Solar Solve Marine, the British manufacturer of the SOLASOLV® brand of anti-glare, heat rejecting roller screens for wheelhouse windows received an urgent enquiry from SMIT at the beginning of July.
Their vessel, Noordhoek Constructor, a Dynamically Positioned Diving (Saturation) Support Vessel built at Niigata Shipyard in Japan and delivered to SMIT in 2009 was arriving imminently in Great Yarmouth. The crew had been experiencing problems with heat and glare from the sun in the wheelhouse so a Technician was requested to go and survey and take measurements for SOLASOLV® sunscreens in order to prevent further problems.
With Great Yarmouth being located 450 kilometres from the Solar Solve Head Office in South Shields, a Technician was sent home to pack for the trip before leaving to travel to the vessel some 30 minutes after receiving the customer request. With the time being just after midday and the journey time being five-and-a-half hours, the accommodation for the trip was quickly booked by office staff whilst the Technician made the long journey by car to Great Yarmouth.
The swift action taken by all those involved meant that when the vessel docked early the following morning, the survey could be completed and the necessary window measurements taken for both the forward and aft window sections of the wheelhouse. These measurements were then quickly forwarded to Solar Solve’s head office so a quotation could be prepared and sent to the vessel’s Superintendent.
This was promptly completed and on receipt of the quotation an order was confirmed by SMIT for both the forward and aft window sections of the vessel with delivery to the Shipping Agents in Great Yarmouth for when the vessel next returned to the UK.
Once installed, the screens will protect the crew against the effects of sun glare and solar gain, whilst offering a 100% clear outside view for safer navigation. The advanced film used in the roller screens is tinted which significantly reduces eye-strain ensuring the equipment displays are easier to read, so human errors are less likely to occur. The aluminium layer embedded inside the film rejects heat to reduce fatigue by creating a more comfortable and cooler working environment for crew. Less demand is also placed on wheelhouse air-conditioning systems which require additional fuel consumption to run. Environmentally conscious fleet owners like SMIT can benefit from fuel savings while lowering their CO₂ emissions by installing SOLASOLV® roller screens at the vessel’s wheelhouse windows.
Solar Solve’s Sales and Marketing Executive, Paul Hopkins commented, “This amazing level of customer service was required in order to achieve something we initially didn’t think was going to be logistically possible. However, with our dedicated team we made the effort and were rewarded with a substantial order for SOLASOLV® sunscreens and one more happy customer and crew”
