Hydrex completes underwater repairs across many regions
Hydrex diver secures a doubler plate on tanker in Dakar (Source: Hydrex)
Hydrex has reported a series of underwater repair projects completed in ports and anchorages across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Central America, highlighting growing demand for afloat repair projects that allow vessels to remain in service and avoid drydocking.
Two of the most significant recent repairs were carried out in Dakar. One involved the installation of four custom-fabricated doubler plates to reinforce a damaged hull, while a second, aboard an LNG carrier, required a class-approved permanent repair to cracked and deformed shell plating inside a ballast tank.
Hydrex used cofferdams to create a dry working environment, enabling damaged steel to be removed and replacement insert plates to be welded in place without sending the vessel to drydock.
In Stockholm, the company completed a bow thruster replacement aboard a ferry during winter conditions, while in Lagos it repaired an oil leak affecting a controllable-pitch propeller on a hopper dredger. The work involved removing a propeller blade underwater, replacing seals and reinstalling the blade in accordance with class and manufacturer requirements.
A container vessel anchored off Pointe-Noire, Republic of the Congo, meanwhile, underwent an unusual propeller repair after a suspected grounding bent all six blades. Working with class, Hydrex developed a solution involving the cropping and reshaping of all blades to identical dimensions, allowing the vessel to resume operations.
Other projects included a permanent insert plate repair on a supply vessel in Rotterdam and a temporary class-approved steel repair to grounding damage on a RoRo vessel in Sohar.
The company also reported hull repairs in Vietnam, a propeller blade replacement in Panama, stern tube seal work in Sri Lanka, fin repairs in Cádiz, rope guard installation in Malta and propeller blade straightening projects in Skagen and Klaipėda, reflecting the increasingly global nature of underwater maintenance and emergency repair services.
