can't be done during normal operations . Many cruises are doing overhauls early in preparation for the US requirement of using light diesel with certain area of North America. During overhauls they also repaint the hull with a new type of paint that is lighter and more slippery .

[bigkauhuna]

Check out "Cruise Ship Renovations: The Complete Schedule". It has all the cruise lines and dates for the refurbishment from the time they entered service till their next refurbish.

[Eng23]

Why do Royal Caribbean dry docks her ships every 5 years, when other cruise lines do it like every 2 to 3 years?

Probably because they are confident of their inservice maintenance programs to keep the ships in good shape between dry dock periods. When a ship is dry docked it is mainly to work on components that are underwater such as azipods and the props (if the ship has those), propeller shafts, the bow thrusters, or if hull cuts need to be made to remove heavy machinery from inside the ship, and to repaint the hull. Some ships just go into a shipyard for interior work that can be done without dry docking such as carpeting, inteior painting, furniture replacement, lighting, and any interior modifications requested by the cruiseline.

[Merion_Mom]

Why do Royal Caribbean dry docks her ships every 5 years, when other cruise lines do it like every 2 to 3 years?

 

What is the source of your statistics?

[FLACRUISER99]

Why do Royal Caribbean dry docks her ships every 5 years, when other cruise lines do it like every 2 to 3 years?

Looking at the site that bigkauhana posted I don't see where you get the 2 to 3 years from, did you just make that up?

 

Check out "Cruise Ship Renovations: The Complete Schedule". It has all the cruise lines and dates for the refurbishment from the time they entered service till their next refurbish.

[chengkp75]

The classification societies (insurance underwriters) require that every ship be drydocked twice in a 5 year period. However, the mid-period docking can be waived if the ship has been set up for what is called a UWILD (UnderWater In Lieu of Drydocking) inspection. This is performed by divers with video cameras that the class surveyor and any flag state inspectors can watch, and inspects virtually every inch of the hull below the waterline. They look for hull and paint condition, and the condition of all underwater equipment (propellers, shafts, rudders, pods, thrusters, anti-corrosion anodes, sea chests, etc. If the UWILD is acceptable to flag state and class, then the drydock can be postponed to the 5 year interval.

 

Many cruisers confuse "drydocking" with "shipyard period". A drydocking is only required when maintenance or repairs are required to equipment under water that can only be done when the ship is out of the water. Many repairs to thrusters, pods, and propellers can be accomplished with the ship in the water these days, many times even without taking the ship out of service, so saving the large expense of "renting" the drydock for a week or so. A shipyard period is where maintenance and repairs are done to the ship's equipment or refurbishment to the hotel (new carpet, new decor, new attractions), that cannot be conducted while the ship is in service. These repairs and refurbishments are frequently combined with a drydocking to minimize the amount of time the ship is out of service. "Wet docking" is done at the shipyard, but the ship is merely tied to a pier in the yard, not in a drydock.

 

Much maintenance and repair is done with the ship in service. The main generator engines are generally overhauled every 12-14,000 hours, and normally is done while the ship is still on its active itinerary. The ship's engineers are maintaining and repairing equipment every day.

 

Anti-fouling paint (below the water) is one major consideration whether to drydock or not. How old the paint is (how much anti-fouling agent is left in the paint), how much time the ship spends in fresh water (barnacles are salt water creatures)(going up the Miss river, for example), travel between warm and cold water, and other factors will determine how much growth there is, and marine growth affects speed and fuel consumption.

 

Why one line "drydocks" on a different schedule than others? Lots of factors, like the above, as well as the corporate maintenance program, would be the answer.

[A&L_Ont]

The classification societies (insurance underwriters) require that every ship be drydocked twice in a 5 year period. However, the mid-period docking can be waived if the ship has been set up for what is called a UWILD (UnderWater In Lieu of Drydocking) inspection. This is performed by divers with video cameras that the class surveyor and any flag state inspectors can watch, and inspects virtually every inch of the hull below the waterline. They look for hull and paint condition, and the condition of all underwater equipment (propellers, shafts, rudders, pods, thrusters, anti-corrosion anodes, sea chests, etc. If the UWILD is acceptable to flag state and class, then the drydock can be postponed to the 5 year interval.

 

Many cruisers confuse "drydocking" with "shipyard period". A drydocking is only required when maintenance or repairs are required to equipment under water that can only be done when the ship is out of the water. Many repairs to thrusters, pods, and propellers can be accomplished with the ship in the water these days, many times even without taking the ship out of service, so saving the large expense of "renting" the drydock for a week or so. A shipyard period is where maintenance and repairs are done to the ship's equipment or refurbishment to the hotel (new carpet, new decor, new attractions), that cannot be conducted while the ship is in service. These repairs and refurbishments are frequently combined with a drydocking to minimize the amount of time the ship is out of service. "Wet docking" is done at the shipyard, but the ship is merely tied to a pier in the yard, not in a drydock.

 

Much maintenance and repair is done with the ship in service. The main generator engines are generally overhauled every 12-14,000 hours, and normally is done while the ship is still on its active itinerary. The ship's engineers are maintaining and repairing equipment every day.

 

Anti-fouling paint (below the water) is one major consideration whether to drydock or not. How old the paint is (how much anti-fouling agent is left in the paint), how much time the ship spends in fresh water (barnacles are salt water creatures)(going up the Miss river, for example), travel between warm and cold water, and other factors will determine how much growth there is, and marine growth affects speed and fuel consumption.

 

Why one line "drydocks" on a different schedule than others? Lots of factors, like the above, as well as the corporate maintenance program, would be the answer.

 

Very thorough answer and easy to understand. Your maritime expertise has come in handy.