Shipbuilding and ship repair have been present in Amsterdam since its inception. The so-called "manufacturing industry" is an important market for the Port of Amsterdam. Due to its favorable location, space, expertise and infrastructure, the port region is the ideal location for offshore activities. For Amsterdam, offshore is a growing market. There are many experienced parties in the port region and there is sufficient space for offshore activities in the fields of wind, oil & gas and repair and dismantling. Together with a favorable location in relation to the North Sea and connections to the hinterland, this makes Amsterdam an important player in the offshore market.
Repair and decommissioning
For ship maintenance, Amsterdam is the perfect location. Several companies operate in the port for ship repair and dismantling. There are several yards that have dry docks that all meet the latest environmental requirements. These range in length from 135 to 250 meters. Every year dozens of offshore ships come to Amsterdam for repair and maintenance. This is done at Damen Shiprepair, among other places.
Theme vessel 'Manufacturing industry - Ship repair'
During our theme cruise "Manufacturing - Shiprepair" you will learn all about the origins of the port of Amsterdam and the shipbuilding industry which has been present in the port since its inception. It is also possible to schedule a stop at Damen Shiprepair. Damen Shiprepair is the last large ship restoration yard on the IJ River of Amsterdam.
The Damen Shiprepair yard in Amsterdam-North is 100 years old and is part of the globally operating Damen Group, which also operates as a builder of tugs, naval vessels, passenger ships and superyachts, among other things. Eleven major repair yards fall under Damen Shipyards Group, including four so-called XL yards. The yard in Amsterdam is one of them; the other XL yards are in Rotterdam and Vlissingen.
At Damen Shiprepair Amsterdam we get an exclusive look behind the scenes. We tour the dry docks and walk under a colossal ship. During a tour, we also learn more about what the role of shipbuilding has been in the city's history, and what it could be in the future. For example, the garden villages in Amsterdam North were built for shipyard workers. Thus, industry played an important role in the growth of the city.
