Bencros has completed rapid replacement fender systems for three ASD tugboats operated by Boluda Towage Rotterdam, using an on-site service model built around direct vessel measurement, 3D scanning, custom production, and rubber recycling.
The project began with a familiar maintenance problem in working fleets: missing or outdated vessel drawings. Tugboats and workboats are often modified during service, while original documentation can become unavailable or unreliable. Replacement fenders ordered against uncertain specifications can misfit, require structural rework, or force new mounting arrangements during drydock.
Bencros measured the fender mounting systems directly on board rather than relying on archived drawings. One vessel required manual measurement by a specialist fender engineer, while another was scanned in 3D because it had not originally been designed for a conventional marine fender arrangement.
The scanning work produced an accurate digital model and a CAD drawing for a custom configuration. Bencros then manufactured the replacement fender within one week and completed installation without modifications to the vessel’s mounting structure.
The third tug required a particularly long replacement fender that could not be transported as a single unit by standard truck. Bencros proposed a three-part fender system that could be connected during installation, simplifying manufacture and transport while retaining the required function.
Ronald Tomassen, General Manager at Bencros, said: “I am very happy to see that our new on-site measuring service, including recycling the old fenders, works so well. It clearly fills the void the market was asking us about, and I’m thankful to Boluda for giving us the opportunity to prove this service in practice.”
Following measurement, Bencros produced the custom fenders in three days and delivered them within a further four days from its factory in Bošany, Slovakia. The rapid schedule helped reduce drydock exposure and avoided additional vessel work at a point where delays can quickly affect operational availability.
The project also included removal and recycling of the existing fenders. Bencros took the old units back for material recovery, with rubber reused in the company’s own production processes. The circular element gives vessel operators a practical route for dealing with end-of-life rubber components as part of planned maintenance.
Joren van Delft, Fleet Manager at Boluda, said: “This was an interesting project. At the time, we did not have access to the drawings. That brought the very real risk of ordering a replacement fender system and then having to weld a new mounting system, which costs a lot of time and money. Hence, we needed a specialist on site. As it turned out, no-one was willing to do that, except Bencros. We had an immediate click, in part due to their willingness to think in solutions, not products. Another positive point was that they proposed to take back our old fenders and recycle them, which neatly fits Boluda’s Net Zero Target.”
The project gives Bencros a proven model for fender replacement where vessel condition, operating history, and missing documentation make standard procurement risky. Direct measurement and rapid production reduce the gap between what a vessel was designed to be and what is actually in drydock.
