Tech Solutions News

Built by Rauma Marine Constructions, in Rauma, Finland, and launched in 2021, the 150-meter-long Aurora Botnia boasts a long list of onboard equipment that help it to earn its “green” designation, a label that is confirmed via a Clean Design notation from classification society DNV. The ship is also compliant with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) 2030 greenhouse gas reduction target.Wasaline CEO Peter Ståhlberg describes Aurora Botnia as “a masterpiece of cooperation” and noted that the vessel is over 80% domestic made."I'm really proud of the Aurora Botnia.

Auxiliary wind propulsion systems provider Norsepower Oy Ltd. announced a contract with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd. for delivery of single Rotor Sails onboard two newbuild liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered, wind-assisted CO₂ carriers commissioned by the Northern Lights JV. Northern Lights JV is developing the transportation and storage component of Norway’s Longship project to decarbonize industrial emissions.The two liquified CO₂ carriers will be equipped with one 28x4m Norsepower Rotor Sail on each vessel.

WE Tech solutions received a new order to deliver its Economical Operations Solution to a series of two 86,000 cbm LPG carriers. The vessels are to be built for the Japanese shipping company NYK Line at Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan. The Contract was facilitated by The China & Japan Marine Industries Limited. The equipment delivery from WE Tech will commence in January 2023.The Economical Operations Solution package includes the Direct Drive Permanent Magnet Shaft Generator and a WE Drive.

Autonomous command and control systems developer Sea Machines Robotics announced it has advanced its multi-year Other Transaction (OT) agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). Phase 2 of the multiphase contract delegates $3.1 million to the deployment of a full-scale oceangoing replenishment platform.In October 2020, Boston-based Sea Machines was enlisted by the DoD to engineer, build and demonstrate ready-to-deploy system kits that transform existing commercial barges to platforms capable of landing and replenishing military aircraft.

WE Tech Solutions Oy in Vaasa, Finland won an order for its WE Drives to control the RENK Advanced Electric Drive (AED) onboard the Pohjanmaa-class Corvettes for The Finnish Defence Forces. The WE Drives are essential for smooth operation in the different operating modes of the Combined Diesel-Electric and Gas (CODELAG) Propulsion system. The WE Drives are supplied to RENK Augsburg, Germany, who is taking care of the overall integration of the electric propulsion and gearbox system.“This is our first Navy Project and marks an important milestone for WE Tech Solutions”, saidMr.

WE Tech won additional orders in South Korea to supply its permanent magnet shaft generator solutions to four LPG Carriers to be built by Hyundai Mipo DockyardThe shaft generator solution comes with frequency drive technology and is designed to produce all required electrical power needed for the vessel over a wide main engine speed range, aimed to deliver substantial fuel savings and reduction of maintenance cost by reducing auxiliary generator operation. “Our solution is compact and fits perfectly to this type of gas carriers.

WE Tech Solutions said it has received an order to deliver its Solution One Economical Operations to a series of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers being built by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. in South Korea. This 174,000-cubic-meter capacity LNG carrier series is owned by Knutsen OAS Shipping and will be chartered to Polish Oil Mining and Gas Extraction S.A..WE Tech said its delivery package includes two sets of direct drive permanent magnet shaft generators, variable speed frequency drives and dedicated power management System (DPMS).

Finnish energy efficiency solution provider WE Tech Solutions said it has received an order to complete its earlier scope of supply with energy storage systems (ESS) integrated in the package delivered earlier this year, including propulsion drives, permanent magnet shaft generator, shore connection switchgear, bow thruster motor and DC link for two new 22,000 DWT chemical and oil tankers built by Wuhu Shipyard Co. Ltd for the Swedish shipowner Rederi AB Donsötank.The ESS can…

WE Tech Solutions said Tuesday it has been awarded a contract to equip six additional newbuild liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers that will be chartered to Shell.The Finnish firm said it will deliver six shipsets of its Solution One for the 174,000m³ capacity LNG carriers, which are chartered to energy major Shell LNG via the owners Knutsen OAS Shipping, J.P.Morgan Asset Management and Korea Line Corporation. The order is an option to the earlier eight contracted in March, now also added with a second option for another six more.The vessels are being built by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co.…

Terminal operating systems (TOS) solutions provider Tideworks Technology has entered into a joint venture with software applications and consulting services company Brenock Technology to deliver tech solutions aimed at helping the cruise industry rebound from the coronavirus pandemic.Cruise lines and marine terminals are facing unprecedented disruption during the COVID-19 pandemic, with widespread suspension of services and concerns about the safety of workers and cruise passengers.Through the new joint venture…

A new reality demands a new approach. Asbjørn Halsebakke, Product Manager, Yaskawa Environmental Energy / The Switch, argues that we can’t afford to let the greatest opportunity within the current crisis slip away.We can’t celebrate a pandemic. People are dying. Economies are crashing. Unemployment rates are rocketing. We are distanced – from those we love, but also from our immediate past. Life as we know it has been turned upside down. So, we can’t celebrate. But nature can.Instant impactAs we have retreated into our homes, the natural world has come out to play.

Denmark-based GreenSteam, a majority owned company of BP, has acquired BMT’s data collection and performance optimisation subsidiary UK-based firm SMART. The marine efficiency software solutions provider is reputable in leveraging Machine Learning methodologies and next generation fuel saving platforms to stimulate the sustainable development of Shipping and World Sea Trade.The sale of SMART, a data collection and performance optimization software solution, to GreenSteam, follows a strategic business review by BMT to focus on its core Infrastructure, Defense and Security, Commercial Shipping and Environmental divisions and, as well,…

WE Tech Solutions, a leading energy efficiency solution provider, has received an order to supply an integrated package, including Propulsion Drives, Permanent Magnet Shaft Generator, Shore Connection Switchgear, Bow Thruster Motor and DC Link to two new 22000 DWT tankers for chemical and oil products with an option for another two. The tankers are built by Wuhu Shipyard Co. Ltd for the Swedish ship owner Rederi AB Donsötank. WE Tech’s equipment delivery to Wuhu Shipyard will…

Wilhelmsen and Rainmaking’s announced a partnership aiming to spin-out and scale-up existing innovative solutions researched and developed by Wilhelmsen with potential to scale across the industry. Wilhelmsen’s Digi Boiler is the first project to benefit from this collaboration.Minimizing the risks associated with poor boiler water management, Wilhelmsen’s automated boiler water dosing system monitors boiler water condition, dosing chemicals as and when they are needed. Delivering real-time condition monitoring, essential data is accessible to both the vessel’s crew and onshore staff, via a custom- made portal.Recently granted an “Approval in Principle” (AIP) by DNV GL…

Bunkering liquefied biogas (LBG) at the Port of Gothenburg will become easier for the shipping sector with a new agreement signed between FordonsGas and Swedegas."The new agreement between FordonsGas and Swedegas will ensure access to this renewable fuel, a move that has been sought by both shipping companies and their customers," said a press release.Shipping needs to make the transition from oil to environmentally smart alternatives. Liquefied natural gas, LNG, is currently the cleanest marine fuel available due to lower emissions of carbon dioxide, sulphur oxide, nitric oxide, and particulates.With renewable liquefied biogas, LBG, climate benefits will increase even further with the addition of net-zero carbon emissions.

WE Tech Solutions Oy (WE Tech) has been awarded the contract for delivery of an avant-garde Hybrid Electric Propulsion solution to Rauma Marine Construction Oy (RMC).The solution includes Propulsion drives, Energy Storage System (battery banks and DCDC converters), Main Propulsion Switchboards, Shore connection switchgears, Energy Management System and the Propulsion Control System. WE Tech and RMC will together bring Wasaline’s new RoPax ferry to the next level of sustainable shipping. The new ferry is being built by RMC in Rauma Finland and is scheduled for delivery in May 2021.

The  provider of energy-efficient solutions for shipbuilding, WE Tech Solutions has been awarded the contract for delivery of an avant-garde Hybrid Electric Propulsion solution to Rauma Marine Construction (RMC).The solution includes Propulsion drives, Energy Storage System (battery banks and DCDC converters), Main Propulsion Switchboards, Shore connection switchgears, Energy Management System and the Propulsion Control System.WE Tech and RMC will together bring Wasaline’s new RoPax ferry to the next level of sustainable shipping. The new ferry is being built by RMC in Rauma Finland and is scheduled for delivery in May 2021.The Ice Class 1A Super ferry…

A new Danish maritime research, development and innovation partnership has been established under the name of ShippingLab.Danish shipping company J. Lauritzen together with Maersk Tankers, DFDS, Torm and a range of other shipping companies, industrial maritime suppliers, research and technology institutions and universities have formed the partnership, where industry and academia work together with the purpose of solving practical issues to the benefit of society.The overarching goal of the partnership is to develop Denmark’s first autonomous, environmentally friendly ship. The pathway to achieving that goal will also include workstreams on digital ship operation and decarbonisation.The workstream on digital ship operation will focus on the development of intelligent solutions…

Orca AI launched to prevent maritime collisions by providing AI-backed navigational solutions for the shipping industry, backed by a $2.6 million seed round led by MizMaa Ventures and including funding from Ray Carriers and The Dock.Collisions and other maritime incidents have been on the rise for the past several years, jumping from 2,000 in 2011 to an estimated 4,000 in 2017. The vast majority of maritime collisions occur in congested waterways, often in areas near ports or in narrow waterways. Current navigation tools are less effective in these situations and rely on the crew’s judgment to navigate safely, providing room for human error which is the cause of more than 75% of collisions.Orca AI’s system is designed for crowded waterways and the harshest, lowest visibility, scenarios.

France-based Port Community System operator SOGET, in close collaboration with French customs, port authorities, ferry companies and road hauliers, will offer an integrated e-freight corridor based on a digitalized anticipation of information flows related to cross-Channel goods."Cross-channel RO-RO traffic of trucks and its logistics’ fluidity in ports are crucial matters for the competitiveness of the Great-Britain - Europe corridor. With 5 million trucks on the coastal border territory, the current port infrastructure cannot deal with a new logistics border," said a press release from the Le Havre headquartered public-private partnership between the Port Community of Le Havre…

The world’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fueled handysize bulk carrier, M/V Haaga, was delivered from Chinese shipbuilder from Jinling Shipyard in Nanjing to Finnish shipowner ESL Shipping, in August.The first-of-its-kind vessel features innovative solutions from Finnish hybrid solutions company WE Tech, including Economical Operations and Boost Mode with the direct drive permanent magnet shaft generator, that help minimize energy consumption and emissions to reduce the ship's environmental footprint.The Economical Operations…

No two oil spill response operations are the same. Each can present new and even tougher challenges for spill responders as they detect, contain and recover spilled oil. Diverse aspects affecting oil spill response operations can be the physical environment, spill monitoring, use of chemical dispersants, and the availability of proper technology for the situation.Some challenges have been met through research and technology development of techniques for dealing with spills. However…

The road toward autonomy has taken a major step with the announcement that Wilhelmsen and Kongsberg are collectively taking the next step in autonomous shipping by offering a complete value chain for autonomous ships, from design and development, to control systems, logistics services and vessel operations. The new venture is dubbed "Massterly". What is Massterly? The Massterly plan is to have land-based control centers monitor and operate autonomous ships globally, tapping Kongsberg's tech solutions and Wilhelmsen's logistics and ship management operations.