Workers at Babcock International in Rosyth are celebrating completion of a major Royal Navy project.
Bosses are hoping to secure additional work for the Fife yard after the refit of HMS Pembroke was finished on schedule.
Around 50 employees, working with specialist subcontractors, carried out a nine-month refit on the Royal Navy Sandown class minehunter vessel.
The project, which started at the beginning of this year, included glass reinforced plastic (GRP) work on the freshwater tanks, an overhaul of propulsion systems, maintenance of generators and work on the ship’s sonar and communications system.
After passing its “ready for sea” inspection in October, HMS Pembroke completed sea acceptance trials off the Scottish and Norwegian coasts a day ahead of schedule, before returning to her home port in Clyde.
Sean Donaldson, managing director of Babcock’s Rosyth site, said: “We were delighted to complete the refit of HMS Pembroke on time and look forward to carrying out similar packages of work on the other minehunter vessels.”
Prior to the recent programme, HMS Penzance – another of the Royal Navy’s Sandown-class minehunters – went through a 10-month docking period at Rosyth which concluded in March 2019.
Nick Fernandes, team leader for the defence equipment and support mine counter measures team, sais: “This is a great achievement for the mine counter measures team, Babcock and HMS Pembroke’s crew, who worked together to deliver a valuable asset to the Royal Navy within the planned timelines.”
