News Teknicraft fireboat for River Nile By AARON JOYES The ramp can be used to deploy a 4WP or to rescue casualties from the water The vessel is equipped with twin fire monitors The "Hassan Taha" demonstrates in front of one of the cruise vessels it is designed to protect The fire fighting drive system at the front end of the resiliently mounted engine is driven over flexible coupling from Stromag the model being a TRI-RTEF 32.2 W-R. in addition to the flexible coupling. Stromag also delivered their electro-magnetically operated pole face friction clutch, the Stromag MWU 60-150. Much of the vessel operation will be in remote areas, so a bow ramp has been built into the design to enable a small 4x4 vehicle to be transported and deployed in emergencies. The bow ramp is also the ideal platform for the recovery of casualties from the water. The ramp is operated by a Fulto manual trailer winch as well as an electric winch and the vessel windlass is a Lofrans Progress II. Nic de Waal of Teknicraft design told Work Boat World, "We were really surprised when initially approached by Marine Propulsion and Supply in Egypt in Egypt to supply a design for a high speed vessel, but having since learned more about the infrastructure and the requirements for fast vessels on the River Nile, we believe this contract to be the thin edge of the wedge." For Mapso and Helwan, the next challenge will be to target the export market. It is believed that the features of this vessel together with the moderate price allowed by Egypt's lower Jabour costs and proximity to the Middle Eastern and European markets could make it a very attractive option. Mr. Philippe Maari, of Mapso, said, "Export is our future. We invite owners worldwide to contact us for their special craft requirements. Because we are not established on the international market, we believe we will try harder than anybody else. Our first international customer can expect to have a fantastic deal." For further information contact: Teknicraft Design, New Zealand. Ph: +64 9 482 3331. FX: +649 482 3334. Email: info@teknicraft.com. Web: www.teknicraft.com Mapso Marine Propulsion and Supply, Egypt. PH: +20 2 2962777. FX: +20 2 2962780. Email: general @mapso.com. Web: www.mapso.com "Hassan Taha" SPECIFICATIONS Type of vessel: Firefighting boat Owner: Egyptian Army Designer: Teknicraft Design. New Zealand Builder: Helwan Machinery & Equipment Co, Egypt Construction material: Aluminium Length overall: 14.9 meters Length waterline: 13.6 meters Beam: 6 meters Drought: 0.7 meters Displacement: 22 tones Main engines: 2 x Scania D112 42 M, each 425kW (575np) Gearboxes: 2 x ZF 312 T5 - 2 speed Propulsion: 2 x Hamilton jet 362 waterjets Maximum speed: 29.5 knots Cruising speed: 25 knots Steering system: Hamiilton jet Generation: Kohler 11 EFoZ, 11kW Electrical installation: Mapso Marine Propulsion and Supply Radar: JRC 3000 Radio: Si-Tex Ultima Compass: Plastimo GPS: Garmin 152 Paints / coatings: Jotun Capstans / windlass: 2 x Loframs Progress II Crane: Palfinger PC2400M Firefighting equipment supplied by: FFS (Fire Fighting Systems) Firefighting pumps: 2 x 480m3 /hr at 120mic Firefighting Foam capacity: 4 tones Deck cargo capacity: 2 tones Vehicle capacity: 4WD Fuel capacity: 2,400 liters Fuel consumption: 180 liters / hour Range: 330 nautical miles Freshwater capacity: 200 liters Crew: 4