Technology Upgrade News

When discussing ship design, the maritime industry has been tossing around a number of new terms and definitions. Sustainability, alternative fuel “ready”, digitization and lifecycle are a few of the terms becoming more commonplace amid the industry’s search for zero emissions solutions. As IMO MEPC 80 meetings push emissions reduction to meet “well to wake” requirements, we will learn much of the challenge is tied to energy and infrastructure ashore. Electrification and the development…

While many companies talk about decarbonization, United European Car Carrier (UECC) acts, as proven by its recent acceptance of the world’s first dual-fuel LNG battery hybrid PCTC, Auto Advance, delivered from China’s Jiangnan Shipyard and Maritime Reporter & Engineering News’ 2021 Great Ship of the Year.The ship is the first in a series of three newbuild pure car and truck carriers (PCTC), measuring 169 by 28 meters with capacity for 3600 vehicles on 10 cargo decks. The remaining…

In my May 2020 MREN USS Enterprise column I made a reference to the benefits of titanium as a hull structural material.It related to the life of the USCG cutter Bear and I concluded the column with a suggestion that titanium would be a particularly useful and cost-effective structural material for sail training vessels, aircraft carriers, research vessels, cruise vessels, tugs and Staten Island ferries. I made this suggestion assuming that the hull design (shape) would have to be mature…

Dennis Bryant provided a link to a story about the USCG Cutter Bear in his March 18, 2020 newsletter. It is a great story about a great ship with a great Captain (Michael Healy) and a great crew. It shows that the right combination of ship and crew can perform miracles.This one ship, its Captain (and his wife who often shipped with him), and its crew did so many things so well that it has become the stuff of legends. I will not further discuss these adventures; some can be found in the article and the rest can be easily Googled.

Hamburg-based shipping group Reederei Hamburger Lloyd will move its fleet of nine containerships and six bulk carriers to Marlink’s Sealink Plus VSAT package including unlimited L-band backup. Hamburger Lloyd is a long term customer of Telemar Germany and was looking for a communications solution that provides a quality link for downloading ECDIS updates, which is critical to the fleet’s navigational safety. The company also sees that moving from pay-as-you-go L-band communication services to the pay-monthly VSAT model will provide budget predictability and enable it to offer more crew communication facilities. Designed to provide high speed bandwidth at all times…

The global cruise industry and its fleet of increasingly large, ultra-modern ships is projected to continue its steady growth in 2014, powered by growth overseas, particularly in the German market, as well as the adoption of faster, stronger and generally better satellite communication technology that is moving toward the level of seamless, cost-effective communication connections that can be expected at a land-based vacation destination. The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA)…

The development of a £300 million container terminal in Liverpool (U.K.) is driving a major technology investment by Britain’s second largest ports group. Peel Ports is introducing the Navis N4 terminal operation system – acclaimed as the gold standard in global container management – at eight sites in the U.K. and Ireland. The upgrade is being driven by Liverpool2 – a new container hub for the U.K. and Ireland which will serve as the enabling platform from which the group will standardise and centralise its terminal operation systems.

Seattle - Measurement Technology NW (MTNW) has announced an award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to upgrade winch monitoring technology for the Coast Guard Icebreakers Healy and Polar Sea. This award brings new MTNW hardware and software technology to the support of winch operations, which are mission critical to these Arctic research vessels. NSF and the Coast Guard are working with MTNW because the Line Control Instruments’ (LCI) monitoring and control system provides advanced technology for on-deck safety, reliability, and research accuracy.

The Spanish engineering company Seaplace has recently acquired new licenses of the CAD/CAM FORAN System, to be used in its marine projects. The scope of the new agreement includes the packages of Forms, Naval Architecture and Advanced Design and Drawing of the version V70 of FORAN. These licenses are added to the ones Seaplace already had. “FORAN System efficiency allows us to be very competitive in concept and basic design projects and in particular in the projects of specific vessels for offshore operations” said José María Berbiela after the signature of the new agreement.

The Spanish engineering company Seaplace has recently acquired new licenses of the CAD/CAM FORAN System, to be used in its marine projects. The scope of the new agreement includes the packages of Forms, Naval Architecture and Advanced Design and Drawing of the version V70 of FORAN. These licenses are added to the ones Seaplace already had. “FORAN System efficiency allows us to be very competitive in concept and basic design projects and in particular in the projects of specific vessels for offshore operations” said José María Berbiela after the signature of the new agreement. Seaplace is currently using the Naval Architecture modules of FORAN V70 for the design of an Offshore Crane Vessel with a lifting capacity of 2,500 ST and length overall of 172,5 m.

U.S. Coast Guard Selects Stratos Government Services to Deploy Ku-Band Communications Network. Stratos Government Services Inc. (SGSI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Inmarsat plc, today announced it was awarded a five-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract by the United States Coast Guard (USCG) on June 17, 2011 to provide USCG Large Cutter Connectivity. SGSI will provide the USCG with Ku-band satellite airtime, installation support, teleport equipment and service, Network Operations Center support and training.

The Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) signed a contract to purchase new equipment for its Center for Maritime Education in Houston, Texas, initiating a multiphase upgrade to SCI’s simulator technology located in one of the largest petrochemical complexes in the world. The upgrades introduce a path for future groundbreaking safety and security training. The first phase of SCI’s technology improvement places the Houston simulator on par with upgrades installed in 2009 at SCI’s Center for Maritime Education in Paducah, Ky.

W R Systems, Ltd. (WRSystems) is providing the U.S. Navy with a range of systems technologies and upgrades. Products and services include a depth reporting system developed and produced by WRSystems and the Department of the Navy, which was partially funded through the Secretary of Defenses’ Acquisition Challenge program. The Digital Depth Detection (D3) system is a technology upgrade for an older system, which is becoming increasingly hard to support. WRSystems, a systems engineering firm in Norfolk, Virginia, also is producing speed indicator transmitter systems and small combatant craft integrated bridge systems for the Navy. In addition to these systems, the firm has recently launched a new commercial maritime green venture, Emsys, a continuous stack emissions monitoring system.

Thales has signed a significant contract with Intermarine to supply its Sonar 2093 system to the Italian Navy’s (Marina Militare Italiana) Gaeta-class minehunting fleet. The contract, signed on 18 November, follows on from a main contract agreed in August this year between Intermarine and the Italian Navy to refit eight Gaeta-class minehunters as part of a major mid-life technology upgrade. Under the terms of the latest contract, Thales UK will supply eight Sonar 2093 systems. The majority of the manufacturing work will be undertaken at Thales UK’s site in Templecombe, Somerset. Sonar 2093 is a variable-depth sonar system and is designed for the detection and classification of bottom and moored mines.

WASHINGTON - The Commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Thomas H. Collins, testified on July 21, 2005, before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security regarding the Coast Guard's revised plan to replace its aging fleet of deepwater assets. Collins's written statement follows. "Good morning, Mr. Chairman and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee. Thank you for taking the time to meet again to discuss the Integrated Deepwater System’s revised implementation plan. It is the number one Coast Guard priority and the cornerstone of our maritime capabilities now and in the future. As such, I appreciate very much the continued time and deliberation you have been willing to spend to examine all aspects of the acquisition.

Ketels, the Cummins dealer in Gent, Belgium, completed the first European installation of the new Cummins Tier 2 compliant QSK38 M. The engine, delivering 1200 HP at 1800 RPM, has been installed in the inland waterway barge Lambada. The new engine is evolved from the popular and reliable KTA38 that is so well known in the marine world. Then main engine was installed with a new Twin Disc MGX5321DC with 4.96:1 reduction and Kobelt controls. The recently developed Cummins C Command Elite engine control panel system was also installed. Bernard Ketels also reports that, “We installed a CJC offline filter separator (C.C. JENSEN). However it’s an offline filter, we installed it inline.

As of January 2007 all new-built vessels for service in US waters are required to be powered with engines that meet the US Environmental Protection Agency's Tier 2 emission standards. It has been a significant engineering and logistics challenge for the nation?s engine manufacturers to meet these deadlines. Cummins Marine was able to meet the deadline and is shipping Tier 2 engines in the full horsepower range. Although Tier 2 is a requirement for all new vessels, at Olympic Tug and Barge the owners, Harley Marine Services, have shown leadership by installing a pair of Tier 2 compliant engines in their 1970-built tug Lela Joy. This will make her one of the most environmentally progressive vessels on the Pacific coast.