BREDO DRY DOCKS GmbH

BREDO DRY DOCKS GmbH is a German ship repair and conversion yard headquartered in Bremerhaven, with dock operations at three sites in Bremerhaven (Fischereihafen, Kaiserhafen 1 and Kaiserhafen 3) and one in Cuxhaven (Amerikahafen). It is part of the Heinrich Rönner Gruppe, a Bremerhaven-based maritime group. The company presents itself as one of Europe's leading yards for conversion, repair and maintenance, offering rapid access from European ports and round-the-clock service without surcharges. The present company was formed by merging three formerly independent yards: the Mützelfeldtwerft GmbH & Co. KG in Cuxhaven, the German Dry Docks AG and the BREDO Dockgesellschaft mbH, both in Bremerhaven. These businesses were combined successively between 2018 and 2020 under the new BREDO DRY DOCKS brand. Each brought a core competence: newbuilding experience, management of demanding large-scale projects and naval repair work, and the flexibility for efficient 24/7 ship repair. A central management now coordinates orders across the three operating sites, each led by an experienced site manager and team. With pooled yard capacity and the expertise of more than 300 employees, BREDO DRY DOCKS positions itself as a partner for every project. The company's roots go back to the Bredo Dockgesellschaft, founded in 1986 as an independent dock operating company by the parent Seebeckwerft AG together with four Bremerhaven entrepreneurs, one of whom was Dieter Petram. It operated dock and repair business at the end of the Fischereihafen. After the Schichau Seebeckwerft AG went bankrupt in 1996, Bredo continued operations at the Fischereihafen site, performing dockings, underwater hull work, ship repairs, conversions and ship lengthenings, as well as repairs to main and auxiliary engines, propellers, shaft systems and rudder systems. Around 300 people worked at the yard, including about 100 permanent employees and around 200 from external firms. German Dry Docks emerged in 2017 from the merger of MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven and the Rickmers-Lloyd dock operations; the Cuxhaven Mützelfeldtwerft joined in 2018. The German Dry Docks brand continues to be used for special and large-scale projects. In 2018 the former Bredo Dockgesellschaft was merged with German Dry Docks AG and operations were bundled. In July 2019 Petram sold his shipbuilding activities in Bremerhaven entirely to the Rönner Group, which became sole owner of Bredo. Today BREDO DRY DOCKS provides primarily the infrastructure — dock and quay facilities — while the various trades are carried out by other companies of the Rönner Group. It has 11 floating and dry docks distributed across its four locations. The sites trace back to predecessor companies: at Fischereihafen the docks, halls and pier facilities of the former Schichau-Seebeck-Werft; at Kaiserhafen 1 the docks of the former Motorenwerke Bremerhaven; at Kaiserhafen 3 the docks of the Rickmers-Lloyd dock operations plus rented docks of Lloyd Werft (also partly owned by the Rönner Group); and in Cuxhaven the facilities of the Mützelfeldtwerft. The company reports more than 250 dockings per year, more than 250 special operations and technical support jobs, and more than 500 satisfied customers per year, supported by a network of expert partner firms and suppliers in the region.

The origins of BREDO DRY DOCKS lie in the Bredo Dockgesellschaft, founded in 1986 as an independent dock operating company by the parent Seebeckwerft AG together with four Bremerhaven entrepreneurs, one of whom was Dieter Petram. It operated the dock and repair business at the end of the Fischereihafen in Bremerhaven. The Schichau Seebeckwerft AG, successor to the Seebeckwerft, went bankrupt in 1996. Bredo continued the operational business at the existing Fischereihafen site. In addition to dockings with typical underwater hull work, the yard carried out ship repairs, conversions and ship lengthenings. It also performed repair and conversion work on main engines, auxiliary engines, propellers, shaft systems and rudder systems. Around 300 people worked at the yard, including about 100 permanently employed staff and around 200 workers from external firms. German Dry Docks emerged in 2017 as a merger of MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven and the Rickmers-Lloyd dock operations. In 2018 the Cuxhaven Mützelfeldtwerft joined. The German Dry Docks brand continues to be used for special and large-scale projects. The corporate group also included the independent company MWB Marine Services, which appeared together with Zeppelin Power Systems GmbH & Co KG (ZPS) as a specialist for propulsion systems. In 2018 the former Bredo Dockgesellschaft was merged with German Dry Docks AG and the business operations were bundled. In July 2019 Petram sold his shipbuilding activities in Bremerhaven entirely to the Rönner Group, which became the sole owner of Bredo. The present company with its four locations arose from several mergers of yard and dock operations in the 2010s under the leadership of the two Bremerhaven entrepreneurial families Petram and Rönner, who had shaped the shipyard scene in Bremerhaven for years. The current BREDO DRY DOCKS GmbH was formed by bringing together three formerly independent yards: the Mützelfeldtwerft GmbH & Co. KG in Cuxhaven, the German Dry Docks AG and the BREDO Dockgesellschaft mbH, both in Bremerhaven. To offer customers the greatest possible capacity and flexibility in providing suitable docks and yard facilities, the companies were merged successively in the period 2018/2019/2020 and united under the new BREDO DRY DOCKS brand. Each of the three companies contributed its core competence: experience from ship newbuilding, the management of demanding large-scale projects and naval repair projects, and the flexibility for efficient 24/7 ship repair. A central management now controls orders across the three operating sites, each led by a highly experienced site manager and his team. With the bundling of yard capacities and the expertise of more than 300 employees, BREDO DRY DOCKS presents itself as the right partner for every project. The company's primary corporate purpose is ship repair, ship conversion, maintenance and the execution of all dock-dependent work for the purpose of maintaining classification. Bredo primarily provides the infrastructure (dock and quay facilities), while the various trades are carried out by other companies of the Rönner Group. For this purpose, the company has a total of 11 floating and dry docks, distributed across the locations Bremerhaven-Fischereihafen, Bremerhaven-Kaiserhafen 1, Bremerhaven-Kaiserhafen 3 and Cuxhaven-Amerikahafen. The various dock locations trace back to Bredo's predecessor companies: at the Fischereihafen site these are the docks as well as halls and pier facilities of the former Schichau-Seebeck-Werft; at Kaiserhafen 1 the docks of the former Motorenwerke Bremerhaven; at Kaiserhafen 3 the docks of the Rickmers-Lloyd dock operations as well as the rented docks of Lloyd Werft, which is also partly owned by the Rönner Group; and in Cuxhaven the facilities of the Mützelfeldtwerft. Notable conversion projects include the Crown Monarch, a cruise ship built in 1990. After a charter under the name Jules Verne, she arrived at Bredo in December 2007 and was converted there into the Alexander von Humboldt. For the construction preparations and construction of offshore wind farms in the North Sea, the ship Victor Hensen was purchased in 2001 by the wind power company Energiekontor AG in Bremen, which had it converted at the Bredo yard for investigations in the North Sea. It was then renamed La Cour after the Danish meteorologist Poul La Cour and placed under the flag of Luxembourg. The management was taken over by the Bremen company RS Research Shipping GmbH.

• 2020

  Merger of the three yards completed under the new BREDO DRY DOCKS brand.

• 2019

  In July, Dieter Petram sells his Bremerhaven shipbuilding activities entirely to the Rönner Group, which becomes sole owner of Bredo.

• 2018

  Cuxhaven Mützelfeldtwerft joins German Dry Docks; former Bredo Dockgesellschaft merged with German Dry Docks AG.

• 2017

  German Dry Docks formed as a merger of MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven and Rickmers-Lloyd dock operations.

• 2007

  Cruise ship Crown Monarch arrives at Bredo in December and is converted into Alexander von Humboldt.

• 2001

  Ship Victor Hensen purchased by Energiekontor AG and converted at Bredo for North Sea investigations.

• 1996

  Schichau Seebeckwerft AG goes bankrupt; Bredo continues operations at the Fischereihafen site.

• 1986

  Bredo Dockgesellschaft founded as an independent dock operating company by Seebeckwerft AG and four Bremerhaven entrepreneurs.

One of Europe's leading shipyards for conversion, repair and maintenance, offering rapid access from European ports and round-the-clock service.

• Ship repair and maintenance

  Dockings, underwater hull works, and repair of main and auxiliary engines, propellers, shaft systems and rudder systems.

• Ship conversion and refit

  Conversions and ship lengthenings, including cruise ship and offshore vessel conversions.

• Naval repair and maintenance

  Management of demanding large-scale projects and naval repair projects.

• Dock infrastructure services

  Provision of dock and quay facilities while trades are carried out by other Rönner Group companies.

1. 1BREDO DRY DOCKS official websitebredo.de
2. 2BREDO DRY DOCKS: Über unsbredo.de
3. 3Bredo Dry Docks – Wikipediade.wikipedia.org
4. 4Bredo – Wikidatawikidata.org