Technology Knowledge News

Dr. Dirk Jürgens heads R&D at Voith Turbo Marine, a part of the family owned Voith conglomerate which employs more than 19,000 people in 60 countries. Voith Rudderpropellers were chosen as the propulsion system for the three new Staten Island Ferry vessels, and Dr. Jürgens discusses the evolution of the system.The ‘Voith’ name is a well-known one in the maritime industry, but to start please provide an overview of the product and service you offer to the maritime industry.The…

Kongsberg has announced the launch of Kognifai, its open and collaborative digital platform that places a portfolio of applications into the cloud. Kognifai focuses on optimizing data access and analysis for customers across maritime and energy industries, and also provides an integrated development and distribution platform for efficiency enhancing applications. “With Kognifai we are launching an open ecosystem for customers, partners, and suppliers,” said Hege Skryseth, Executive Vice President, Kongsberg and President, Kongsberg Digital.

Hull performance monitoring solutions can offer significant fuel savings potential, a fact that is prompting growing interest from the maritime industry. To spur development and increase awareness of this exciting field, DNV GL and paint manufacturer Jotun have created the Hull Performance & Insight Conference (HullPIC), to take place for the first time this year in Castello di Pavone, Italy from April 13-15. The conference will examine standards for hull and propeller performance as well as the common challenges and solutions that can help shipowners realize potential fuel savings. “It is a great opportunity for industry stakeholders to come together to share operational experiences and discuss common challenges within hull performance and performance monitoring…

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.

When ABS, the global provider of maritime classification services, announced that James A. Watson had been named President and Chief Operating Officer of their Americas Division, it wasn’t hard to see why. Likewise, there were few if any other candidates for the job with as well rounded a CV, and with the breadth of knowledge spanning the full range of maritime issues. Formerly the Director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and before that, Watson served as the U.S.

Wärtsilä has officially opens its Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Vaasa, Finland. The MTC is a new concept for Wärtsilä, and is aimed at securing and further developing its manufacturing competencies, and sharing manufacturing know-how throughout the global Wärtsilä network. The MTC concept is designed to enhance Wärtsilä's ability to effectively develop and globally share its core manufacturing competencies, including machining, forging, casting, welding, production & assembly automation, and digital manufacturing technologies. This will produce value-adding benefits by supporting component design, and manufacturing and supplier development. It will also optimize Wärtsilä's efforts towards "first time right" quality, "as promised" delivery times, and competitive costs.

Kvaerner announced that it has agreed with Aker RGI Holding to establish a jointly owned shipbuilding management company. Together, the two groups own 12 shipyards in Europe, and one in the USA and Brazil. These yards have a total of some 13,500 employees with combined revenues of $2.2 billion. Kvaerner and RGI have on a number of previous occasions stated the intention to merge their respective shipbuilding operations in the future. The parties have, however, agreed to postpone such negotiations until a better assessment of the financial and operational issues have been concluded, and until such time as the value of the operations can be more precisely determined. that the value of their respective operations will increase through the establishment of a joint management company.