JANUARY 21, 2015—Evac Group has received an order to supply total waste management systems for four large cruise ships—the largest biggest cruise vessel contract in the company’s history. Evac Group says the order
JANUARY 17, 2016 — Finland’s Meyer Turku Oy has floated out Mein Schiff 5, the first ship to be contracted and totally built totally by the shipyard since coming under the ownership
JANUARY 11, 2016 — A 20.5 MW Azipod XO podded propulsion unit has left ABB’s Vuosaari plant in Helsinki, Finland, headed for Meyer Werft’s Papenburg, Germany, shipyard. It will be installed on
DECEMBER 30, 2015 — Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) reports that it has signed a memo of agreement with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri S.p.A. to build four new cruise ships
DECEMBER 21, 2015—The power of social media continues to grow. About 1.55 billion or 20 percent of the world’s population are active users of Facebook. Reality stars, politicos, jocks, and everyday jacks
At 40,700 gt and accommodating 596 passengers in all-suite accommodations, Silver Muse will be an evolution of the 36,000 gt, 540 passenger Silver Spirit, delivered in 2009 by Fincantieri’s Ancona shipyard.
The delivery of the ship is scheduled for spring 2017.
Yesterday’s keel laying ceremony included the tradition of welding a coin into the keel of the ship, though Silversea took things a step further by welding eight coins into the keel of Silver Muse.
Each coin represents one of the seven continents that Silversea ships sail to, along with a specially designed commemorative Silver Muse coin. The coins are:
The ceremony was attended by Silversea CEO Enzo Visone and Fincantieri shipyard director Raffaele Davassi.
“Today marks a significant milestone for Silversea with the birth of our newest ship,” said Mr. Visone. “We proudly sail to all seven continents, discovering new destinations and ports with our intimate, boutique vessels, and we are now one step closer to introducing Silver Muse to the fleet.
“With an unprecedented variety of dining options and a design across the ship that encourages open-air cruising, guests will be able to enjoy magnificent destinations as never before. Silversea looks forward to working closely with Fincantieri throughout the construction phase of Silver Muse and in the run-up to her launch in spring 2017.”
That’s the hope of the Japan based Peace Boat, an NGO that has Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the UN and serves as an official messenger for projects including the UNISDR Resilient Cities Campaign.
Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008, Peace Boat’s main means of taking its message to the world is through its ship, currently the chartered in Ocean Dream (which was delivered in 1982 as Carnival Cruise Line’s first newbuild, the Tropicale).
Since its establishment in 1983, and using a variety of ships, Peace Boat has organized over 80 voyages, carrying more than 50,000 people to over 180 ports.
Now, though, Peace Boat has scheduled a briefing that will be held December 5 in Paris during the COP21 conference. It will reveal more details of the design for its Ecoship, which it says will be the world’s “greenest” cruise ship, along with its plans for the ship’s maiden voyage in 2020.
The plans for the future-ready 55,000 ton Ecoship have been developed by a team of over 30 engineers, scientists and thinkers from the fields of shipbuilding and eco-technology (including renewable energy, architecture, and waste management).
With a hull form inspired by the whale, the vessel’s ecologically friendly features include 10 retractable solar-paneled sails and retractable wind generators, as well as a future-ready hybrid engine.
Peace Boat says that with its energy efficiency and projected cuts in CO2 emissions its Ecoship will be the flagship for green technology in passenger shipping, serving as a model for cruise operators worldwide.
“Peace Boat’s 2020 launch of the Ecoship offers a vision for a climate-friendly future and can lead the way towards a green cruising model that can also impact the wider shipping industry. The industry must adapt to the planet’s needs,” says Yoshioka Tatsuya, Founder and Director of Peace Boat.
“We are delighted to see wind propulsion being used on this innovative cruise ship design. The Ecoship will be a front runner in the design of lower impact cruise vessels and we will be working with the industry segment to help bring more wind propulsion solutions into the mix,” says Gavin Allwright, Secretary of the International Windship Association (IWSA), “IWSA has recently welcomed Peace Boat onboard as one of our newest members, and we look forward to working together over the coming years, helping to spread the message of low carbon, sustainable shipping worldwide.”
The contract covers the retrofit of a total of 30 turbochargers aboard the four cruise ships – two operated by Royal Caribbean International, and two operated by Pullmantur, a wholly-owned RCCL subsidiary — along with attachment kits and technical support.
The vessels Grandeur of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas are each equipped with four 12V48/60 MAN engines and will be retrofitted with a total of sixteen TCA55 turbochargers.
The vessels Horizon and Zenith, each equipped with two 9L40/54B and five 6L40/54B engines, will be retrofitted with a total of four NA40/S and ten NA34/S turbochargers.
“This turbocharger upgrade will not only boost engine performance but also extend engine life and support the entire operation both from a technical and cost perspective,” said Wayne Jones, Senior Vice President and Head of MAN PrimeServ Diesel, speaking at RCCL headquarters in Miami, FL. “In the end it’s an investment in sustainability.”
Gregory Purdy, Senior Vice President, Marine Operations, Royal Caribbean International, said: “Our ships are the best and most innovative in the world. Thus we are always eager to explore new solutions to increase their performance. We put high expectations on this turbocharger upgrade.”
“Our fleet has an outstanding reputation; our customers always expect the best vacation experience. To meet and even exceed this expectation we need reliable partners with focus on sustainability” said William Baumgartner, SVP Global Marine Operations at RCCL.
“RCCL’s vision is exactly what we strive to achieve: to exceed our customer’s expectations and this is exactly what we hope for in this project,” said Wayne Jones.
Installation of the first retrofit will take place aboard Enchantment of the Seas in December 2015 during its regular sailing schedule between Florida and the Bahamas. Each installation will take approximately 10 days per engine.
The project is being handled from MAN PrimeServ Turbocharger HQ in Augsburg,Germany, in close collaboration with the local MAN PrimeServ Diesel team in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
“The repositioning of Liberty of the Seas to the Port of Galveston represents Royal Caribbean’s confidence in the Port of Galveston’s efficient cruise operations and ability to attract passengers on its Freedom class ships,” said Mike Mierzwa, Port Director. “We are excited to homeport the largest cruise ship to sail from the State of Texas.”
Carnival Cruise Lines and Disney Cruises also operate out of the Port of Galveston. IN 2013, the Port of Galveston handled 1,208,802 passengers.
The 1,112 ft x 185 ft Liberty of the Seas will offer seven-night Western Caribbean cruise itineraries, including Isla Roatan, Honduras; Belize City Belize; Cozumel, Mexico; Falmouth, Jamaica; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; Montego Bay, Jamaica; and Costa Maya, Mexico as ports of call.
The seven retrofit installations will bring the total number of Hyde Guardian and Guardian Gold systems fitted on RCL group vessels to twenty-seven, including both newbuilds and retrofits.
Hyde Marine has already completed retrofits on over ten RCL vessels, and the orders issued for this next series of vessels will ensure the supply of treatment systems through 2016 in accordance with the compliance dates for each vessel.
The cruise line is one of seven Hyde Marine customers that have installed ten or more Guardian systems.
“Hyde Marine has been a valuable partner in assisting us as we navigate the new regulatory requirements for ballast water treatment,” said Michael Jones, Vice President Supply Chain Management, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. “Our crews are pleased with how easily and reliably the system operates, and with how seamlessly they integrate with existing automation systems.”
“Hyde Marine is very pleased to expand upon our successful partnership with RCL,” said John Platz, President Hyde Marine. “This clearly demonstrates our customer’s continued satisfaction with our products and service, and helps RCL to ensure compliance and commonality in their fleet.”
Hyde Marine has sold more than 430 of its ballast water treatment systems to date. The Hyde Guardian Gold BWTS uses space-efficient filtration and ultraviolet disinfection to treat ships’ ballast water to prevent the spread of invasive species from port to port.