Harley Marine Selects Caterpillar Tier 4 Engine

Seattle-based marine transportation company Harley Marine Services has become the first to select a Caterpillar Marine engine solution that meets U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier 4 Final emissions standards.

“[Harley Marine has] a reputation for being very sustainable and forward-looking,” said Brent Nelson, a Caterpillar Marine territory sales manager who works closely with Harley Marine. “They want to run a clean, green fleet, and they’re setting a precedent by being the first to power a vessel with these engines.”

Harley Marine has received numerous national and regional environmental awards, as well as adherence to the ISO 14001 environmental standard since 2008. The company also uses an environmental management system across all its operational areas.

When Harley Marine decided to build a new line haul boat, the Earl W. Redd, for towing up and down the U.S. Pacific Coast, the company wanted a power platform that would address the changing emissions requirements. Over the years, Harley Marine had operated numerous line haul tugs powered by Cat 3500 Tier 1 and Tier 2 propulsion engines. Cat dealer Peterson Power suggested two 3516E engines —a flexible power solution that addressed both Harley Marine’s need for power and the upcoming Tier 4 regulations.

To meet the Tier 4 Final emissions standards coming in 2016, each of the two continuous duty 3516E engines—individually rated with a 10 percent horsepower increase of 2,682 hp at 1,600 rpm—is paired with a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) aftertreatment system. SCR uses a urea-based solution to reduce the oxides of nitrogen (NOx) contained in diesel exhaust down to nitrogen and water vapor. Just as important, it does so efficiently, the manufacturer said.

Caterpillar claims that Harley Marine could save more than $1 million across a 15-year lifecycle on total fluid consumption (diesel plus DEF) costs for this new build compared to an equivalent Tier 2 powered vessel. “That’s a direct result of engine fuel efficiency improvements that our SCR technology allows us to make by reducing NOx downstream of the engine combustion process,” said Ryan Darnell of Caterpillar’s Large Power Systems division.