Dawn Drydock 2016

[leekel619]

What happens to the majority of staff and crew on the Dawn during the upcoming 6 week drydock.

I'm sure some stay and work. But definitely not all.

[rolyasmatt]

I was just on the dawn. Most crew said moving to different ship. Heard many going to the Star ( or could have been sky)0

[Kamloops50]

What happens to the majority of staff and crew on the Dawn during the upcoming 6 week drydock.

I'm sure some stay and work. But definitely not all.

 

Those who's contracts are close to ending will probably go home on leave. Many if not most will stay on board. They will have to look after and feed the dry dock contractors . The ship will be used as a hotel for the contractor's. They will also do some other work , mainly clean up for the contractors. I've heard that about 90% of the crew stay aboard during a dry dock.

[armwinder]

They will be doing a fair amount of renovations in dry dock We were on the Dawn last month and the hotel manager was telling us the Pearly King pub is going to become a wine bar among other changes, including wiring for interactive TV Too bad about the pub, I liked to spend time in there. There was also talk of trying to solve the smoke issue on deck five, apparently it is mentioned at every meet and greet.

[leekel619]

The wine bar at Pearly King's is a new story to me. I would like that I guess. Long as I'm on the ship! I keep reading something about a Jimmy Buffet type bar. It's a small area and it can get super crowded and rowdy.

I enjoyed It there. 👍🏻

Six weeks will be a long time to keep 90% of the crew busy with no passengers.

 

Why would a ship be a hotel and caretaker for drydock employees? I'm going to research that. Just wondering 😐

The dry dock here is relatively busy. I was hoping the Dawn came here. I've seen other cruise ships in there.

I can't imagine them letting the skilled trade workers move in for the length of the contract though.

Interesting.

[Kamloops50]

The wine bar at Pearly King's is a new story to me. I would like that I guess. Long as I'm on the ship! I keep reading something about a Jimmy Buffet type bar. It's a small area and it can get super crowded and rowdy.

I enjoyed It there. 👍🏻

Six weeks will be a long time to keep 90% of the crew busy with no passengers.

 

Why would a ship be a hotel and caretaker for drydock employees? I'm going to research that. Just wondering 😐

The dry dock here is relatively busy. I was hoping the Dawn came here. I've seen other cruise ships in there.

I can't imagine them letting the skilled trade workers move in for the length of the contract though.

Interesting.

 

Many of the contractors are not from the ship yard but specialists from other companies and countries . Because they are doing work on the ship around the clock . They can't afford to lose the travel time. Also the ships officers are still on board . They have to be feed.

[CruisinMaterial]

Since the Norwegian Dawn is Boston's ship, I'm surprised about all of this news... the Pearly Kings Pub is a good place to hang out and have an ale. The Spinnaker's Lounge is in dire need of a re-doing. It's setup up horribly and one would hope NCL would finally learn a lesson and put fire resistant sound proofing in there. The space as a nightclub is incredibly lame and nothing like the Spinnakers of the olden times (back before Sheehan went Suite happy).

 

If anyone hears of any more dry dock changes, please share! Thanks! :)

[hawkeyetlse]

Many of the contractors are not from the ship yard but specialists from other companies and countries . Because they are doing work on the ship around the clock . They can't afford to lose the travel time.

That makes sense to me, but there are not 2 or 3000 of them, are there? And do they get their rooms made twice a day, and 3 sit-down meals a day with menus and waitstaff? The bars are not open, no casino, no shops, no gym/pool/spa (I'm assuming)…

 

So I'm also having trouble seeing why they would need 90% of the crew, unless it's just cheaper to keep them there doing not much than move them around. Or unless they use the time to bring in lots of new recruits and train them.

[Kamloops50]

The normal meal service is maintained in the buffet 24 hours per day. Room stewards still look after some rooms. They also help by changing mattress and other soft goods. During dry dock there is lot mundane work for the staff to do. They will also get extra time off to go ashore.

[chengkp75]

That makes sense to me, but there are not 2 or 3000 of them, are there? And do they get their rooms made twice a day, and 3 sit-down meals a day with menus and waitstaff? The bars are not open, no casino, no shops, no gym/pool/spa (I'm assuming)…

 

So I'm also having trouble seeing why they would need 90% of the crew, unless it's just cheaper to keep them there doing not much than move them around. Or unless they use the time to bring in lots of new recruits and train them.

 

Depending on the extent of the refurbishments, there could be a couple thousand subcontractors. These range from upholsterers, carpet layers, carpenters, electricians, and plumbers for the hotel areas to many technical service engineers for the engineering equipment. The shipyard does very little work in the hotel areas, the lines bring in their own "tiger teams" that specialize in hotel renovations. The yard concentrates on the ship.

 

The crew will be used to clear out cabins for carpets, return furnishings, fetch and carry for the subs (their time is too precious), and clean the workmates daily. Another job that requires large numbers of crew is "fire watch" where a crew stands by checking areas where welding is ongoing to prevent fires.

 

The crew that moves from one ship to another are only those required to fill vacancies on the new ship.

 

Cruise staff, entertainers, casino, spa, and ship staff will normally go home.

[leekel619]

Thanks for the information. It makes more sense now.

I'd like to read a book about a big cruise ship refurb/drydock!

[BirdTravels]

Those who's contracts are close to ending will probably go home on leave. Many if not most will stay on board. They will have to look after and feed the dry dock contractors . The ship will be used as a hotel for the contractor's. They will also do some other work , mainly clean up for the contractors. I've heard that about 90% of the crew stay aboard during a dry dock.

 

The crew that remain with the ship do much of the renovation. We were on the Epic just after it's 3+ week dry dock last year and our cabin steward spent the drydock replacing carpet, tile, and painting. Restaurant wait staff remove and replace carpets, reupholstering chairs, etc. They said that there were nights when there was no air conditioning and it was so hot and humid that they had to sleep up on deck.

[chengkp75]

The crew that remain with the ship do much of the renovation. We were on the Epic just after it's 3+ week dry dock last year and our cabin steward spent the drydock replacing carpet, tile, and painting. Restaurant wait staff remove and replace carpets, reupholstering chairs, etc. They said that there were nights when there was no air conditioning and it was so hot and humid that they had to sleep up on deck.

 

I wouldn't go quite that far. The crew do not have the requisite trade skills to do much of the refurbishment work. Yes, they can push a paintbrush, and yes, they can rip up carpet. But when they talk about replacing carpet and tile, they mean they emptied the cabins of furniture, and ripped out the old carpet, and after the carpet layers put the new carpet in, they put the furniture back. I would be very surprised to have crew replacing tile, given the quality of work the lines require. They may have assisted in humping supplies to the site, and cleaning up, but I would doubt they actually laid tile. For upholstery, they will bring in a hundred or so upholsterers, and set up one lounge with many sewing machines and band saws to cut fabric. The crew generally only take stuff to the upholsterers and return it to the location.

 

All systems that cannot be taken off line when in passenger service will be serviced in shipyard, so things like A/C, water, toilets, and lights will be periodically shut down for service.

[WhereShouldWeGoNext]

Do you know what shipyard is being used for drydock in late May and early June?

[bonvoyagie]

I believe the Freeport ship yards announced they were going to work on the Dawn.

[Roxfinder]

Here is the schedule

[zqvol]

What happens to the majority of staff and crew on the Dawn during the upcoming 6 week drydock.

I'm sure some stay and work. But definitely not all.

 

 

They all stay and work, unless they are scheduled fro their regular rotation. New crew will come on board and others will leave during the process, so that at all times there is a full crew on board.

[Nola26]

Here is the schedule

 

Great information, thanks for posting. I'm sailing her for the first time over Christmas and delighted to know my inside cabin and the casino will have been refreshed. The other dining and common area upgrades sound great too.

 

Our sailing will also be one of the early visitors to the new private island in Belize so a few new things ahead on that cruise.

Edited March 27, 2016 by Nola26

[pathubia]

We are on the Dawn again in May and October, will be able to say goodbye to Pearly Kings and hello to everything new.

[Photomom217]

I just got off the dawn today and asked some of the staff what was going on during dry dock. They do stay on and work. Some will be doing some of the refurbishing work and others will continue doing their current jobs for contract workers staying on the ship. I asked my waiter if he was looking forward to dry dock and he said yes. It's a nice change for them. The dawn was in VERY rough shape. Rust everywhere, wood pulling up, cracked tiles, and stains on everything(the beach towels were discussing). She is in need of a lot of improvement. We had a wonderful time, but I don't think I will cruise on a ship this close to dry dock again.

[leekel619]

I just got off the dawn today and asked some of the staff what was going on during dry dock. They do stay on and work. Some will be doing some of the refurbishing work and others will continue doing their current jobs for contract workers staying on the ship. I asked my waiter if he was looking forward to dry dock and he said yes. It's a nice change for them. The dawn was in VERY rough shape. Rust everywhere, wood pulling up, cracked tiles, and stains on everything(the beach towels were discussing). She is in need of a lot of improvement. We had a wonderful time, but I don't think I will cruise on a ship this close to dry dock again.

 

 

That towel talk...[emoji37]

[Friscorays]

Thanks for the information. It makes more sense now.

I'd like to read a book about a big cruise ship refurb/drydock!

 

Don't know of a book, but this TV show is pretty interesting:

 

 

Parts 2 through 5 also on Youtube.

[Bbcnutt]

There's a video on youtube called Dry dock a cruise ship reborn. It Is episode's of a cruise ship refurbishment from start to finish . Yes it's about a Royal Caribbean ship but I'm sure that this video give insight on what happens in dry dock with the contractors and the crew. The post before mine has the link to the show

Edited April 14, 2016 by Bbcnutt

[leekel619]

Don't know of a book, but this TV show is pretty interesting:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Parts 2 through 5 also on Youtube.

 

 

Yes it is! Thanks.

[GORDONCHICK]

I know Moderno will move to where the Star Bar is right now, and that will then be the suite/VIP breakfast and lunch place. And Blue Lagoon will change to O'Sheehan's. I can't remember the other changes the HD told us about back at Thanksgiving. We will be on again for Thanksgiving, so we shall see! Makes me wish I'd taken more photos of the ship to compare....

Edited April 16, 2016 by GORDONCHICK