Aluminium Ferries

MCU-Coatings can substantially reduce maintenance times so they are well suited to dry-dock repairs on aluminium ferries. They also provide excellent long term performance because of their amazing flexibility, adhesion, durability and weatherability.

Ferries are the ‘trains, busses, and planes’ of the sea, carrying passengers, cargo, and vehicles between ports. The need to be both light and fast, which is why they are usually made with aluminium.  They are invariably hard-working vessels that are usually run on tight schedules and never have time for maintenance when they anchored.

Unlike blue ocean steel hull ships, ferries are frequently taken out of the water for mechanical inspection and maintenance for short periods due to their smaller size. Sitting on the dry-dock, presents an opportunity to combat corrosion. It is however almost impossible to carry out spot repairs with traditional coatings because the weather is never predictable and slow curing times, tight dry dock schedules and being out of service all costs money.

This however is not the case with MCU-Coatings as our moisture cured coatings can be applied in low temperatures down to -15°C and in relative humidity between 6 and 99%. It is also possible to apply a second coat after 45 minutes and immerse the coatings within half an hour after completing the finish coat. The coatings continue to cure while underwater!

It is commonplace for unprotected aluminium on the exterior and interior of ferries to be subject to all sorts of corrosion – such as galvanic, cavitation and omega pitting, all of which are preventable. MCU-Coatings have exceptional adhesion of aluminium surfaces, up to 19 Mpa, and can therefore be applied after a simple UHP wash. The aluminium does not need to be chemically etched or grit blasted, which is just one more reason why MCU-Coatings are fast and efficient to apply!

Our general coating specification, inside and out: MCU-Aluprime 150µm DFT and MCU-Alutopcoat 75µm DFT.

About our MCU-Coatings:

Contact Us

Fill out the form below. We are interested in new projects, big or small