Engine Service Work Complete for Britannia Aggregates

Power specialist Royston has completed an extensive overhaul of diesel engines on a Britannia Aggregates’ owned and operated dredger, which extracts sand and gravel from the seabed.

Engineers undertook the service work onboard the 100m, 3,610 gross tonnage Britannia Beaver, as part of a comprehensive refurbishment and maintenance program of essential power systems.

The 1991 built A class dredger, which operates around the south-east coast of the UK, delivers aggregates to Brett-owned wharves around the South East of England, as well as customers outside the Brett Group both in England and other EC countries.

Powered by an eight-cylinder Mirrlees Blackstone 8MB 275 main engine – rated at 3000 kW - the work undertaken by Royston involved a full overhaul, which included the installation of a new crankshaft.

The engine was dismantled to enable engineers to undertake extensive maintenance and repair work on the block and sump sections before fitting new liners and carrying out critical repairs to the turbo, governor, fuel systems, clutch and exhaust system which were part of a comprehensive service program.

Engine maintenance work was also completed by Royston on No. 1 generator - a Mirrlees Blackstone 6MB 275 - which has seen more than 50,000 running hours. This included cylinder head, piston, con-rod and gudgeon pin calibration testing.

Following completion of the engine servicing, comprehensive testing was undertaken, involving sea trials and incremental load increases in-line with the engine manufacturer’s specification.

Britannia Aggregates owns and operates the Britannia Beaver, which was custom built by Devon-based Appledore Shipbuilders Ltd before entering service in 1992. Its capable of dredging to a depth of 45 meters and has a 2594 m³ hopper volume capacity.