Portsmouth-based ship support company Fleet Support Limited (FSL) have underlined their strength in servicing icebreaking vessels with the refit of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) vessel James Clark Ross.

“We have gained considerable experience on these specialist ships over the past few years and this is extremely valuable when we assess the condition of the vessels after a period in the extremes of an Antarctic winter,” explained FSL Managing Director Ian Booth.

“The JCR refit was a further illustration of Portsmouth’s strategic role as a centre for hi-tech ship support. This work is important for the yard as it helps to sustain local employment in the engineering sector.”

The 28-day programme represented the first of two BAS ships that are scheduled for refit in Portsmouth this year as part of the five-year contract FSL holds with the BAS. Sir Ernest Shackleton is due to be docked in September.

Extensive refurbishment work on the James Clark Ross’ four deck cranes, which extend up to 20 tonnes in capacity, were included in this year’s programme. A new satellite communications fit was also carried out, along with installation of a new Echo sounder.

Besides the regular programme of machinery overhaul and survey work, another major element of the refit was superstructure repairs.