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Technology Advancements News

28 Jul 2022

US Navy Exercises Option for L3Harris Submarine Imaging Masts

(Image: U.S. Navy)

L3Harris Technologies reports the U.S. Navy has exercised an option on its previously awarded contract to produce enhanced submarine imaging masts and spares.L3Harris said it will provide two configurations of its Type 20 low-profile mast to meet the Navy’s operational requirements. Production will be performed at L3Harris’ Northampton, Mass. facility, with initial deliveries scheduled to begin in 2024.L3Harris describes its Type 20 mast as a modular non-hull-penetrating imaging…

18 Apr 2022

New Neoteric Hovercraft Powered by Briggs & Stratton

(Image: Briggs & Stratton)

The newest hovercraft from Neoteric Hovercraft Inc. (Neoteric), the Hovertrek II, will be exclusively powered by Briggs & Stratton's Vanguard BIG BLOCK 40.0 Gross HP EFI - Marine engine.Designed for volunteer rescue departments and recreational hovercraft use, the two-passenger Hovertrek II includes side-by-side seating, increased thrust and low weight. The enhanced controllability, storage capacity and low weight of the two-passenger vessel make it an ideal training vehicle for…

23 Aug 2021

Electronic Navigational Charts: An Update and Some Issues

(Image: NOAA)

In November 2019, the Office of Coast Survey (OCS), part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), announced the start of a five-year program to “sunset” all raster and paper nautical charts.NOAA has produced electronic navigational charts (ENCs) since 1993. In the 2019 notice, NOAA writes that “ENC sales increased 425% since 2008, while sales of paper charts are now half of 2008 levels.”For NOAA and mariners, a focus on electronic charts and publications promises many advantages. With a singular focus, NOAA can use its resources more efficiently.

27 Jul 2021

BP Partners Up with Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping

Credit: BP

Oil major BP and the Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping have partnered up to work on the development of new alternative fuels and low carbon solutions for the shipping industry.As a strategic partner to the Center, BP will second experts to work on relevant research and development projects in the Center’s portfolio and contribute to the development of methodologies and optimized pathways for safe and sustainable fuel solutions for shipping. Additionally, BP…

29 Jul 2020

Examining LNG as Fuel

Harvey Gulf's LNG-powered platform supply vessels achieve “ENVIRO+, Green Passport” Certification by the ABS (Photo: Harvey Gulf)

A snap poll recently conducted by ABS found that as many two-thirds of global shipowners had yet to select a technical pathway to meet the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) mandatory decarbonization targets for 2030 and 2050.With the technologies supporting a myriad of new low-carbon fuels evolving at vastly different speeds, any tendencies to wait for information to mature before making significant long-term capital commitments are understandable, and pragmatic.With…

25 Jun 2020

For the Royal Australian Navy, Technological Leap Starts Small

Photo: Thales Australia

Driven by the need to organically protect maritime Task Groups from the threat of sea mines, the Royal Australian Navy is introducing a deployable Mine Counter-Measures (MCM) capability under the first phase of Project SEA 1778.The Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) SEA 1778 deployable Mine Counter-Measures (MCM) capability is both a small step forward in the spiral development process and a “technological leap” into autonomy.”The RAN is looking to replace its four legacy Huon-class minehunter coastal ships (MHCs) with a new deployable MCM capability.

21 Jan 2019

USCG Arctic Satellites aim to Add Margin of Safety

SpaceX’s CRS-16 Mission.
Photo: Courtesy SpaceX

The U.S. Coast Guard’s mission of keeping the seas safe will soon get an additional boost from space with two polar satellites. The two satellites, called “cube satellites” or “cubesats” for their small size of about 60 square centimeters, or a little under 2 feet, will be part of a payload on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California Nov. 28. Although the Coast Guard has used satellite technology for years, these two are the first to be entirely dedicated to a Coast Guard mission. The initiative is part of the U.S.

03 Jan 2018

Shipbuilding: $13.3 Mln Awarded for R&D Projects

© wi6995 / Adobe Stock

The National Shipbuilding Research Program’s (NSRP) Executive Control Board has selected a new round of research and development (R&D) projects aiming to spur technology advancements in order to reduce costs associated with shipbuilding and ship repair in the U.S. The seven projects – valued at over $13.3 million, including cost share – were selected from those proposed in response to research announcement issued in July 2017, and are outlined below. Objective: The primary goal…

05 May 2017

ABS, DSME Pact on Novel FLNG Concept

ABS signed an agreement with Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) to support safety and apply class guidance to a conceptual Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) unit. “We are pleased to sign this agreement and work with DSME to support new innovations and technology advancements in the offshore industry,” says ABS Executive Vice President of Global Offshore Ken Richardson. “As gas continues to play an increasingly important role in the global energy mix and industry looks to develop new resources, ABS remains committed to its mission of advancing safety,” Ken added. The project is planned to commence at the end of May and have a duration of twelve months.

26 Oct 2015

ABS' Wiernicki: The Head of Class

The Head of Class: Christopher J. The global maritime industry faces myriad challenges in the ongoing quest to run safe, profitable operations in an oftentimes tumultuous environment. More than ever vessel owners are faced with daunting regulatory and technical challenges, and the world’s leading classification societies remain the foundation upon which successful marine operations are built. Last month we visited with Christopher J. Wiernicki, the head of ABS and the newly elected head of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), for insight and analysis.

24 Jul 2015

General Dynamics to Modernize USN Submarine WCS

General Dynamics received a $20 million contract modification from the U.S. Navy to continue modernizing the AN/BYG-1 Weapons Control System (WCS) Technology Insertion and Advanced Processing Build software for U. S. Navy and Royal Australian Navy submarines. The AN/BYG-1 software analyzes and tracks submarine and surface-ship contact information, providing tactical, situational awareness for submarine crews including the capability to target and employ torpedoes and missiles. “The AN/BYG-1 software program is an exceptionally cost-effective way for the Navy to quickly update and add capabilities to submarine weapon systems,” said Carlo Zaffanella, vice president and general manager of Maritime and Strategic Systems for General Dynamics Mission Systems.

01 Apr 2015

ABS CEO Lays Out Vision for Technical Leadership at CMA Shipping

      ABS CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki

During the recent CMA Shipping 2015 conference in Stamford, Connecticut, ABS Chairman and CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki provided the conference's keynote address to set the agenda for discussion over the following two days. CMA Shipping is an annual meeting of nearly 1,300 leaders of the maritime industry from around the world, the largest gathering of maritime executives in North America. Wiernicki gave the attendees plenty to consider as he laid out his vision for how the maritime industry must embrace a new generation of technical leadership.

05 Feb 2015

General Dynamics Helps Boost USN Network Capacity

General Dynamics’ four-channel Digital Modular Radios (DMR) are being upgraded with high-frequency dynamic routing (HFDR) software to turn the radio’s four channels into eight virtual channels. In addition to HFDR, the new high-frequency virtual channel exploitation software expands the DMR’s communications capacity to 16 virtual channels when operating in the high frequency (HF) line-of-sight and ultra-high frequency (UHF) satellite communications frequencies. With the two new software upgrades, the U.S. Navy has four-times more capacity for secure HF communications without adding additional hardware or changing the configuration in space-constrained shipboard radio rooms.

05 Sep 2014

Technip Wins Contract for industrial Gas Complex in Kochi, India

Technip was awarded by Air Products a contract to provide project management, as well as engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services for a new industrial gas complex for Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited – Kochi Refinery (BPCL-KR) located in the state of Kerala, India. Being built on a “Build-Own-Operate” basis (BOO), the industrial gas complex of Air Products is designed to cater to the requirement of industrial gases (Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Oxygen) of BPCL-KR  for its Integrated Refinery Expansion Project (IREP), which will increase BPCL-KR’s crude refining capacity from 9.5 million metric tons per annum to 15.5 million metric tons per annum (from 190…

23 May 2014

Can O&G Drilling Methods Help Mars Exploration?

Alfred William Eustes III

As the search for oil and gas reserves continues, exploration and production activities are occurring in increasingly harsh environments and drilling is going deeper than ever before. An experienced petroleum engineer is set to explain exactly how far this could extend – namely to Mars - at a Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Aberdeen presentation and dinner meeting this month. Professor Alfred William Eustes III, a petroleum engineering and drilling specialist, will talk at the SPE Aberdeen monthly dinner and networking meeting on May 28.

26 Dec 2013

The Navy’s Battlewagon of the 21st Century

(Photo credit: GD-BIW, M. Nutter)

It is the newest and most transformational warship ever built, and yet it has also had the longest gestation period. Whether you call it new or old, you have to call it different. The pedigree for DDG 1000 is not from the Spruance or Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers, but rather it comes from the SC-21 (Surface Combatant for the 21st century) concept from 1994. Like DDG 1000, SC-21 was not about anti-air warfare. It was all about strike. SC-21, along with the Maritime Fire Support Demonstrator (MFSD) “arsenal ship” concept…

02 Jan 2014

ZUMWALT: Maritime Reporter's 'Great Ship' of 2013

It is the newest and most transformational warship ever built, and yet it has also had the longest gestation period. Whether you call it new or old, you have to call it different. The pedigree for DDG 1000 is not from the Spruance or Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers, but rather it comes from the SC-21 (Surface Combatant for the 21st century) concept from 1994. Like DDG 1000, SC-21 was not about anti-air warfare. It was all about strike. SC-21, along with the Maritime Fire Support Demonstrator (MFSD) “arsenal ship” concept…

11 Jun 2013

Asian Ballast Water Treatment Markets Grow

The Asian ballast water treatment systems market is highly lucrative and is expected to show tremendous growth over the next 6-7 years, according to Verify Markets (VM). Though still in the developmental stage, due to the pending IMO regulations, the market is expected to grow exponentially. The Asian Ballast water treatment systems market was estimated to be over $150 million in 2012 and is expected to show a double digit growth rate over the next few years. The key market drivers include IMO's strict global standards for ballast water management, increase in demand from ship builders and technology advancements. The key market restraints include slow ratification of IMO's ballast water convention, short span of the market and high investment costs. VM’s study covers countries in Asia.

01 Jun 2011

Safe Bulkers $122.4M Credit Agreements

First Financing Arrangement of its kind between a Greece-Based Shipping Company and Japanese Governmental Financial Institutions Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE: SB), an international provider of marine drybulk transportation services, announced today that it has entered into three credit agreements with Japanese governmental financial institutions amounting to US $122.4 million to finance the acquisition of three Japanese Post-Panamax class newbuild vessels. The previously-announced…

18 Nov 2011

Caterpillar Launches New Marine Engine

Cat C175-16 marine propulsion engine.

Cat C175 Designed to Drive More Profitable Vessel designs. Caterpillar today introduced the Cat C175-16 marine propulsion engine at a size, power and rpm that will drive new, more profitable vessel designs for all segments of the marine industry. The latest in a line of high performance engines designed to meet EPA Marine Tier 3 and IMO Tier II emissions requirements, the C175-16 is rated at 2001 – 2168 bkW @ 1600 rpm and 2239 bkW - 2550 bkW @ 1800 rpm. The new propulsion engine…

28 Jan 2012

Ingall Shipbuilding Awards Grants to Local Schools

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII)  announced that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has awarded $70,500 in grants to 19 school districts and organizations in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. The grants will be used by the districts for various science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) projects. "These STEM grants provide school districts with resources that math and science teachers can use to get students excited about solving hard problems," said Irwin F. Edenzon, president, Ingalls Shipbuilding. "Keeping up with and exploiting technology advancements, especially in shipbuilding, continues to be a critical part of how we meet our customer's needs. It will be even more important in the future.

27 Jul 2012

Engine Marks Generational Change in Container Shipping

Man's 90-cm bore Mk 9 engine.

First S90ME-C9.2 unit successfully tested at Hyundai Heavy Industries Engine & Machinery Division in Korea. MAN Diesel & Turbo has announced that its first super-long-stroke, 90-cm bore Mk 9 engine has successfully completed test bed trials at Hyundai Heavy Industries Engine & Machinery Division. The S90ME-C9.2 covers the new trend in container shipping demanding smaller bore, super-long-stroke engines with lower propeller speeds. Physically the largest two-stroke engine ever designed by MAN Diesel & Turbo…

10 Dec 2012

Serenade of the Sea Emerges

New Dining Options and Entertainment Concepts Introduced Onboard. Royal Caribbean International’s Serenade of the Seas has reemerged from its three week $29 million drydock at Navantia Ship Yard in Cadiz, Spain, with a host of new dining concepts, entertainment options and technology advancements originally introduced to industry-wide acclaim aboard Oasis-class ships. Serenade of the Seas, a Radiance-class ship, is the eighth ship overall to undergo revitalization since the line announced an extensive revitalization program in 2011 which will leave no ship untouched. Guests interested in sampling these new venues will have the opportunity to choose from one of the new dining packages recently introduced.