In the life of any yacht, there are times when it has to come out of the water for a full check-up.
This is the case for the 63.5m M/Y KOLAHA . The vessel, with a sophisticated exterior by Naval Architect Andrea Vallicelli, features a displacement steel hull and aluminium superstructure, with teak decks. Fitted with ‘zero speed stabilizers’, she is powered by 2 Caterpillar 2,364hp diesel engines and propelled by twin screw propellers so to reach a top speed of 16 knots, and comfortably cruise at 14 knots. With her 130,000 litre fuel tanks she performs a maximum range of 3,109 nautical miles at 14 knots, whereas her water tanks can store around 35,000 litres of fresh water.
Delivered in 2010 by ISA prior to becoming ‘Palumbo Superyachts Ancona’, she is now due for her 10-year class survey and the fairly complex business has been assigned to Palumbo Superyachts Marseille due to the yard’s excellent facilities, including a new 500 tonne floating dry dock, combined with its engineering team’s ability of solving most problems in-house and thus accelerating the work rate dramatically when the pressure is on.
The associated work involves:
– disassembling and overhauling the propellers, withdrawing the shafts for inspection together with all the moving parts of the propulsion system such as bearings and silent blocks that need to be serviced to prevent failure;
- inspecting the stabilizers;
- inspecting and servicing all through-hull valves; a big task that also implies applying new seals where required;
- tank checking, that entiles emptying all the tanks (sewage, freshwater, fuel, etc.), washing them out, inspecting them with a focus on erosion and, where necessary, repairing and/or repainting them;
- running the periodic maintenance procedures required on main engines and generators – a major programme of work that keeps the engineers busy for many hours;
- looking after the periodic maintenance and upkeep aspects of all tenders and water toys.
In addition, a substantial amount of refreshment work like the cleaning or replacing of carpets and draperies and minor repairs to the joinery and décor is also on the to-do list for her ‘Patrick Knowles Designs’ interior that comprises 5 guest cabins for up to 12 people, a master suite, a VIP stateroom, 2 double and 2 twin cabins as well as 7 cabins for up to 14 crew.
However, a yard visit such as this is the ideal opportunity to conveniently tackle also a certain amount of updates and improvements unconnected with the class survey. Hence, the two fore ballast tanks will be converted to store spare parts, the two stern ones will be adapted to hold extra fuel and the electronic navigation system will be upgraded.
In the meantime, the crew will be able to enjoy the yard’s living and recreational facilities and discover the best attractions in Marseille.
photo credit @Sigrun Sauerzapfe aka Siggi
