HMAS Brisbane : Engine Room : Boiler Maintenance Log Board

The boiler maintenance log board consists of a rectangular piece of ply-wood with an acrylic cover. Under the acrylic cover is a piece of laminated paper chart with spaces for filling in daily maintenance details. At the top of the chart is room for the date, destination, DTG and WTG to be filled in. In appearance, the chart, from left to right, has three boxes, the first is for ? (obscured by metal handle), the second for notes and the third for defects. Moving along there is then a Boiler information chart and guidelines, followed by a column for: feed remaining, fresh remaining, fwd vap, aft vap, fresh suct and fresh fill. The final column is divided into ten minute intervals up to an hour, fwd revs, aft revs, mean revs and sea water temp. On the far right of the chart is a column indicating knots and revs and a small map of Australia. There is a small metal `lip' at the base of the board for resting a pencil/pen etc. On the back of the board are two L shaped brackets and a single metal bracket, which protrudes at the front to form the above-mentioned lip. Attached to the top left hand corner of the unit is a pencil sharpener (incomplete). At the back are attached two V shaped alloy brackets made from L section channel.

This component was removed from HMAS Brisbane after the ship was de-commissioned in 2001. The board was fitted in the ship's Engine Room and was used to record ongoing maintenance of the ship's boilers. HMAS Brisbane [II] was commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy in December 1967 and was the second vessel of that name to serve in the RAN. Known officially as DDG-41, Brisbane was the third of the RAN's American-built "Charles F. Adams" class guided-missiles destroyers. This class were the first major Australian warships designed and built in America, and were constructed by the Defoe Shipbuilding Co. The original complement of the Brisbane was 20 officers and over 300 sailors. Main armament was two 5-inch/54 calibre guns and anti-submarine torpedoes. The Ikara missile system was subsequently added. In later service the ship was known by the nick-name ‘the Steel Cat’. The HMAS Brisbane saw operational service in two conflicts. During the Vietnam War the ship undertook two tours of duty with the United States Seventh Fleet, in 1969 and again in 1971. The ship’s major task was to provide gunfire support for the land campaign. During the Gulf War (1990-91), Brisbane was one of four Australian warships to serve a tour in Gulf waters. The Brisbane arrived in the Gulf in December 1990 and operated there until March 1991, performing a number of roles. Apart from contributing to the anti-aircraft defences in the carrier screen, the ship also kept watch for mines and ensured that small civilian craft kept well away from the carrier group. Later, during Operation Desert Storm, the Brisbane controlled fighter combat air patrols and tanker aircraft. The ship’s final role was as an escort for US replenishment ships. In 2003 HMAS Brisbane was retired from service in the Royal Australian Navy. The Brisbane was the last steam powered ship in the RAN. HMAS Brisbane was sunk as a recreational dive wreck off the coast of southern Queensland in July 2005.