Innovation agency backs Royston research project

The support for the £1.5 million project, which is being conducted in collaboration with Newcastle University’s School of Marine Science & Technology, is coming from Innovate UK, the U.K.’s government sponsored innovation agency

The project is focused on producing a system for the complete understanding of the complex energy flows around a vessel.

Energy use and consumption on vessels will be measured through a physical monitoring system integrated with dedicated software and the development of new products and services to aid vessel efficiency.

The three-year project will initially focus on developing a system examining total energy flows and vessel energy architecture for smaller vessels, then for progressively larger vessels provided by maritime and shipping companies Svitzer, Topaz and CalMac Ferries, who are collaborative partners on the project.

The ultimate goal is to reduce the environmental impact of shipping and maritime activities, such as the reduction of CO2 emissions and poisonous air pollutants both when the vessel is at sea, and mitigating the effect on near-by communities when the vessel is in port.

The system will also focus on the prevention of catastrophic faults and failures through early warning diagnostics. It is predicted that the proposed whole-vessel system will generate considerable financial reward to end-users from efficiency savings and reduced “port dues” for ships demonstrating compliance towards reduced energy consumption.

Lawrence Brown, Managing Director of Royston Diesel Power, said: “We are delighted that Royston’s reputation as innovators in marine engineering has been recognized by the award of this grant by Innovate UK to help us develop our marine offering.

“The Managing Energy on Marine Vessels program is ambitious and challenging as the performance of one system within a vessel is under the influence of many other interconnected systems, all of which effect the whole-vessel energy usage.

“The project will push boundaries and allow us to develop new methodologies and technologies. The collaboration with Newcastle University is particularly important from a research standpoint and allows the project to benefit the wider marine and academic community as a whole.

“For Royston, we hope that this project will bring an excellent return on investment and added value to the company and our suppliers from significantly increased sales in the UK, Europe and elsewhere.”

Eric Snyder celebrates 40 years with Art Anderson

 

Mr. Snyder recruited by the company’s founder, Art Anderson, and has served as the company’s lead naval architect for the second and third generation Anderson CEOs.

Ben Anderson, President & CEO, sums up his time with Mr. Snyder by saying “I’ve had the pleasure of working side by side with Eric for four years now. Eric was my mentor for two years as I transitioned careers from shipboard operations to design engineering. I admire much about Eric, but mostly his dedication to the team, finding the best answer to a client’s problem and, ultimately, his loyalty to Art Anderson Associates. I like to think I share the same appreciations for Eric as my grandfather did back in 1975 when he recruited him from the University of Michigan.”

Mr. Snyder is appreciated by fellow employees for his keen eye to detail and knowledge of the industry.He is described by the company as “a selfless professional and lover of good science (who) has applied insight, wit and, of course, great knowledge to ensure people and products attained full potential. He has mentored young engineers and designers and trained over a dozen naval architects and marine engineers in the field of basic hydrostatics, stability analysis, structural calculations, and regulatory requirements. His education of others has ensured the art of naval architecture will not be lost in the ever advancing software technology.”

Cited as the “best naval architect on the West Coast” in the area of trim and stability, Mr. Snyder has worked on over a hundred different vessels for clients around the country, including nearly every vessel in the NOAA, Washington State Ferry, and Alaska Marine Highway System fleets.

He has adapted with the times of technology, having the combined knowledge and ability to perform calculations by hand as well as through the latest available software.

Although hard for him to narrow down, he says that one favorite project was working on the design and construction for the U.S. Coast Guard Buoy Utility Stern Loading (BUSL) boat in the mid-1990s. As the on-site construction naval architect, Mr. Snyder would be asked questions about all aspects of the ship and responded with design direction, avoiding construction delays.

“It isn’t often I have worked on a vessel from start to finish and it was a treat to take this vessel from concept to ocean,” he says.

“Eric bridges three generations of leadership at Art Anderson Associates” says former CEO Eric Anderson. “As one of two named company Fellow Associates, an honor recognizing technical leadership and commitment to the company’s mission, Eric has epitomized the technical leadership that will be celebrated in the sixtieth year of the firm in 2017.”

Wartsila solutions chosen for first LNT A-BOX LNG carrier

The vessel is being built for Saga LNG Shipping Pte. Ltd., a new LNG player backed by Shanghai based Landmark Capital, at China Merchants Heavy Industry’s Haimen based shipyard in China’s Eastern Jiangsu province.

Originally, plans were to build the ship at Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry, but, for undisclosed reasons, the project was delayed and to meet strict deadlines with potential end-users, the project was moved to another shipyard.

Now set to be delivered in early 2018, the vessel will be the to utilize the LNT A-BOX containment system (see earlier story), licensed and designed by another company backed by Landmark Capital, LNG New Technologies (LNT).

Wärtsilä has been contracted to supply the complete cargo handling system including the fuel system, as well as the main propulsion system.

The Wärtsilä cargo handling system for LNG carriers has an integrated fuel system utilizing both compressors and forced vaporizing. The automation and safety control systems are state-of-the-art, while the Wärtsilä cargo pumps include the EFP pump series, the latest development for LNG fuel and spray.

The total solution package comprising the cargo and propulsion systems is designed to attain maximum overall efficiency for the vessel, thereby producing notable savings in operating costs. Furthermore, the total solution concept minimizes interfacing and system design risk during the vessel building process.

“This will be a very modern and highly efficient LNG Carrier and we were selected because our technologies in both the propulsion equipment and cargo handling are world leading,” says Timo Koponen, Vice President, Flow and Gas Solutions, Wärtsilä. “The new ship has been designed for worldwide trade of LNG, but with special consideration given to the reloading of cargoes and local and regional trading. Therefore, the cargo handling system and the fuel efficiency of the engine have to be the most efficient possible. Our unmatched track record with proven LNG technologies and dual-fuel solutions was a key factor in the award of this valuable contract.”

Wärtsilä’s scope of supply includes a comprehensive propulsion package comprising a 12-cylinder Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel main engine, 6-cylinder and 8-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual-fuel generating sets, a Wärtsilä controllable pitch propeller (CPP), a Wärtsilä Energopac efficiency rudder, a Wärtsilä gearbox, and a Wärtsilä tunnel thruster.

Delivery of the Wärtsilä equipment to the shipyard will commence in late 2016.

Wartsila solutions chosen for first LNT A-BOX LNG carrier

Wärtsilä has been contracted to supply the complete cargo handling system including the fuel system, as well as the main propulsion system.

The vessel is being built for Saga LNG Shipping Pte. Ltd., a new LNG player backed by Shanghai based Landmark Capital, at China Merchants Heavy Industry’s Haimen based shipyard in China’s Eastern Jiangsu province.

Originally, plans were to build the ship at Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry, but, for undisclosed reasons, the project was delayed and to meet strict deadlines with potential end-users, the project was moved to another shipyard.

lntabox300Now set to be delivered in early 2018, the vessel will be the to utilize the LNT A-BOX containment system (see earlier story), licensed and designed by another company backed by Landmark Capital, LNG New Technologies (LNT).

The Wärtsilä cargo handling system for LNG carriers has an integrated fuel system utilizing both compressors and forced vaporizing. The automation and safety control systems are state-of-the-art, while the Wärtsilä cargo pumps include the EFP pump series, the latest development for LNG fuel and spray.

The total solution package comprising the cargo and propulsion systems is designed to attain maximum overall efficiency for the vessel, thereby producing notable savings in operating costs. Furthermore, the total solution concept minimizes interfacing and system design risk during the vessel building process.

“This will be a very modern and highly efficient LNG Carrier and we were selected because our technologies in both the propulsion equipment and cargo handling are world leading,” says Timo Koponen, Vice President, Flow and Gas Solutions, Wärtsilä. “The new ship has been designed for worldwide trade of LNG, but with special consideration given to the reloading of cargoes and local and regional trading. Therefore, the cargo handling system and the fuel efficiency of the engine have to be the most efficient possible. Our unmatched track record with proven LNG technologies and dual-fuel solutions was a key factor in the award of this valuable contract.”

Wärtsilä’s scope of supply includes a comprehensive propulsion package comprising a 12-cylinder Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel main engine, 6-cylinder and 8-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual-fuel generating sets, a Wärtsilä controllable pitch propeller (CPP), a Wärtsilä Energopac efficiency rudder, a Wärtsilä gearbox, and a Wärtsilä tunnel thruster.

Delivery of the Wärtsilä equipment to the shipyard will commence in late 2016.

DNV GL and Hempel cooperate on performance analytics

The agreement is based on the use of DNV GL’s ECO Insight portal.

Torsten Büssow, Head of Fleet Performance Management at DNV GL, says that ECO Insight’s state of the art hull degradation analytics will not give Hempel customers transparent and verified data with only a few simple measurement inputs while giving Hempel access to advanced analytics for the further optimization of its coatings.

“We’ve already seen the benefits our customers have gained from having real fleet performance analytics easily available – especially in the area of hull and propeller performance – and we’d like to welcome Hempel customers to the ECO Insight family,” says Mr. Büssow.

The potential for improvements in hull and propeller performance on the energy efficiency of vessels is significant, with estimates of potential savings in the range of ten percent in terms of fuel and greenhouse gas emissions savings.

ECO Insight can offer better performance baselines and demonstrate a more explicit relationship between hull and propeller performance and the actual fuel consumed. This allows customers who have invested in Hempel’s coatings the ability to better quantify the value of their investment.

“At Hempel we place great importance in being close to our customers and providing the best individual service,” says Christian Ottosen, Group Vice President Marine Marketing, Hempel. “With the data analyzed by DNV GL, we will be able to optimize our customers’ fuel performance, improving hull performance matching specifications precisely to individual needs and trade, dry dock intervals and technical service in dock. This will benefit our customers and support their businesses being more efficient in their operations. So far, we have been very pleased to cooperate with DNV GL, and we look forward to working even more closely with their staff from now on.”

With one of the most sophisticated analysis methodologies for hull and propeller performance on the market, ECO Insight uses advanced normalization algorithms to increase the accuracy of its analysis and is able to benchmark a vessel’s performance relative to other similar vessels. Additionally, by tapping into additional ship specific data (beyond what is used to calculate performance) ECO Insight’s analytics can be used to further customize paint specifications up front and to proactively manage performance once the ship enters service.

Gibbs & Cox acquires Donald L. Blount and Associates

“DLBA’s new association with Gibbs & Cox will significantly enhance DLBA’s depth and breadth in providing timely and quality high performance marine solutions to our world-wide market, while continuing to foster and maintain our important and close relationships with our clients,” said Don Blount, President of DLBA. “This new relationship with Gibbs & Cox will provide our clients with the assurance of new technology application and expert staff reach-back from one of the largest, premier naval architecture and marine engineering firms in the world. We are proud of the many accomplishments of DLBA over the last twenty-seven years and look forward to being an integral part of Gibbs & Cox.”

“With this key strategic acquisition, Gibbs & Cox continues our strategy aligned to provide high performance marine craft solutions to our military and paramilitary clients,” said Gibbs & Cox Chief Executive and President Rick Biben, “as well as continued expansion of our commercial market areas in engineering, design and construction management of vessels including mega yachts, commercial craft, and production boats.”  

Mr. Biben emphasized Gibbs & Cox’s focus on expansion and innovation. “We will continue to identify and pursue other candidate companies to further expand our vision,” he said, adding, “Our agreement with DLBA further solidifies Gibbs & Cox’s industry leadership role in the in the design and development of some of the most prestigious and capable maritime craft afloat today.”

Founded by Mr. Blount in 1988, DLBA specializing in the technical development of high-performance marine craft consulting services related to the design, evaluation, testing, and construction management of motor yachts, custom sport fishing boats, production boats, commercial, military and paramilitary vessels.

Independent and privately held, Gibbs & Cox is a global leader in maritime engineering and design, with nearly 7,000 vessels designed to its standards since 1929. Gibbs & Cox supports military and commercial clients in the U.S. and internationally with all phases of marine design, construction, and lifecycle management.

Algoma adds more Equinox newbuilds to order book

Today, Algoma said that contracts for two ships had been made effective with the delivery of refund guarantees by the shipyard, China’s Jiangsu Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

“Our search for a shipyard in China to replace the now-bankrupt Nantong Mingde Heavy Industries (“Mingde”) led us to Yangzijiang,” said Ken Bloch Soerensen, President and CEO of Algoma. “We have been pleased with the professionalism and enthusiasm the yard has shown for our project and the quality that they have shown on work done for other shipowners.”

The announcement of the two ship order at Yangzijiang follows a November 25 announcement that contracts for three Equinox newbuilds with Uljanik d.d. of Croatia had become effective with delivery by the yard of security for the contractually required construction installments.

Algoma now has five Equinox Class ships under construction at the Uljanik Group’s 3Maj shipyard in Rijeka.All the vessels will have an overall length of 225.55 metres (740 feet) and a beam of 23.77 metres (78 feet), qualifying as Seaway Max size ships. The vessels will carry 29,300 tonnes at maximum Seaway draft.

The two most recently ordered at Uljanik will feature a boom-forward configuration designed to provide greater flexibility in certain delivery situations. The others will feature a standard rear boom.

The new Equinox vessels will have all of the features of the existing Equinox design, including the exhaust gas scrubber technology pioneered by Algoma on the Great Lakes in its first Equinox Class gearless bulk carriers.

With seven ships now under construction, Algoma expects to invest approximately $450 million in this phase of its fleet renewal program. It is also reviewing its fleet plan and considering the retirement of certain older vessels.

ABB takes wraps off two turbocharger developments

DECEMBER 1, 2015 — ABB has used the Marintec 2015 event in Shanghai, China, to launch two new products. One is the large engine industry’s first commercial turbocharging air outlet silencer package

ABB takes wraps off two turbocharger developments

The air outlet silencer is the first product available to the market to reduce noise emissions for turbochargers on low-speed marine engines. It reduces the noise level of compressed air leaving the turbocharger and is a key element in ABB’s noise reduction packages, now available for A100-L and A200-L turbochargers. The turbocharger noise reduction package contains additional special noise damping elements and has been designed to meet IMO noise emission standards revised in July 2014.

The revised SOLAS regulation II-1/3-12 requires new ships to be constructed to reduce on-board noise and to protect personnel from noise in accordance with the revised Code on Noise Levels On Board Ships. Mandatory maximum noise levels are set out for all spaces on ships; for accommodation areas this is a reduction to 55 dB(A) from 60 dB(A).

The ABB air outlet silencer has been designed to reduce air-related noise emissions by approximately 5 dB, depending on the turbocharger location, and other variables.

“With up to a 5 dB reduction in noise emissions, the noise level perceived by a human ear is almost reduced by half, thus making a considerable contribution to the noise level limit set by the IMO SOLAS regulations, said Joachim Bremer, Head of Product Line, Low Speed, ABB Turbocharging. “The development of the air outlet silencer underlines our focus on the safe operation of our turbocharging products, and on reducing environmental pollution. In creating a quieter working environment for seafarers, we are bringing to our customers the ABB Group commitment to occupational health & safety.”

abb dk blu thingNew small turbocharger

The newly launched A160-L completes ABB’s series of turbochargers for low speed engines and is designed for operational flexibility and sustained high efficiencies in small-bore diesel, dual fuel and gas engines. The product enables reduction of engine fuel consumption and lower emissions – two key concerns for customers. The axial-turbine design with high efficiency and robustness enables the application of latest technologies for IMO Tier III compliance without compromise on fuel economy, thereby fulfilling customer needs.

Smaller in size than the well-known A165-L, the A 160-L allows more space on the engine. In addition, it offers simplified, rapid maintenance in line with market demand.

“Our A100/A200 series is proven technology, delivering unrivaled performance in its class,” says Mr. Bremer. “The design for highest efficiencies enables optimized engine tunings, thereby reducing fuel consumption and emissions on-board some of the largest vessels in the world. With the A160-L we are now able to deliver the same benefits for small-bore low speed engines. In addition, we have listened to our customers’ requirements to maximize uptime, resulting in a product that is easier to maintain, with longer service intervals so operators can be assured of their turbochargers’ reliability, literally from dry dock to dry dock.”

New seal can be fully serviced underwater

The new Sternguard In-Water Serviceable Seal is the first product of its kind on the market, offering customers increased uptime and lifecycle efficiency.

The fully split, underwater serviceable seal is designed to minimize overhaul downtime and costs. Designed and built to the highest standards, the oil-lubricated outboard face type seal is available for stern tubes and thrusters. The seal has been designed to provide a smoother, faster service, as well as enhanced overall performance and endurance.

“We are very excited about the Sternguard In-Water Serviceable Seal, as it is the first fully diveable seal on the market,” says Wärtsilä Director, Seals and Bearings Damian O’Toole. “We at Wärtsilä understand that the first priority of our customers is uptime, and they naturally want to avoid unnecessary disruptions. This innovative new seal is yet another Wärtsilä solution to optimize the operations of our customers: overhauls can be carried out underwater for the Sternguard IWSS without having to set up a habitat or even to unload the cargo.”

Wartsila Sternguard In Water Serviceable SealThe Wärtsilä Sternguard In-Water Serviceable Seal can be used to retrofit any other type of seal and is available for merchant, offshore, IWW and cruise & ferry vessel types, running on Environmentally Acceptable Lubricants (EALs) or mineral oils. Retrofit and service in dry dock can be carried out without removing the propeller or shaft, and it is not necessary to drain oil from the stern tube for underwater overhaul.

The Sternguard IWSS also includes an inflatable emergency seal and inner rope guard for enhanced protection.

“With its easy retrofit and serviceability, this unique new seal offers flexibility of operations to customers across industries. At the same time, additional safety features ensure continuous reliability. Wärtsilä has a long history in designing and manufacturing first-rate seals to answer the needs of each and every customer segment, and the Sternguard In-Water Serviceable Seal is a fresh example of that expertise,” Mr. O’Toole concludes.

Wärtsilä Sternguard In-Water Serviceable Seal

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