Super Servant 4- Dockwise Yacht Transport

too big to capture from up close- here is our shadow in November light off Jamestown, R.I.

9 November 2009 Super Servant

BOAT: Super Servant 4
OWNER: Dockwise Yacht Transport http://www.yacht-transport.com/
DESIGNER: Wysmuller, Holland
BUILDER: S.H.I. Sumitomo, Japan http://www.shi.co.jp/english/company/history/index.html
YEAR: 1980- extended in Singapore- 1993
HULL: Steel
LENGTH: 556 feet [169 meters]
HISTORY:
  Super Servant 4 is one of a fleet of semi submersible ships owned by Dockwise Yacht Transport. This past week Super Servant 4 left Newport with a record load of 50 recreational yachts worth upwards of $41 million dollars. Before the boats were loaded, draftsmen determined the placement of each yacht based upon the weight and volume of each boat, relative to the others. It is a complicated task, which requires accurate teamwork.
 When the ship is submerged, yachts are loaded according to plan as divers with underwater welding equipment attach stands. After the gate is closed and the water pumped out – raising the ship- welders continue to brace everything aboard the ship until it is safe to leave port.
 Despite the recession, the demand for this service has been growing. Newport – due to our extraordinary infrastructure for yachting facilities – is one of a handful of destinations for this unusual international yacht transport service.
 With luck and planning from the Newport shore side team, Dockwise Yacht-Transport will return with a full load next May.