VESSEL REVIEW | Tongjun – New hopper dredger boasts intelligent systems and long-range discharge capability

China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) has expanded its fleet of vessels with the recent acquisition of a new trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) built by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries (ZPMC).

CCCC said that Tongjun (通浚) is China's first independently designed and built 35,000-cubic-metre (1.2 million-cubic-foot) class dredger, featuring a maximum hopper capacity of 38,168 cubic metres (1.348 million cubic feet) and measuring approximately 198 metres (650 feet) long by 38.5 metres (126 feet) wide.

These attributes make the TSHD one of the largest vessels of her type in Asia and the second largest in the world.

Multi-purpose dredger for port and offshore waters

Once in service, Tongjun will be used in a variety of tasks such as domestic and international port and channel dredging, deep-sea sand extraction, land reclamation, deep-sea mining, trench excavation and backfilling, crushed stone bedding, and deep-sea pipeline laying. Dredging can be performed up to a maximum depth of 120 metres (390 feet).

The owner said she is also the first dredger anywhere in the world to receive the International Maritime Organisation's intelligent dredging ship class notation.

During trials, the TSHD’s two 9,000kW dredge pumps achieved a discharge distance of 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) while her seakeeping ability was validated even under complex conditions.

First in a new TSHD series

The vessel also incorporates intelligent control across the entire dredging process, from precise navigation to efficient dredging.

The dredging control system boasts full automatic features and will allow all navigation and dredging activities to be undertaken by only one crewmember.

Junguang, a sister vessel of Tongjun, is under construction at ZPMC’s shipyard in Qidong and is scheduled to enter operational service within this year. Both dredgers are classed by China Classification Society and were built using more than 95 per cent domestic content.