MacGREGOR will supply specially designed and manufactured RoRo access equipment for a series of five 25,000 dwt multipurpose RoRo ships ordered by grimaldi group (Naples) from uljanik shipyard. Each shipset comprises the complete stern quarter ramp system, four internal ramp way doors, the hoistable car deck access ramp and about 9,000m2 of car decks. The equipment will be delivered between 2007 and 2009.

The new multipurpose RoRo series will feature a hold capacity of over 2,500 lane-metres of rolling or equivalent project cargo and 1,500 cars or vans. Additionally, up to 800 TEU of containers can be stowed on the weather deck. The MacGREGOR-designed hoistable car decks feature two layers, and the simple and innovative design of the hoisting arrangement will allow very flexible positioning of these. The decks are configured to meet Grimaldi’s needs, but the concept also allows many other combinations to be provided to suit different owner requirements. This means that several possibilities are available to make the best use of the main deck area when stowing different combinations of vehicles and cargo.

This design is unique because each panel comprises two parts connected by hinges. This allows the panels to be fitted late in the shipbuilding schedule rather than requiring the car decks to be ready early enough to be installed at the block-outfitting stage. This in turn simplifies production planning as well as giving the shipowner the ability to replace panels once the ship is in operation. Transport from the manufacturing site to yard also benefits from this feature.