Austal orders four davits for Australian naval patrol vessels

Austal orders four davits for Australian naval patrol vessels to bolster Vestdavit’s deliveries to defence market.

Vestdavit is boosting sales of its in-demand lightweight aluminium davits to the naval segment with a further order for four PLAR-6501 systems to be delivered to a pair of Evolved Cape-class patrol vessels under construction at shipbuilder Austal Australia for the Royal Australian Navy.

The latest contract brings the number of PLAR davits supplied to the Cape and Evolved Cape-class vessels for the Royal Australian Navy to a total of 20.

“The operational efficiency of modern naval vessels is dependent on high-performance boat launch-and-recovery systems for mission-critical tasks,” says Vestdavit Managing Director Rolf Andreas Wigand.

“The fact that our well-proven PLAR davit has again been selected by Austal for the Royal Australian Navy speaks to the robustness and reliability of systems that we have previously delivered, further reinforcing our expertise in meeting the specific requirements of the naval segment. We are grateful to Antelope, our agent in Australia, for having secured the initial davit contracts.”

Enhanced PLAR system

This PLAR-6501 model will be provided for hulls 819 and 820. It is an enhancement of the PLAR-6500 system, designed according to the DNV-0498 standard that includes fatigue analysis.

The lightweight and compact design of these high-grade aluminium davits, with a weight saving of 30% versus conventional steel systems, is an important factor in reducing the weight of onboard equipment, thus providing enhanced stability and allowing increased payload.

Keeping upper deck weight to a minimum means vessels can maintain a higher maximum speed, while it also contributes to better manoeuvrability, lower fuel consumption, greater speed responsiveness and an expansion of the operational window.

The Evolved Cape-class patrol vessels are being deployed for a range of naval and law enforcement missions, playing a critical role in Australia’s national security as a high-performing, reliable and effective maritime asset.

High frequency

The davits will be utilised for launch and recovery of fast rescue and interceptor craft to support such missions. Safety and reliability are key factors both to safeguard personnel and equipment, as well as ensure high frequency and a wide operational window for demanding naval activities in variable sea states.

Austal is set to deliver a total of 10 Evolved Cape-class vessels to the Royal Australian Navy, which represents an evolution of the previous Cape-class patrol boat, of which 10 such units were earlier delivered by the Australian shipbuilder to the Australian Border Force (8) and Royal Australian Navy (2). Another two Cape-class patrol vessels were delivered to the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard in 2021.

The modular PLAR davit, with a SWL range of 850-7000kg, is delivered pre-assembled and skid-mounted, with a compact size for ease of installation in confined spaces. Despite its low weight and profile, this robust davit remains capable of efficient launch and recovery of boats in rough seas.

Furthermore, lifecycle costs are reduced with the use of aluminium that also has the advantages of being non-magnetic and minimising corrosion.

New naval solutions
Vestdavit is a trusted supplier for most Nato navies around the world with a track record of multiple davit deliveries to major clients such as the Royal Australian Navy, US Navy and the UK’s Royal Navy.

“We are constantly evolving our davit systems in collaboration with the end-user in line with our policy of continuous innovation to enhance our products using new technologies. Our offering has also expanded to include new solutions for naval and other markets, such as Mission Bay that can facilitate inboard storage and deployment of several diverse craft for multi-role operations,” Wigand says.

About Vestdavit

Vestdavit is a leading Norwegian supplier of advanced boat-handling systems, with a strong track record of more than 2200 davit deliveries mainly to navies and coastguards worldwide, as well as the offshore energy sector, over the past 40 years. Higher naval fleet investments and offshore wind expansion have resulted in increasing demand for systems supplied by Vestdavit, which is headquartered in Bergen, Norway, with subsidiaries in the US and Netherlands, a production facility in Poland and global support network.