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Thursday, January 13, 2005
Tsuneishi completes second slipway, launches ship
TSUNEISHI Heavy Industries Cebu Inc. (Thici) has finally completed its second slipway—the com-pany’s major expansion program last year.
The new facility, which is already fully operational, was launched yesterday together with the naming of the SC-065 Vessel “Gecon I,” the first bulk carrier built at the new slipway.
“This momentous event marks another leap of THI in its first decade of service in the shipping industries around the globe and its continuing commitment to serve and provide economic prosperity to its local community,” a statement said.
Hitoshi Takahara, Thici’s manager for the expansion project, said the completion of the second slipway now enables the company to build one bulk carrier every 22 days from the previous one vessel every 45 days.
He said the second slipway is initially scheduled to build seven of the 12 vessels booked for delivery this year.
Mother firm
Last year, Thici was able to build and export seven bulk carriers to its mother-company in Japan, which sells the ships to the international market.
Takahara said the second slipway is 1.5 times bigger than the company’s first slipway. Slipway 2 can accommodate vessels weighing 52,000 to 100,000 dead weight tons (DWT).
Meanwhile, Gecon I, a 52,000-DWT bulk carrier, is the 46th vessel built by the Japanese shipbuilding company since it started operations in the Philippines in December 2004 at the West Cebu Industrial Park in Balamban, Cebu, he said.
The vessel was ordered by a Greek owner through Japan-based Kambara Kisen Co. Ltd., he said.
Takahara said seven of the 12 ships booked for production this year are for the European market. The remaining five are for Japan.
Thici is a joint venture between Japan-based Tsuneishi Group and the Cebu-based Aboitiz group of companies. It aims to be among the world’s top three shipbuilding companies by the year 2010.
It has obtained ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9002 certification from Nippon Kaiji Kyokai for its new ship division and ship repair division and ISO 14001 certification.
Thici now has 3,620 direct and indirect workers, with more than 60 percent comprising Balamban residents. The rest come from Toledo City, Asturias and Cebu. (JBN)
(January 13, 2005 issue)
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