[BITList] New Scottish Ferry

[HUGH]

Mike,

We watched the launch, in the rain, from the yard gates. She hung for a full minute before condescending to slip down - many shouts of "give her a push" from the assembled crowd. She was well behind delivery date.  "Technical problems", we hear, but so far I haven't heard details. The bus home passes the yard gate, so we were able to monitor progress, and the lack of it, with the bulbous bow.  The bulbous bow itself seemed to satisfy them, but the steelwork immediately above it was tweaked and twisted until they put screens round it.

I hear of  one wee lassie in the DO - just over a year's experience at drawing on a computer screen.  A draughtswoman she is called. I did 14 years (till I was 30) before I got the full rate as a draughtsman, during which time I served a 5-year aprenticeship as a fitter, worked as junior d'man, went to sea and sailed 2EO, then resumed my career as a d'man.  In Scotts DO I recall a super standing by a ship stopped and asked me, "Who did you sail with?".  On hearing,"The BI, mostly", he told me he'd be dealing with me. I applied for my first job post MN in response to an advert that said "Sea-going experience preferrred. Plus ca change, plus c'est not the same thing.  Ferguson's might have learned how to build/not build a standard (fuel excepted) Clyde ferry, but out there people look for tugs, bucket dredgers and so on.  I recall when Scotts got the contract to build and engine a certain kind of vessel.  The first super to arrive told them they didn't have the staff, so they had to look for more, with the relevant experience.

However, I'm glad the yard is still there. Hopefully they'll learn.

Hugh.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.bcn.mythic-beasts.com/pipermail/bitlist/attachments/20171126/9fe22a06/attachment.html>