Navantia Accelerates - Second Spanish Sword in Construction

On 16 December, in the presence of the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, at the state shipyard of Navantia in Ría de Ferrol (A Coruña) the construction of the F112 frigate was inaugurated. It is the future Roger de Lauria, or second type F110 ship, intended for the Spanish Navy.

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In addition to the Prime Minister, the ceremony was attended by the fourth Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister María Jesús Montero and the president of Navantii Ricardo Domínguez. An agreement for five frigates for Armada Española concluded the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of Spain and Navantia in 2019. Its cost was €4.3 billion.

The programme is progressing better than the original timetable. The burning of the F112 sheet was started four months before the planned deadline. The work on prototype F111 Bonifaz is just as good. Currently, at various stages of construction and assembly there are 24 hull blocks with a total number of 33, although it was assumed that by now there would be 18. Five of them have already been placed on the slopes from which the frigate will be launched – the fifth one was placed on the site on 18 December.

Moreover, under the terms of the contract, 98% of the equipment provided for in this programme has already been purchased, with F111 construction materials reaching 95%, while F112 is 70%.

Shipbuilding investments

The frigate program F110 is the main driver of the Digital Transformation Plan of the Navantia shipyard in Ferrolu (around A Coruña). It will include the implementation of a new digital ecosystem that will renew production centres. In the case of Ferrol shipyards, this will materialise by building a new hull block factory. This is an investment worth EUR 110 million (the largest investment made at the shipyard in Spain this century).

The plant, the foundation stone of which was built on 16 December, will be a fully digitized, automated and robotic plant, equipped with advanced machines and machine tools, which guarantees optimization of production and shortening delivery times. In the new production line, the traditional welding process has been replaced with laser technology, which significantly improves performance and minimizes material deformation.

This will strengthen the Ferrol region, placing it on the map of companies leading in the design and production of frigates using advanced technologies. On the other hand, the F-110 frigate programme has a significant impact on the supply chain, involving more than 500 Spanish companies and generating significant employment of up to 9,000 people, including induced employment.

Digital twin

The frigata F110 will be the fruit of the first Spanish maritime program in which it was designed using a "digital twin", a virtual replica of the ship, which is constantly receiving information from a real unit. Data is constantly provided by a network of sensors deployed throughout the frigate, creating a cyberphysical system that, by using behavioral models and technologies such as Cloud Computing, Machine Learning and Internet of Things, allows you to support its maintenance and operation even in the distance of thousands of kilometres through a land-based "digital twin".

It is complemented by an integrated service system, developed together with universities in Vigo and Coruña (Galicia, Spain), which will provide the ship with integrated sensors at lighting points, significantly reducing the number of wiring.

The F110 frigates will also be equipped with 3D printers, allowing the production of spare parts during the cruise, or in a guest port away from the base. They will also be the first ships in the Spanish fleet equipped with an integrated cybersecurity system to protect them from growing threats in cyberspace. This will enable the frigate to have a reduced number of crew during operation, which will improve living conditions.

Frigates F-110

The F110 frigates built for the Spanish Navy are multi-tasking escort ships designed to combat air, water and submarine purposes, which will enable them to perform functions to protect ship and ship groupings and to project force. These vessels, designed to cooperate with other ships, will be universal platforms capable of carrying out maritime safety functions.

Frigate F-112 / Shipyard Portal — **Fig. Navantia**

The design of the new frigate includes advanced technical solutions such as: integrated mast with different sensors, multi-tasking space that extends ship capabilities in all domains, and hybrid drive unit, more efficient and quieter. The frigates will be equipped with a SCOMBA combat system developed by Navantia Sistemas.

Written by Mariusz Dasiewicz