Damen takes delivery of its 1,000th R-R azimuth thruster

FEBRUARY 9, 2017 — Damen Shipyards builds a lot of tugs, making it Rolls-Royce’s biggest customer for its azimuthing thrusters. 

The 1,000th and the 1,001st units — Rolls-Royce US 255 FP azimuth thrusters, each with a power of 2,525 kW — were recently delivered. They will be installed on a new Damen ASD2913 tug under construction in Romania, meeting customer demands for high bollard pull and cost efficiency.

Damen’s first ASD tug design with Rolls-Royce US azimuth thrusters was delivered in 1993, but the relationship dates back even further.

“In 1983, before its acquisition by Rolls-Royce, Rauma, Finland,based Aquamaster supplied the first retractable thruster for installation to the anchor handling tug Damen Dragon Fly,” said Ronald Lindeman, Rolls Royce, Marine Head of Sales, Central Europe West. “In 2002 the ASD 2810 tug design was introduced and is today one of the world’s most popular tug designs. More than 420 Rolls-Royce azimuth thrusters have been delivered to this series.

“The milestone delivery of the 1000th and 1001st US units underscores our partnership with Damen, our biggest customer for this type of thruster.”

Aila Lainio, Rolls-Royce, Marine Area Sales Manager, who has twenty years’ experience at the Rauma thruster plant, said: “You can say that Damen has become part of our life now. Rauma has produced a wide range of azimuth thrusters for Damen’s various tug designs. The ASD design and the Rolls-Royce US-type azimuth thrusters make a unique combination.”

She added: “We have worked closely in cooperation with Damen over the years to develop the optimum azimuth thruster range for tugs. We have a very creative and talented team in Rauma. Whenever Damen presents new requirements, we accept the challenge of developing solutions that allow us to continue being Damen’s first choice for propulsion equipment. We continually invest in research and development to optimise thruster performance and environmental efficiency. Ultimately we endeavor to design the best propulsion solution for all of our customers.”

Lindeman added: “We are constantly developing our azimuth thrusters to reach the customers’ expectations. Rolls-Royce is investing UKP 44 million in our production plant in Rauma to further strengthen our position as the leading supplier of azimuth thrusters. The work to transform the facility in Finland is underway and is due for completion in 2020.”