Costa Concordia Unrecoverable

[Rochesterboatingdotcom]

Costa should of had a repair crew there ASAP to patch up the hull,,,it is out of the water so some work could be done. Then pump out the flooded side. I am no ship yard worker but it seems to be a task that could be done. As each section is cleared of water its sealed and move to the next area. Also fuel should be pumped out ASAP,that would reduce weight and any polution problems. Its a nightmare but can be salvaged if done right.

 

Fuel will be removed as soon as possible. As far as pumping out the ship, it needs to be righted first. No way to pump as it sits since all those areas normally above water are underwater. As fast as they can pump, the water will just flow back in through broken windows and openings in the side of the ship.

[ducklite]

The wreck is currently under control of the local authorities. As long as a rescue operation is in force nothing can be done to work on the ship. (Although with each passing hour it become less likely that anybody will be found alive.)

 

I also expect that the local authorities will not allow anything other than emergency response (search and rescue/recover and offloading of fuel and other contaminants) until they have conducted a thorough investigation. Who knows how long that might take.

[Tonka's Skipper]

Based on my past expriences with these type of casualties, this is what is likely happening:

 

 

The local port authorities, Italian coast guard and other rescue group are handling the rescue efforts and have been since the start.

 

At this time a *recovery command post/team* is in place and will take coordinate of the salvage, floating and prevention of oil pollution. This team is under contract with Costas underwriters to handle emergency situations and of course work closely with all local authorities.

 

Titan salvage was there the first day and has put together a plan to start pumping off all oil, lub oil etc as soon as the rescue efforts are stopped. This plan will of course have been approved by local authorites.

 

Also going on now is that other salvage companies are there putting together thier own plans to seal, upright and float the wreck......the best, safest, and cheapest bid with be awarded the contract and that work will begin.

 

The wreck will be able to be floated, it will not be a easy thing, they never are. It will take alot of skill and work by the selected salvage companies. These folks are great and expert at these things. The stuff they pull off is amazing!, I would guess about 2 months, give or take. This is a estimate, as things like, the extent of unseen damage and weather can slow things down.

 

There will be some investigation of the wreck as to why this all happend, but most of that will occur after she is floated, and brought to a safe haven.

 

Once the investigation is over, the wreck, which at that time may have already been sold, will be brought to a shipyard or more likely to a scrap yard.

 

 

The ship is servely damaged.........not just the relatively small area of the port side hull, but the starboard side has been grinding on the rocks and will continue to....there will be ALOT of hull and structure damage. Add to that all the water inside her.........salt water.

 

This is not your average cargo vessel. This is a electronic system monster.....miles and miles of wiring, controls and systems. The salt will get into all this and rot it away. Basicly little will be salvaged of the interior, it will all have to be gutted, above the present water level as well, so moisture will have gotten into that as well.

 

Now the ship was $570 million new, 7 years ago.............she maybe worth $ 300 million before the wreck.

 

The costs to gut the wreck, make full repairs to the hull and strutual interior, then fully install all new mechcanical systems, fixtures, etc,etc,etc.,it will likely be cheaper to biuld a new vessel. It is alot easier to build a ship in blocks from the keel then have to feed and install all that eqiupment into a already biult steel structure

 

The wreck itself will have value in the steel and some other things like engine blocks and other mechanices.

 

 

Lastly, no matter what name they put on a rebuilt ship..she will always be known as the CONCORDIA...........even to the general cruising pubic. That alone will cause a good number of possible passingers from sailing on her and chosing a different ship.

 

IMHO opinion, she will be scrapped of possible rebuilt into a different type of cargo vessel..

 

Of course all the underwriters and bean counters will have the final say in that.

 

AKK

[peteinsonj]

I've been utterly amazed at the super fast turn around for cruise ship overhauls and lengthening over the past 10 years or so.

 

No doubt a refit of this magnitude is a far greater effort, it would not surprise me that once the determination is made that she can be brought back in relatively 1 piece, that Costa will begin planning for that.

 

Even if the refit cost is close or over book value, the line wants to get that "lost revenue" asap, and refitting is likely much faster than a new build to begin the revenue stream again.

[tntornadox]

Even if the refit cost is close or over book value, the line wants to get that "lost revenue" asap, and refitting is likely much faster than a new build to begin the revenue stream again.

 

That's what I am thinking. It would probably be 'quicker' to build a new ship in blocks but it would still take years to build a new ship while the hull for this one could be repaired.

 

Not to mention, the cabins are designed to be disconnected and replaced if need be. Nearly all of Star Princess' starboard balcony cabins were replaced after her fire. Including most of the balconies themselves.

 

It will ultimately come down to cost, obviously, but I agree they would prefer to rebuild this one than to wait two years for a replacement to be built from the ground up, by that time Costa is supposed to have a Carnival Dream-class ship built of their own.

[kruzerci]

I hope that however they remove the ship from it's current position that someone takes a lot of photos and videos and sets up a blog. I find the whole subject of ship salvaging fascinating and would enjoy watching the progress on this project.

 

I do too.

[CruiseAdict218]

But even if she is fully repaired, the disaster still looms in the heads of the people, meaning they could cancel there cruise after seeing what happened

[gtalum]

I've been utterly amazed at the super fast turn around for cruise ship overhauls and lengthening over the past 10 years or so.

 

No doubt a refit of this magnitude is a far greater effort, it would not surprise me that once the determination is made that she can be brought back in relatively 1 piece, that Costa will begin planning for that.

 

Even if the refit cost is close or over book value, the line wants to get that "lost revenue" asap, and refitting is likely much faster than a new build to begin the revenue stream again.

 

I think you are seriously underestimating the amount of damage.

[tntornadox]

I doubt very many of the general cruising public will go online and look it up to care. All they know, it's a 'new' ship, as it would be billed as.

[ducklite]

I've been utterly amazed at the super fast turn around for cruise ship overhauls and lengthening over the past 10 years or so.

 

No doubt a refit of this magnitude is a far greater effort, it would not surprise me that once the determination is made that she can be brought back in relatively 1 piece, that Costa will begin planning for that.

 

Even if the refit cost is close or over book value, the line wants to get that "lost revenue" asap, and refitting is likely much faster than a new build to begin the revenue stream again.

 

You're comparing apples to oranges. Overhauls and lengthening is done wihtout exposing the interior of the hull and all electronics to seawater.

 

My company doesn't work on cruise liners but we do work on something similiar albeit smaller and refurbishing something that hasn't been in a wreck or rotted away with salt is a lot different than remanufacturing something that's been in a major collision with sea water destroying all electrical and electronic systems.

 

There's a huge dofference between refurbishment and remanufacturing, and this ship will need the latter.

[ducklite]

That's what I am thinking. It would probably be 'quicker' to build a new ship in blocks but it would still take years to build a new ship while the hull for this one could be repaired.

 

Not to mention, the cabins are designed to be disconnected and replaced if need be. Nearly all of Star Princess' starboard balcony cabins were replaced after her fire. Including most of the balconies themselves.

 

It will ultimately come down to cost, obviously, but I agree they would prefer to rebuild this one than to wait two years for a replacement to be built from the ground up, by that time Costa is supposed to have a Carnival Dream-class ship built of their own.

 

Replacing cabins is a piece of cake. Replacing entire power plant and propulsion systems and their related electronics and wiring harnesses (I get a headache thinking about how much wire there must be between the bridge and the rudders) is an entirely different animal.

[tntornadox]

Replacing cabins is a piece of cake. Replacing entire power plant and propulsion systems and their related electronics and wiring harnesses (I get a headache thinking about how much wire there must be between the bridge and the rudders) is an entirely different animal.

 

No doubt, my point was if it cost prohibitive, the cruise line would prefer to rebuild this ship vs. wait two years for a newbuild to replace her.

[MisterBill99]

But even if she is fully repaired, the disaster still looms in the heads of the people, meaning they could cancel there cruise after seeing what happened

It's not like the ship had some inherent problem that caused the accident. Gross incompetence caused it, and I think we can safely say that the same captain will NOT be sailing this (or any other ship) again.

 

Plus, people may feel like the Robin Williams character in "The World According to Garp", where he bought a house that an airplane had flown into. What are the odds of it happening again?

 

That said, I''m sure there will be people who refuse to sail on her, even with a new name.

[ducklite]

No doubt, my point was if it cost prohibitive, the cruise line would prefer to rebuild this ship vs. wait two years for a newbuild to replace her.

 

I doubt they'll be given much choice in the matter. The insurance company for the hull will be the one to determine the disposition of the ship. They don't give a hoot about CCL's lost revenue, because they don't insure that.

[CruiseAdict218]

It's not like the ship had some inherent problem that caused the accident. Gross incompetence caused it, and I think we can safely say that the same captain will NOT be sailing this (or any other ship) again.

 

Plus, people may feel like the Robin Williams character in "The World According to Garp", where he bought a house that an airplane had flown into. What are the odds of it happening again?

 

That said, I''m sure there will be people who refuse to sail on her, even with a new name.

 

Yeah I see what your saying, im just saying what I think and personally, if shes fully repaired I would sail on her.

[tntornadox]

I doubt they'll be given much choice in the matter. The insurance company for the hull will be the one to determine the disposition of the ship. They don't give a hoot about CCL's lost revenue, because they don't insure that.

 

As I said, the cruise line would prefer to have a ship to replace her quick, not have to build another.

[MisterBill99]

As I said, the cruise line would prefer to have a ship to replace her quick, not have to build another.

What happens when they start working on it and realize it's going to take longer than they expected because there is more damage? Unless they are able to make that decision quickly, they could end up waiting to fix it and THEN spend more time to build a new one. I guess they need to get a thorough evaluation quickly and make sure they get it right.

[sjclynn]

When the ships are built, assembled from large parts really, big mechanical parts are installed and then the rest of the ship is built around them. Replacing an engine the size of a semi trailer with ship all around it is no small feat.

 

That said, if they pull it off I would sail on her.

[chasetf]

Sorry but it was the current Diamond Princess that was on fire, but was called the Sapphire Princess back then. Until the fire it was the Diamond Princess. Only one hull caught on fire and that is of the current Diamond Princess

 

The ship that caught fire was the first in the build of the Diamond class ships and was named Diamond Princess.

 

Because Princess Cruise wanted to keep the designation "Diamond Class" the second ship which was to be named Sapphire Princess was moved up in scheduled and became the first ship completed. It was renamed and is today's current "Diamond Princess"

 

The ship that burned, the original Diamond, was renamed Sapphire Princess as delivered as and still is the "Sapphire Princess".

[chasetf]

What happens when they start working on it and realize it's going to take longer than they expected because there is more damage? Unless they are able to make that decision quickly, they could end up waiting to fix it and THEN spend more time to build a new one. I guess they need to get a thorough evaluation quickly and make sure they get it right.

 

I think these guys know what they're doing. If it can be salvaged and returned to service they will work 24/7 to get her back on line. The big challenge will be finding a dry dock they can tie up for 6-12+ months..... but they could luck out depending what the builder is doing now.

 

Case in point ....the Star Princess after the fire. They completely rebuild half her port side upper decks in a matter of a couple of months.

[tntornadox]

I think these guys know what they're doing. If it can be salvaged and returned to service they will work 24/7 to get her back on line. The big challenge will be finding a dry dock they can tie up for 6-12+ months..... but they could luck out depending what the builder is doing now.

 

Case in point ....the Star Princess after the fire. They completely rebuild half her port side upper decks in a matter of a couple of months.

 

There are several large shipyards around Europe, if Fincantieri doesn't have room at any of their yards, there is STX France (St. Nazaire), STX Finland (Turku) and Meyer-Werft in Germany that come to mind.

[PCalabrese]

I agree with many posters that this is a very interesting topic. I watch a lot of Science Channel and NGC. There are many programs that follow deep sea salvage work. I saw one last night where they picked that Japanese fishing vessel up from 2000 feet down after it was sunk by the Navy sub in 2001. My educated guess is that this ship can and will be refloated and by salvage standards, it won't be that complicated for them to accomplish.

 

Once floated and moved, they'll strip her back down to a steel skeleton and retro fit from there. If they can cut a ship in half and add 90 feet to her (the NCL ship) they can repair the hull of this one. They'll need the hole anyways to remove the destroyed heavy equipment.

 

I'd say they are facing a process that would take up to 2 years but as quick as 1.5 years. Once the rescue efforts are complete I do hope that NGC will be commissioned to get out there and film the entire salvage process. Talk about world's toughest fixes.

[maxsales]

The technical possibilities of a rebuild notwithstanding, the question of 'who would sail her' comes into play. Compared to past incidents, how many millions around the world have seen this play out, on TV and online? Even if they changed the name -- even if they sold her to another line -- it would be difficult to hide the fact that she is the now-infamous Costa Concordia. Perception is reality, and this could be a tough perception to overcome.

 

I think you would have a point if this disaster was the ships fault. However, it is now very clear that this was caused by the actions of one very reckless individual.

 

Once repaired I would not think twice about sailing on this ship. Again you would never get me on board anything with Captan Schettino.

[Tonka's Skipper]

Hello folks,

 

Now my opinion has been that due to the present damage and the logistics, the wreck is very likely to be scrapped.

 

I read your many points, some are very good, but I wish to point out the following:

 

1. The wreck is going to be on that rocky shore for a month or nearly so, every time the swell builds a bit like we have seen, the entire starboard side is going to continue the grind and break up. That is alot of new damage.

 

2. We have all seen the port side hull damage, but you have to remember she layed over on her starboard side which likely means she has holed herself on the starboard side, flooding the tanks there, considurably more dmage likely we have not seen yet.

 

3, They do amazing things now in ship biulding but even if she gets afloat in a repairable condition........there is a year or 2 lead time to do the planing and design to lengthen and biuld and get all that is reqiured to parts to rebiuld the hull and machenary and massive systems within the ship.

 

4. All/any of those yards mentioned could do the rebiulding, even some in the far east and the states, but all those you mentioned in Europe and most in other places have lots of work on the books and building in progress for the next few years........you can't just push those projects aside.

 

 

The only way around this is if Costa or another carnival owned line has a sister ship in progress and they couls steal form that hull to rebiuld the Concordia.

 

In any case I still am afraid she will end up scrapped or maybe, as a long shot... rebuilt as another type of ship.

 

 

Comments?:)

 

 

AKK

[tntornadox]

STX France has no major cruise ship orders at the moment, their last was Norwegian Epic. And they have drydocks large enough to accommodate the Concordia.

 

My point was, there are other shipyards in Europe, one is bound to have space for her if she makes it that far. Fincantieri alone has what? Four yards in Italy?