VESSEL REVIEW | Ugjit Mijua’ji’jg – Crabber/trawler delivered to Quebec’s Listuguj Mi’gmaq First Nation

The Listuguj Mi'gmaq Government, an indigenous Canadian community on Quebec's Gaspé Peninsula, has accepted delivery of its new 19.81- by 7.31-metre combination crab trap and groundfish trawler. The vessel was designed by Navanex and built by Chantier Naval Forillon (CNF), both of Gaspé, Quebec, Canada. Named Ugjit Mijua'ji'jg in the Mi'gmaw language, the name means "For Our Children", a reference to the optimism that the community has for their continuing role in the commercial fishery.

This is the third vessel that CNF has built for owners Listuguj Mi'gmaq Government. Built to a design by Navanex, it is the most sophisticated of the three. It has several features that will equip it for efficiency in both pot fishery for snow crab and for trawling shrimp and bottom fish.

The steel-hulled vessel has a raised fo'c'sle design with an aluminium pilot house. When crab fishing, the clear, aft deck can carry up to 150 collapsible crab pots. When rigged for trawling, a gantry with two net drums will be mounted over the stern. A pair of trawl winches will be mounted on a platform aft of the raised fo'c'sle.

The designers have included features to make the vessel more comfortable for a crew of up to seven people. A newly designed bulbous bow, in addition to improving fuel efficiency, helps reduce pitching when working gear into a swell. Installation of pair of stabilisers follows a design first installed by CNF on the trawler Fundy Leader in 2006. A number of these systems have proven effective on other vessels.

The stabiliser is a simple steel plate, hinged at the bottom on the bilge chine. It can be hydraulically raised flat against the hull or lowered to a horizontal position. The technical director, Jean-Nil Morissette, explains that the system functions very well to dampen motion both when travelling or when working gear.

Propulsion power is provided by an IMO-compliant tier III, Cummins QSK19 producing 559 kW at 1,800 rpm, coupled to a Twin Disc MGX-5222 gear with 5.04:1 reduction. This turns a four-blade Rice Kaplan skewed propeller with a 1,447mm diameter and a 1,700mm pitch. The prop's thrust is enhanced with a Rice speed nozzle. This system will give the vessel a cruising speed of nine knots and a bollard pull of 8.2 tonnes.

To meet the IMO tier III emissions, the QSK19 main engine is fitted with an SCR after treatment including a diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) injection unit. The system utilises pressurised air to atomise the DEF for better mixing and a complete chemical reaction. This system allows for reduced consumption of the DEF.

Multiple housing and configurations are available for these SCR aftertreatment systems. Cummins technicians were able to take advantage of the significant space between the engine room deckhead and the top of the QSK19 main engine. The arrangement allows ample access to the main engine while facilitating ready access for technicians to the service panel. The engine and aftertreatment system are integrated, controlled, and monitored through an electronic interface that displays system out NOx and NOx conversion efficiency on a monitor in the wheelhouse. On trials, the wheelhouse monitor reported NOx reduction of 91.2 per cent.

A comprehensive set of deck equipment includes a Heila HLM 3-2S deck crane. For crabbing, there is a hauler, a table, a boom and a block. For trawling, in addition to the two trawl winches and net drums, there is a bag winch. The anchor winch is mounted so that the anchor will lower to the starboard side of the bulbous bow.

Auxiliary power includes a Cummins QSB7-DM genset producing 65 kW and an additional QSM11-DM engine producing 264 kW at 1,800 rpm. This engine drives the vessel's hydraulic pumps and a backup 65 kW genset.

Crew accommodation is foreward in the raised fo'c'sle with the galley and mess in the aft part of that cabin. The RSW-equipped holds have capacity for 27,215 kilograms of crab in four sections. An insulated bait hold has a volume of 7.8 cubic metres. Tankage includes 23,000 litres for fuel, 7,900 litres for water, and 2,000 litres for DEF.

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