BMT Provides Ferry Design for River Murray
BMT Design & Technology Pty Ltd (BMT), a subsidiary of BMT Group Ltd, has completed a design project for the South Australian Government’s Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure (DPTI).
Working in partnership with the DPTI, BMT has developed a replacement design for ferries that operate on the River Murray, the third longest navigable river in the world, after the Amazon and Nile.
The steel hull, built by local firm Bowhill Engineering, was fit out by the Departments Morgan dockyard. The first ferry has now gone into service in Lyrup with another three scheduled for completion by July 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively. These ferries are heavily relied upon by the local communities for safe passage across the River Murray.
The team at BMT provided structural engineering and naval architecture services to deliver a detailed design which aligned with the customer requirements. BMT also carried out condition surveys on a further four timber hulled ferries which were nearing end of life. Following the surveys, the Department applied weight restrictions to help maintain the longevity of these ferries for safe operation until they are replaced. Constructed of steel and 22 meters long, these cable driven ferries can take two lanes of cars or trucks of up to 50 metric tons, or a maximum of 70 passengers.