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Kalmarine, a naval architecture, marine engineering and project management consultancy founded in May 2017, recently completed two major drydockings for Royal Caribbean International’s Independence of the Seas and SE Savage Operations’ Sulphur Enterprise.
“Looking back on our first year, we are grateful for the opportunities and trust provided by the shipping industry,” said Douglas Frongillo, Kalmarine principal. “Considering that we are a new player in the market, we are thrilled with the results, and we look forward to finding new ways to support our clients in achieving their goals.”
Independence of the Seas Modernization
The Independence of the Seas underwent a massive conversion as part of Royal Caribbean’s “Royal Amplified” program, and was their largest conversion to date. As part of the program, Royal Caribbean reached out to Kalmarine to provide full project management services.
“It was a unique opportunity for Kalmarine to establish itself in a new market and we were honored that RCL chose to work with us considering this was the first time they had outsourced the management of one of their modernizations,” said Christian Compton, a Kalmarine principal and the project manager for the Independence of the Seas refit.
Kalmarine provided a 17-person team for the project, including staff for technical and outfitting oversight and contract management. While Kalmarine were responsible for the overall management of the refit, the project’s success was due to the support of RCL, Grand Bahama Shipyard and the numerous contractors, according to Compton.
“Kalmarine was a true partner providing outstanding dry-dock management service for the Independence of the Seas modernization. The team integrated well with all parties and handled the complexity and challenges faced with efficiency and positive attitude to finish the tasks on time and in a quality manner,” said Joseph Miorelli, Associate Vice President Newbuilding and Technical Projects for RCL. “For a start-up enterprise they showed great experience.”
M/V Sulphur Enterprise upgrade
In addition to the RCL project, Kalmarine was awarded the project management lead on the dry-dock of the M/V Sulphur Enterprise, a Jones Act molten sulphur carrier. The vessel underwent a major life cycle refit as part of her fifth special survey, including a combination of upgrades to safety and automation systems and several other repairs throughout the vessel. The repair work included the restoration of the vessel’s generator room, which was damaged in a recent fire.
Jack Cohn, Senior VP for Savage Marine Management, says that it was a great experience to work with the Kalmarine team. “Their professional style and experienced team of marine industry professionals has been a great benefit to our project,” Cohn said.
New Offices
Kalmarine recently moved to its new offices in Fort Lauderdale, in the middle of the South Florida marine industry hub, to accommodate its growing team of engineers, designers, and project managers. With a diverse team, Kalmarine has the resources to support projects from early stage feasibility studies and concept development, through all stages of engineering design, planning, and execution.
