DRASSM, iXblue Shipyard and MAURIC have teamed up to develop a 46 meters research vessel under NESSIE – Novel Efficient Survey Ship InitiativE research & development project.
Within the scope of the R&D program, iXblue and MAURIC have developed a multi-purpose research vessel capable of handling several missions, including oceanographic, hydrographic, fisheries, geophysical, meteorological, underwater research, and underwater archaeology.
The ship will have several key aspects such as a minimized environmental impact from the construction to the dismantling by using recycled high quality FRP. The hull will be monitored and the behavior of recycled high quality FRP evaluated.
Optical fibers will be installed in the bottom of the hull and on the front walls to record displacement in the composite due to hogging and sagging effects on the vessel and impact pressure on the side shells forward.
After a few years of subaquatic research missions onboard André Malraux, Survey Vessel 360, Michel L’Hour from the DRASSM has decided to manage the construction of this multipurpose and innovative First of Class with DRASSM and iXblue through the project NESSIE.
MAURIC is already working on the design studies – external design and general arrangement plans, hull lines, ship performance calculations and model tests, and detailed structure engineering.
The construction of the hull mould should start by the end of 2019 and the building of the vessel in 2020. The expected delivery of the vessel is in 2021.
With a length of 46 meters overall, a breadth of 9.2 meters and a draught of 3.2 meters, the First of Class resulting from NESSIE project will be 10 meters longer than its predecessor, André Malraux launched in 2012.
Powered by a 1700 kW diesel engine, the vessel will reach a speed of 15 knots and the range at cruising speed (12 kts) will be about 3200 nm, so that, expeditions beyond Mediterranean Sea will be possible.
The auxiliary propulsion with 4 thrusters, 2 at the bow and 2 at the stern, will enable advanced dynamic positioning performances.
NESSIE will be equipped with sonars in a gondola located on the keel. Moreover, the launch and recovery have been specifically optimized for the deployment of ROV and UAV, with a A-frame (7t), a 15 t.m crane, a hydraulic hoisting winch (7t) and a scientific electric hoist (1t).
Collecting information from the unmanned systems and sonars, the scientists will have the possibility to process the data and carry out research directly onboard thanks to the large dry laboratory and the fully equipped survey room for supervision of AUV and ROVs operations and post processing.