Fishing boat feature: Margaret of Ladram

The Margaret of Ladram is the jewel of the Greendale fleet. Built in Holland in 1998 by the renowned Visser, Margaret of Ladram was designed to be a leader in her class. Her steel hull is heavily built, for her ocean-going service, and this heavy construction combines with her full length and deep keel to give a smooth, stable ride. She is powered by a 1000 horsepower ABC turbocharged diesel engine, and her Masson gearbox, with a reduction of 7:1, allows her to pull her trawls effortlessly.

The Margaret is a very spacious boat with a large wheelhouse. Her state-of the art customised and automated fish-handling system means her catch is carefully put away without being damaged or bruised, and her large refrigerated fish room contains two ice machines to keep the fish in top condition.

Greendale purchased this vessel in January 2011, when she was called the Kees Korf Z198. The first thing we did after purchasing was to completely re-fit her and cut a 4m section out of her hull, reducing her from 37m to 33m and from 292GT down to 264GT. This dramatically improved her sea-keeping ability and stability, making her a much more efficient and safer vessel. She fished for us under the Belgian flag, with a Belgian crew, until - after another large refit and a full engine overhaul - she was flagged onto the British registry in September 2015 and moved to Brixham, Devon.