A Le Guilvinec langoustine trawler has emerged from the Lorient yard run by Piriou Naval Services (PNS) looking as good as new after an extensive overhaul and refit.
The 17.25 metre Arvorig was built in 1990 and is owned by Le Guilvinec fisherman Mikaël le Brun, who trawls for langoustine between March and October, landing mainly to the local auction but also to Concarneau or Lorient. The boat also fishes for other species, including targeting pelagic species with a four-panel midwater trawl.
Arvorig has been thoroughly overhauled, with the net drums and gantry replaced with new. The main deck has been fitted out with new catch-handling facilities, a new vivier tank, the fishroom refurbished and work carried out on the hull.
‘The business has been doing well for the last three years with plenty of fish, good prices and fuel is cheap. These are the three conditions that enable us to invest right now. So I decided to do this refit to improve the safety and comfort of the crew, to improve conditions on board the boat and to help increase the quality of the products we land,’ Mikaël le Brun said.
‘This work represents five months of work for different trades, with PNS as the main contractor, with its own teams working on Arvorig as well as bringing in local specialist sub-contractors,’ said PNS Lorient’s director Paul-Henri Celton.
The original steel aft gantry with its two net drums has been replaced with an aluminium gantry supporting three drums, making handling the fishing gear easier for the crew, especially when there is damage to one of the trawls.
PNS Lorient modified the winch controls and replaced hydraulic piping with stainless steel pipework. The deck has been remodelled and optimised for a better workflow, making handling and processing catches easier and faster.
The forward bulkhead was moved to fit the new viver tank, which also freed up working space. As well as the livetank system, a cold water sprinkler has been fitted, allowing langoustine catches to be stored in chilled water to optimise quality, as Arvorig is one of the boats that lands its catches live. The 35 cubic metre fishroom has been upgraded and modified for packing, which also contributes to improved quality of catches.
The final aspect of Arvorig’s refit was too completely sandplast, metallise and paint the hull.
‘We did look at building a new boat but Arvorig works well and for an investment equivalent to 30% of the price of new, the refit makes it possible to achieve what we would otherwise have had with a newbuilding,’ Mikaël le Brun said.
‘After the intial contact with the yard last summer, I right away decided to entrust the work to PNS Lorient, who have built up a strong reputation among fishermen. I’m very satisfied with the results.’
