Construction began in February at
Circa Marine a new pilot boat for Ports of Auckland Ltd.
Instead of traditional air-filled
pontoons, the vessel will have Naiad's removable foam fender system
because of its practicability. The fenders cannot be punctured and
are highly resilient to damage when coming alongside ships or
docking.
The pilot boat will be 14.6m long and
5m wide overall. The main cabin seats six and down below is a
storage room with toilet and access to the engine room. Power is
supplied by twin Cat C12s combined with a Henleys Propellers Drive
system using Tiger Propellers and aquamet shafts.
