Gigantic Car Ferry Heavy Maintenance | Mega Pit Stops | Episode 5 | Free Documentary

[Music] what does it take to cut a ship into two halves to strip down and reassemble a giant plane to overhaul the world's longest high-speed train it takes hundreds of professionals expertise precision and courage it's never been done before pushing everyone to the limit it is surely a challenging job now on mega pit stops [Music] the Peter Pan a monstrous car fairy two football fields long and 35 meters high the Swedish fairy can fit 540 cars and 744 passengers but that's not enough anymore Peter Pan needs to grow even larger and increase its cargo capacity by 25% what the engineers have in store for this mega pitstop is prodigious they will lengthen the Peter Pan from its current 190 meters to 220 meters to do so they will cut the ferry into two parts and insert a 30 metre long section lengthening the ship means changing its flow properties thus the Peter Pan's bulbous bow has to be swapped out and its engine overhaul at the stern an additional deck provides space for over 100 extra cars for all this the team only has 75 days the Baltic Sea just off the coast of Germany the Peter Pan is on the way to its mega pitstop Swedish captain Hans van Crist has been in command of the ferry for two years the purpose of his last voyage with the old Peter Pan is to arrive at the shipyard on time a couple of questions from the shipyard if we were on time or running late or in the agent and the shipping company were in touch so yes I've had a couple of calls and some emails my time is running short even before the mega pitstop begins 60 workers are on board during this final crossing to the shipyard to prepare the ship for its expansion in a few days the workers will cut the ship apart along these markings the paint has to be removed along the cutting line beforehand from a surface totally nearly one kilometer while everyone works at full throttle below-deck [Music] the Peter Pan approaches its destination at full speed German dry docks in Bremerhaven the shipyard specializes in repairing and modifying ships a team of 40 workers has been working for several weeks to prepare the 215 metre long duct for the arrival of the Peter Pan time for one last check project manager David poor Rath measures the dock blocks one more time this is where the ship will rest during its mega pitstop he and his team have planned the car ferry lengthening for nearly a year Jamaica's that's all somebody I like you have to I also have to say this is the very first ship expansion that I'm actually responsible for I worked on one before bunnies but I've never been in charge of one in that sense I wouldn't say I'm nervous but there's a certain amount of tension the type of work we do here is challenging for sure David pore wrath carries the responsibility for the mega project the shipyard will only be able to meet the delivery deadline for the new Peter Pan if all the work goes according to schedule over the next two and a half months that afternoon the ferry arrives at its destination on time tugboats maneuver the steel Colossus into the shipyard maneuvering on its own and the narrow Basin would be unthinkable [Music] captain hunts of interest pulls up to the pier for final preparations [Music] by early evening everything is ready for docking the man responsible for the smooth operations during this process is dock master Frank Hirst he's been in charge of the dock for 25 years but expanding the Peter Pan is an extraordinary challenge even for him [Music] this is a serious undertaking it even has me nervous Frank Hoechst floods the tanks of the floating dock causing it to sink the massive volume of 35 million liters of water rushes in Frank Hirst only has about two meters of leeway on either side of the ship during docking after the expansion the ferry will extend beyond the front and back of the dock the front section will not be moved during the whole mega pitstop Frank Hirst has to position the ship precisely on the bracing after an hour that dock is slow enough so the dock is almost where we want it we have a depth of six point two meters you can bring her in now hi hi everything okay yes it's starting now captain hunts vin tryst guides his old ship in one last time a bit of nostalgia hangs in the air it's a bit exciting to be going by that much and this is our last time driving the Peter Pan's so to speak it's going to be rather difficult to take on such narrow passages as soon as we're 30 metres longer kept him at the Langham turning the Peter Pan in front of the dock unthinkable haunts vin fist has to bring it in backwards I've gotta get through here I must look at the corner Frank Hirst is the captain's eyes he tells him how much space there is left one small mistake in the ship crashes into the dock walls they did it on Sven Crist did a pristine parking job we're almost there we just need to get it done there this is perfect you can stop now we still have about five meters to go the workers pull the ship to the designated final position using rope winches that's fine that's where the ship will because the first hurdle has been overcome now the mega pitstop can begin isn't the boat is parked and sitting on the block's it went well and we did it quickly we can be pleased with the results and call it a night soon during the night the workers pumped the dock back up only now can we finally get a close look at the fairies impressive dimensions it's as heavy as 25 a380 airplanes and as high as a 20-story building David poor Rath is already making the rounds again early in the morning he's checking the preparations for cutting the ship apart his team now suffers hundreds of cables lines and pipes along the cutting line the ship can only be reassembled later if everyone works carefully now thus they have only five days for this step to save time david paurav wants to already start cutting the first sections all the necessary access work has been completed we can start here now the greatest challenge in the process guiding the complicated cut the shipping company only wants to increase the cargo space to leave the passenger area untouched the ship engineers apply a very special cutting method the Z cut first there is a vertical cut from the bottom to a height of 19 metres followed by a horizontal cut of 35 metres in between after 17 metres they cut along the funnel chimney wall that's the only way to leave the whole passenger space in one piece to maintain the structural integrity of the steel Colossus for as long as possible the team cuts from the inside out they use a method which is known as a touchiness flame cutting a mixture of oxygen and acetylene gas heats the steel along the cutting line and then burns it at 1,500 degrees Celsius [Music] an important milestone has been reached the project manager is satisfied so that's exactly the way it's supposed to be we started cutting the ship that's good the team has to slice along a line that is one kilometer long clock is ticking from now on they will work 24/7 [Music] in total David pore rafts team needs five days then they have done it the huge ship is cut in half there are just a few centimeters of space between the two parts of the ship now [Music] the zika leaves the passenger area freely suspended after removing the AFT ship due to its heavy weight of 850 tonnes it would collapse without additional support thus a supporting system stabilizes the overhang so that the engineers can push the stern backwards after 18 metres they assemble for support towers to transfer the load step by step in total 6 support towers are stabilizing the Peter Pan's for ship to make room for the middle section moving the back half of the ship is a mammoth undertaking it weighs 6,500 tons this important step is his responsibility kai Hoyer he specializes and transporting heavy loads Khai Hoyer and his team pushed the 80 meter long after ship away from the front half using a hydraulic sled system while preparations are being made under the whole project manager David poor Rath checks the cutting line one last time pulling the halves of the Peter Pan apart will only work if his team has made a clean cut even though David didn't find any flaws he is concerned I wanted that piece there are so many edges that we can't expect everything to go completely smoothly there are gonna be some sections that we'll have to cut through again there is a risk of Steel snagging along the lines of the cut so the project manager only wants to move the aft ship a few centimeters to start with Mastro to all teams everything ready to move but is Lester already too let's get started the cylinders exert 210 tons of pressure to start moving the aft ship 10 centimeters 10 centimeters yes I stopped that was the first 10 centimeters time for a check in a worst-case scenario parts of the ship could Bend out of shape if the massive steel walls get caught this would make it impossible to reassemble the car ferry leader can we start pushing can we start pushing yes good okay good we can start pushing them little by little KY Hoyer pushes the halves of a gigantic ship further apart but then the joists are at risk of snagging please copy stop the workers have to go back to cutting the ambitious schedule is in jeopardy while David pore rafts team tries to solve this problem the midsection of the ferry is being made about 200 kilometres away at a shipyard in Hamburg its dimensions 30 by 30 metres it will be inserted into the Peter Pan as a finished part engineer Simon WITSEC is responsible for the construction of the so-called mid-body [Music] I'm missing on business we still have to grind a little bit there and these pores have to be removed you have to check everything every single welding seam to see if there are any inclusions or pores lives in the worst case scenario water can permeate the sides no one wants to think about these things but that is what could happen in the worst case the center section is made up of 22 prefabricated components these sections can weigh up to 100 tons almost like they're building with Lego the workers put together all the components until they form a complete section of the ship to make sure it will fit into the Peter Pan leader the ends are produced with an extra 50 centimeters of safety margin on each side it's almost like a baby you watch it grow but I also look forward to the moment when everything comes together I asked myself if everything will fit but I'm proud to just be a part of it there is still a lot to do and things are tight here - according to the timetable the engineers will already be installing the mid section into the Peter Pan in seven days back in Bremerhaven this is where space for the mid section is being made but there are problems several steel beams have snake now the workers have to cut again precious time is being lost CAI Hoya tries to stay calm when there are this many unknown rough edges you just have to be a little patient that's just the nature of it we are happy that it can be solved like this at this point wires team has only moved the AFT ship backed by two meters they've been playing the waiting game for hours but then all right we're gonna start time for the next attempt now they will see if the team took care of all the problem areas or if KY Hoyer will have to call another sudden stop finally it's working Chi Hoyer pushes the 6,500 tons section of ship back further and further an hour later they've tackled the first 10 meters [Music] wonderful we did it the after ship of the Peter Pan has finally been properly separated from the four ship project manager David pore rafts team washed half a day but he is happy anyway we had a couple of snags here and there but we're able to solve them relatively quick and easy if there isn't it went well as you can see doctors different photo anyway we're happy that we have this milestone behind us now this that's it yes they're happy come here for David poor Rath is one step closer to his goal of expanding the Peter Pan over the next few days bit by bit his team slides the apt ship back another 18 meters and they set up the supports for the overhang [Music] when they're done there's a gaping hole around 30 meters wide between the ship's two halves three weeks after the mega pitstop began the most critical step of the project begins inserting the midsection into the car ferry to do so the lower parts of the cut surfaces must be sealed up watertight before the dock is flooded to protect the sensitive technology of the engine rooms behind the panels and prevent the ship from sinking tugboats pull the a ship away to make room for the prefabricated mid body the engineers have to align it precisely to the for ship otherwise it is impossible to connect the two parts then tugboats bring the aft ship back in again day 29 of the mega pitstop today the aft ship is scheduled to be undocked david pore wrath and his colleagues developed a special system for this giant floatation units are designed to ensure that the rear half of the ship sits steadily on the water trumpets in my alley this is quite an adventure this has never been done before but the company that manufactures these sacks has been making things like this for a while so it should work out just fine the hole becomes narrower towards the back this means that the ship has less supporting surface in that section and would tip without support each of the eight air sacks has 100 3 tonnes of buoyant force in total the system has 1,100 tons of buoyant force sufficient according to calculations but that is not the only risk factor huge steel panels are supposed to make sure the engine rooms remain seal these welding seams have to hold otherwise the sensitive technology behind the panels is in jeopardy water in the ancient room would be a catastrophe while the team in Bremerhaven prepares to float out the action the midsection for the new Peter Pan is ready for its journey from Hamburg to Bremerhaven two tugboats halt the 1500 ton part of the ship over the river Elbe and the North Sea [Music] it travels a total of 220 kilometres by sea it's scheduled arrival at its destination is already the next day and Bremerhaven the aft ship still needs to be taken out of the dock we're all a bit tense to see whether all the theory will correspond into practice but we're happy that it's finally starting the job is already two days behind schedule it is extremely important for David pore wrath and his team that now everything goes smoothly the responsibility for this task is again in the hands of dock master Frank Hirst Vanner please start lowering the dock in order for the aft ship to float Frank Hoechst and his team now slowly lower the floating dock to a water depth of 5 meters initially everything goes according to plan after half an hour the two meter mark has been reached but something doesn't seem right hold on Frank Frank Dolas it Frank please go back up to one meter okay back up to one meter meet up we'll go back up to one meter maybe a screw connection with less although there is a problem in the engine room become aware what's coming through and where air can get through water will come through at some point and that's why we stopped now we're quickly putting in the will see when there's nothing the loop a weld seam in the temporary wall isn't watertight and not just there David porous colleagues discovered another leak it's like emergency room yeah yes the leaks are still tiny the problem the water pressure from the outside could quickly change that at the very worst the apt ship will run full of water and sink David pour wrath make sure the weld seams are reinforced in the critical places Frank then please go back to two meters confirmed two meters and I'll head over there centimeter by centimeter frankerx lowers the dock back down in the meantime workers check all the critical points on the ship at a water depth of 5 meters the ass ship lifts off the dock locks and begins to float it's only then that the team can finally be sure if the welding seems old or not after three hours only eighty centimeters are left until they reach the critical mark [Music] David to Lhasa David go ahead we have to world here again okay yeah what is really coming in avoid nothing he actually wanted to do this in daylight but I think that's not gonna happen one of the repaired spots still has a leak David poor Rath has the seams doubled on the bulkheads if they continue the leak they may have to abort and the shipyard will lose another valuable day we've got to get it out today so we can put the next piece in tomorrow the seam has now double reinforced Frank Hearst continues lowering the dock very slowly so much is riding on this moment for the whole team David poor Rath checks the critical spots once again and then everything's fine everything's watertight here yes I'm happy that it's fixed David poor Rath can breathe easy for a moment but there is still another risk factor the giant floatation system at the back it is supposed to keep the EB meter long after ship in a steady floating position it's one more let's hope everything in the back will flood right I mean someone did all the math on this I know I just hope that it stays level that the Illuminati Frank Hearst can't do much more than holder now they will only be able to know if the system works or doesn't work if the act ship is finally afloat we're about to really start floating go ahead the stern is floating haul in the slack in front keep going with most spills on the south side they did it the app ship is afloat just like the math said it would be but there's no time to celebrate success just yet yes it's always kind of nerve-racking it's just nerve-racking first Frank Hearst and his team moved the a ship a few meters out of the duct using rope winches because the tugboats draft is too deep to enter the dock attaching the tugboat requires all concentration if it comes too close to the stern its propeller could rip open the floating systems air sacs but everything is running smoothly now the tugboats pull the app ship a few hundred meters further down the pier it will remain there for the time being [Music] according to the timetable it will be back in the dock in two weeks everything's fine well fasten it now and then go home yep yes that's what we'll do the whole team breathe a sigh of relief I know my John and I do super great thinking at anything worked out pretty well that's good I'm satisfied the team has overcome an important hurdle in the mega pitstop [Music] the next step docking the midsection and connecting it to the four ship D 30 of the ship expansion the workers prepare to dock the midsection they're about halfway through the time they've been given to deliver to the shipping company and the Peter Pan has a long way to go before it's actually finished the team is three days behind schedule but they can't let that distract them they're going to need to give all the concentration they can muster into the docking process we're about to start we have to approach from 30 meters beneath the ship which means we can't come in crooked by even half a meter on the other side it has to be positioned extremely carefully two tugboats maneuver the steel colossus to the edge of the dock but the tugboat at the front can't drive into it the mid-body is now floating without being guided it is only being pushed by the second tugboat five meters are in countdown the last ten meters okay will do I'm heading to the back the team stabilizes the midsection with ropes that's how they keep it from crashing against the dock wall sometimes it's also good just some things go smoothly meter by meter the dock master and his team moved the midsection up to the first braces they've done it the steel Colossus is safely in the dock the next step aligning the mid-body with the four ship with millimeter precision even the tiniest deviation in one direction will make it impossible to connect both ship sections one man is responsible for the precise alignment of both sections of the ship surveyor Yann monk owned as the Danish member of the team he is considered an eminent authority in his field and has even worked for NASA even though both parts weigh thousands of tons now it comes down to millimeters [Applause] - hello sexual okay side note the midsection is crooked to make it level workers place weights on the top deck all the 60 that's fine Tim we read 60 here after about three hours not only yeah MOC home is happy thank okay no get out of that you don't you don't we aligned them within one or two millimeters and now I'm happy the next step pumping the doc up and pushing the midsection meter by meter towards the four ship [Music] then it's the welders turn in total four kilometres of weld seam will be needed to connect both sections two weeks later the old four ship and the new mid body have been joined to create a 140 meter long section of the ship now David pore rafts team can bring the a ship back into the dock and connected [Music] the following morning brings a heavy fog visibility is under 30 metres this is catastrophic for the team for the docking process the weather conditions have to be perfect otherwise it is just too risky but the shipyard can't afford to lose another day in six weeks the Peter Pan should go into service again for the shipping company we need visibility of at least a hundred to 150 meters and we don't have that but we don't have any wind which is good now we have to decide what's like them the responsible port pilot has to make the final decision we hope he'll do it [Music] mimosa's you have to be able to see the tugboats in the dock when I look over there I don't even see the dock anymore the pilot gets a feel for the situation from the deck of the ship visibility is close to zero parking the steel giant with millimeter precision in these conditions is practically impossible one more time dock master Frank Hirst goes through all the eventualities with him we're going to start now we're moving now despite the bad weather the team is now attempting to dunk the 80 meter long F everyone's nerves are on edge throw it in old throw it in the water take it away the maneuver once again requires the utmost concentration once it gets going the 6,500 tons steel giant isn't easy to stop if the poor visibility causes the pilot to overestimate the distance the action could slam against the dock [Music] the tugboat at the front once again drives off before it reaches the dock now the team has to get the steel giant under control as quickly as possible with their ropes so careful here go over there yes little straight for the long ones things are getting close on one side really close [Music] the back has to move a little more well now we have it get the food oh the sensors Christian pull a little harder a quick moment of shock but then the dock team has the floating part of the ship back under control [Music] keep pulling it through now we're winning the back of the ship is in the dock meter by meter the team now uses rope winches to pull it towards the front section [Music] that was really something you don't see every day they did it 44 days after the mega pitstop began all parts of the Peter Pan are finally in the dock now you could say we've got the band back together but we still have a great deal ahead of us sister fallens now david poor rafts team now has to reconnect the individual pieces to make a functioning ship again and there are only four weeks left before scheduled delivery to the shipping company the 40 welders have a mere seven days to connect the app ship to the front section of the ship this task requires them to weld four kilometres of seams all parts of the ship need to be permanently welded back together [Music] before the electricians can begin their work 120 kilometres of new cable have to be laid and connected the engineers also replace the Peter Pan's bulbous bow and give both of the Peter Pan's drives a good general overhaul despite its longer size the ferries performance needs to remain the same specialists overhaul the two huge pod drives before fine-tuning them just one of these drives alone can deliver 11 megawatts of power meanwhile at the front of the ship another team inserts a new bulbous bow it minimizes resistance and fuel consumption by slicing through the water in front of the ferry after all the plan is that the Peter Pan won't guzzle any more heavy fuel than it did in the past even with its new expansion a team of painters makes sure to cover up the seams weld in just a few days ago David Paul Roth and his team of several hundred people work around the clock and yet they are still only able to deliver two weeks after the planned deadline [Music] it's even more important that they don't discover any problems during the upcoming leak test your suspense is building the ship is set to return to the water for the first time in weeks oh we are checking for leaks and making sure all valves and welding seams are closed and sealed the Havana dice were about to start slowly letting water the team is tense the Peter Pan was originally supposed to be back in service two weeks ago on the ship David paurav divides everyone into teams for the inspection Julian isn't checking all the tanks making sure that all the valves are sealed the steam canister there will be nothing worse than finding water leaking order will the welding seams hold and then we'll check every safety foot if water penetrates the hole Frank Hirst can quickly pump the dock back up 20 minutes later and they are ready the dock is at the right depth time for the inspection to get underway an old acquaintance joins David poor Rath to climb through the tanks captain ponts VIN fist he is keen to see for himself whether everything is sealed the most critical area is the center section this is where the ballast water tanks are located they are there to balance out any uneven loads empty cells also keep the ship buoyant nothing everything's dry everything looks good to begin with [Music] but then [Music] now we're in the ballast water tank we've water here a nasty surprise this could delay the ship's delivery by several more weeks the team has to find out where the water is coming from as quickly as possible something sections in this area were put on the pressure and what we see here is basically just leftovers from that I wouldn't say this was a water leak at the moment but we have to ensure that we don't come to wrong conclusions and that water starts leaking in places where we are no longer able to repair when the ship is afloat all clear the test can continue now Frank Hirsh lowers the dock to a depth of 4 meters this increases the water pressure on the ship's hull and thus also strain on the welding scenes the team once again meticulously checks every corner of the Peter Pan's hole the inspection lasts nearly an hour [Music] everything's fine everything's dry the welding seams are holding just like vehicle yeah we still have a little bit to do but we're on the right track and in a few days we can return to regular service of the inspection team didn't find anything in the other parts of the ship either [Music] this is just what we expected today everything is prepared properly the team needs five days for additional system tests then it's ready the brand new Peter Pan is finished polished painted and an astounding 30 meters longer than before it emerges in all its glory 1000 workers spent 400 thousand hours on this mega pitstop and welded over 4 kilometres of seams in the process the ferry now has space for over 100 extra cars when kind of seeking has invited a scene to see just can't really see the seams anymore yeah the only people who will notice that we added a new section other people who spent the past few months working on it a lot of hard work but we are delighted with the result I get my sets of people 14 weeks after it went in for the mega pitstop that Peter Pan is finally on its way to its homeport Travie Munda on the Baltic Sea in just a few days time the now 220 meter long car ferry will start transporting passengers and vehicles to Sweden again as part of its regular service [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary

Views: 1,874,531

Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), engineering, mega pitstops, mega pit stops, engineering documentary, greatest pit stop, heavy maintenance, ship maintenance, ship maintenance documentary, oberhaul, ship documentary, Car Ferry, gigantic car ferry, car ferry documentary, huge car ferrry, ship expansion

Id: ljF09SYDVrs

Length: 48min 44sec (2924 seconds)

Published: Fri Nov 15 2019