Proprietary Technology News

Thordon Bearings reports it has secured a second major Mexican Navy contract for the supply of its water-lubricated SXL wear rings for retrofit installation to the waterjet propulsion nozzles on 25 interceptor patrol vessels.The contract follows the success of extensive trials in which the SXL material replaced the use of other anti-corrosive coatings in waterjet impeller housings, resulting in increased resistance to cavitation induced corrosion.Rotary Parts, Thordon’s authorized distributor in Mexico, is supplying the housings for 25 Polaris and Polaris II fast patrol boats.

Greek commercial ship management company Signal Maritime Services and tanker vessel trader Heidmar join forces to deliver commercial management to the global tanker market.Both companies have agreed a milestone partnership, under which Signal will manage a joint tanker fleet using its proprietary technology and analytical approach, said a press release.Signal’s Artificial-Intelligence-backed solution to pool management has consistently delivered superior earnings to its pool members since its launch in 2018.Commercial management of 18 Aframax vessels in Heidmar’s Sigma Pool will be handled by Signal with immediate effect, with a transition period of one month.Signal will also be working with the Heidmar team to manage the LR2 vessels in its Sigma Pool…

Clariant  signed a joint research agreement with ExxonMobil and Renewable Energy Group (REG) to evaluate the potential use of cellulosic sugars from sources such as agricultural waste and residues to produce biofuel, which has the potential to play a role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.The new partnership expands a previously announced agreement[1] for joint research between ExxonMobil and REG, in which the companies successfully validated the ability of REG Life Sciences…

While there remains much debate as to what an autonomous future looks like in the maritime sector, one company, Sea Machines, is helping to pace the field with product development, partnerships and investment.Sea Machines Robotics announced today that it had closed a $10 million Series A investment led by Accomplice VC, with participation from several corporate titans including Toyota AI Ventures; Brunswick Corp., through investment partner TechNexus Venture Collaborative; Eniac Ventures…

Winterthur Gas & Diesel (WinGD) and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) Group recently signed, the first agreement of its kind to integrate their advanced digital technologies to provide greater insight and benefit to ship owners from their engine and ship data. This collaboration will provide shipping companies with extensive digital knowledge allowing them to reduce the ship’s operational cost while providing insight on how to operate the ship and its engine more efficiently. Through their combined expertise HHI and WinGD will be able to offer enhanced customer understanding and support, to ensure quick and accurate responses to challenges related to engine and ship operations. WinGD developed the Engine Diagnostic System (EDS) for creating valuable insight from engine and ship data.

Maersk Fluid Technology (MFT) has reported a recent influx of orders for its SEA-Mate Blending-on-Board (BOB) system as confirmation of industry demand for technological solutions that enable ship operators to blend fit-for-purpose cylinder lubricant compositions on board their vessels that match actual engine operating conditions and fuel sulphur levels. The use of this type of technology can reduce cylinder oil consumption and alleviate issues such as cold corrosion and excessive cylinder wear, according to MFT.

With a belief that innovation in shipping has fallen well behind other sectors, new entrant into the maritime industry Nisomar has launched a range of services for ship owners, operators, brokers, charterers and financial institutions. Nisomar said it has pioneered a method of collecting global shipping data and created proprietary technology, based upon technology that generates highly accurate business-critical data. The firm will derive insights from big data to offer analytics that support business decisions…

A wave of cutting edge U.S. maritime innovations will be highlighted in Southampton, U.K. this October during three specialist one day events for the sub IMO / sub 24 meter professional sector. The unique NEXT GENERATION Workshops bring together an international group of experts armed with the latest knowledge to identify problems that affect the maritime sector worldwide – and highlight potential solutions. Workshop Lead John Haynes said, “We focus on viable innovation and using people’s time effectively.

Bear Head LNG Corporation Inc. (Bear Head LNG) received Nova Scotia Environment’s (NSE) approval for its Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Management Plan for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility on the Strait of Canso in Richmond County, Nova Scotia. The GHG Management Plan provides Bear Head LNG’s strategy for managing GHG emissions through technology selection, design of the facility, and operations. “Approval of Bear Head LNG’s GHG Management Plan is welcome news,” said Greg Vesey, Managing Director and CEO of LNGL and President of Bear Head LNG. “Bear Head LNG is designing a best-in-class LNG facility, utilizing state of the art technology.

A unique program of three specialist events for the sub IMO / sub 24 meter professional sector is being held back to back at the Grand Harbor in Southampton, U.K. this October. The fast moving workshop style program brings together an international group of experts armed with the latest knowledge to identify problems that affect the maritime sector worldwide – and highlight potential solutions. Next Generation SHOCK MITIGATION Workshop on October 25, 2016 focuses on shock mitigation solutions.

AIDA Cruises’ new flagship AIDAprima docked in Britain’s Southampton port for the first time on the morning of April 27, 2016, as part of a four-day short cruise. AIDAprima will become the first cruise ship to depart from a German port all year round, from May 3 onwards visiting Southampton on Mondays as part of seven-day cruises to Western European cities from Hamburg. From April 30, 2016 Hamburg will be the departure and arrival port for seven-day round trips to cities such as London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.

Visitors to the 2016 European Marine Engineering Conference in Amsterdam this year will be able to hear a keynote speech from Maersk Fluid Technology managing director Jens Byrgesen, who will talk about his company’s success with “Blending-On-Board” lubrication technology. Maersk’ SEA-Mate Blending-On-Board concept is based on proprietary technology designed to enable the operator to custom blend a fit-for-purpose cylinder lubricant from recycled two-stroke system oil and a cylinder oil concentrate with a base-number up above 300 BN.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) completed delivery of the AIDAprima, the first of two large cruise ships being built for AIDA Cruises at MHI's Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works. A ceremony to mark the occasion was attended by Michael Thamm, CEO of the Costa Group, and Felix Eichhorn, President of AIDA Cruises, representing the new owner, and Shunichi Miyanaga, President and CEO, and Yoichi Kujirai, Senior Executive Vice President and President/CEO of Commercial Aviation & Transportation Systems, representing MHI.

Recently installed aboard the R/V Sikuliaq was Allied Marine Crane’s innovatively redesigned A-Frame crane, which aims to improve the safety and capability of the marine research industry. Built at Allied Systems’ 250,000 sq. foot mfg. facility in Sherwood, Ore., the A-Frame was installed aboard 261-foot oceanographic research ship at the Bay Ship & Yacht Co. in Alameda, Calif. Delivery and installation was completed just about one year from the receipt of order. “We expect the A-Frame to do everything we designed it to do.

ABS  has awarded approval in principle (AIP) for Hyundai Heavy Industries' next-generation HD12000 heavy duty, wide beam drillship design. The drillship, which can accommodate a 20,000-psi blowout preventer system, has been designed in full compliance with the ABS Guide for the Classification of Drilling Systems (CDS Guide) and other applicable ABS Rules and industry standards. The HD12000 drillship will be capable of operating in 12,000 ft (3,658 m) water depth with a drilling depth to 40,000 ft (12,192 m).

Privately held, American-based On-Site Analysis, Inc. (OSA), a manufacturer of high-tech, on-premise, automated fluids analysis equipment, has now expanded into the maritime industry with the introduction of the OBA ShipCheck, an on-board analyzer. With a physical footprint of just four square feet and weighing only 95 pounds, and using the same ASTM methods as outside labs, the OBA ShipCheck conducts diagnostic fluids analysis for marine engine lubricants, marine grease and gear lubricants, generators, hydraulics, air compressors, scrape down oils and many more fluids.

DeepFlight announced it will introduce a new type of personal submarine at the 2014 Monaco Yacht Show. The company said its new product, the DeepFlight Dragon, is the most compact, lightweight personal submarine on the market, and is so intuitive to use that clients self-pilot the craft with minimal instruction. The all-electric (zero emissions) DeepFlight Dragon was designed specifically for easy use from yacht or shore to explore the twilight zone down to 400 feet (120 meters).

Caterpillar Marine say they will unveil a significant product milestone at the 2013 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, introducing the Cat® Three60 Pod 650, which is specifically designed for the new Cat C8.7 electronically controlled marine propulsion engine. The new Cat Three60 Pod 650 revolutionizes docking and slow-speed maneuvering for diesel-powered yachts. Available in spring 2015, the pod is specifically designed to be remarkably easy for customers to learn, with easy ‘push, twist and go’ maneuvering.

Scottish gas reforming company Gas2 is on track with the development of the next generation of natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) technology with a test program that is underway at its newly constructed pilot reactor plant. The £5 million plant, located at the specialist petrochemical research Wilton Center, Teeside, has been designed to validate five years of laboratory testing and computational fluid dynamic modeling. It has been built on time and on budget and is on schedule with an extensive test program that will continue throughout 2013. Aberdeen-based Gas2 has developed a catalytic ceramic based porous membrane (pMRTM) that is used in its gas reforming (Syngas) reactors and fluid forming (Fischer Tropsch) reactors to create liquid hydrocarbons.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) began construction today at its Nagasaki Shipyard and Machinery Works on the first of two new generation cruise ships for AIDA Cruises, the German cruise company part of Costa Group, Europe's largest cruise company member of Carnival Corporation & plc. MHI said the two new ships, which will incorporate an array of the world's leading-edge environmental technologies, are scheduled for delivery in the spring of March 2015 and 2016 respectively.

An investment research report draws attention to Scout Exploration, Inc. developers of a unique airborne oil spill technology response system. The system is designed to contain offshore and shoreline oil spills, of which there are hundreds every year, ranging from tens of millions of gallons to millions of barrels of oil in size, causing up to tens of billions of dollars' worth of ecological and business damages. Through a recent transaction, Scout has acquired the rights to what may be the most effective method of oil spill containment and remediation.

US EPA awards Blue Water Satellite contract to providie satellite data for an epidemiological study of 4 beaches. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded a contract to Blue Water Satellite of Bowling Green, OH to provide unique historical data regarding the concentrations of potentially harmful Cyanobacteria, Chlorophyll-a, and Phosphorus at four Great Lakes beaches. This historical data will be used as part of an epidemiological study to potentially correlate concentrations of various biological constituents with human health effects.

Designed to Achieve 30% Reduction in Fuel Consumption Per Car. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), jointly with Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., has received an order to build two next-generation pure car and truck carriers (PCTC) for Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line). Formal contract signing will take place soon. In building the two vessels, MHI will provide Imabari with design information on PCTC incorporating advanced ship technologies, including installation of various devices and systems to reduce environmental burdens, such as the Mitsubishi Air Lubrication System (MALS).