New Boat Concerns: Building to Comply with Transport Canada and ISO Standards for Small Passenger Vessels
November 18, 2006 Comments
I was recently asked to look at a new Small Passenger Vessel project by a local builder. The owner intends to operate a 26' fast aluminum vessel in the Gulf of Georgia carrying 10 passengers on day trips. As the builder has not previously built a Transport Canada certified Small Passenger vessel, he had a number of questions regarding the adaptation of his stock pleasure model for this use. The owner also has a number of concerns regarding area of operation and propulsion options. Both the builder and the owner want the vessel to comply with incoming TC (2006) ISO standards for stability and deck drainage.
The good news is that in my opinion complying with the regulations and standards is not difficult, if it is taken into consideration early on. In this case we are several months from start of construction. Open and cooperative discussion with Transport Canada is a major asset in this undertaking.
The first requirement from Transport Canada is proper CAD 'as built' drawings of the vessel. Sketches on the back of an envelope will not do it. This is so the Transport Canada inspectors can satisfy themselves that the boat is designed, built, arranged, and equipped in a seamanlike way suitable for the intended service.
The second major requirement is complete vessel hydrostatics written up in the form of a Stability Booklet. To create this the vessel must be launched and an inclining test (witnessed by TC) done to establish GM. This experiment coupled with the hydrostatic information from a 3D computer model allows the Naval Architect to determine KG, the vertical center of gravity of this particular vessel. Using the above information, stability calculations for all conceivable loading conditions can be calculated. This is important as the TC and ISO standards stipulate a stability requirement for each operating area.
TC concerns regarding the actual layout and construction of the boat include the following areas
- Fuel Shutoff is to be directly inside the engine room and remotely accessed
- Fuel Tank Cleanout access to the fuel tank for inspection and cleaning
- Water tight Engine Room hatch
- High engine air vents
- Closures for those vents
- Positive engine room hatch dogs
- Positive cockpit side door dogs
- Solid gate on transom door
- Door sill height
If taken into account at an early stage, these features add very little to cost or construction effort.
The owner of this vessel was concerned about his options as to operating areas because TC certifies a Passenger Vessel for a particular use with a particular Master. I was able to assure the owner that the boat will not require any changes to operate within Home Trade III classification anywhere on the BC coast.
Finally, we entered into a study of propulsion options. Though an engine has been chosen, the particular gearing ratio and outdrive vs. surface drive questions require some study. The outdrive option is proven and common in this application, the surface drive holds some promise of increased propulsive efficiency due to lower drag and larger diameter propeller. The surface drive is also simpler mechanically and slightly less vulnerable in high-speed collision. But there are risks involved when utilizing technology that is somewhat new. Reliability and possible downtime are major concerns that must be answered in a sound way for a single engine vessel. Access to dealer assistance and parts are also factors in the implementation of any system on a commercial vessel.
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