Cunard’s Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth delivered respectively in 2007 and 2010 are the only cruise ships sailing today to offer a mixed Davits solutions to deploy semi-gravity for their lifeboats and telescopic for their tenders.
This is in fact a very notable feature of both Queen Victoria’s and Queen Elizabeth lifesaving systems, which primarily comprise 16 enclosed lifeboats and tenders, characterized by two types of davits. These two Queens are the only two ships where such a solution has been chosen, to offer them the best of both alternatives.
Mixed Davits Solutions: innovation in semi-gravity and telescopic davits
The two davits systems mounted on board are a telescopic one for the five boats normally used as passenger tenders and semi gravity technology for those boats reserved for abandoning ship. In essence, the telescopic davits are easier and speedier to operate when launching tenders, while the semi gravity operation is much more economical, when considering that, hopefully, they will never be used for real necessities. All boats can carry up to 150 people.
Navim Group stored-power telescopic davits allow the promenade deck to be completely free, since the davit arms are welded below the deck above. The arms can be extended outboard as necessary and if required, to enable a boat to be launched in any trim or list condition.
The semi-gravity side-hinged davits for lifeboats also allow the promenade to be free – a solution that is particularly attractive when the deck is used as a passenger walking area. Clear height between the deck and each boat’s keel is around 2200mm.
Navim Group additionally supplied stored power telescopic davits for two other tasks: to launch the liner’s two rescue boats (two davits) and to launch the 51 x 35 person liferafts (eight davits). These are also stowed under the deck above and can be hydraulically extended outboard as necessary.
In the next years Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth will be joined by a new Ship in Cunard’s fleet to be named Queen Anne … we will see what Davits solutions Navim Group will design and mount on board!
