MacGregor Launches Steering Control System

MacGregor, part of Cargotec, presents a new addition to its Hatlapa product range: the steering control system, Hebe. It will be offered as an integrated part of the company’s Hatlapa range of steering gear solutions and its inclusion will deliver operational and equipment compatibility benefits for customers. The name Hebe for the steering control system follows the tradition of naming Hatlapa’s steering gear products after Greek gods and goddesses, Hebe is the goddess of youth.

“Selling an integrated steering gear package affords several important advantages,” said Jörg Tollmien, Head of Sales for MacGregor’s Hatlapa products. “Sourcing a number of linked products from a single company helps shipyards simplify their supply chains. Minimizing the number of suppliers also makes it much easier for shipowners to manage their servicing requirements throughout the equipment’s lifetime.”

“The lower the number of interfaces that have to be handled by the yard the better,” he continues. “This approach eliminates potential problems with equipment compatibility. The control system and hydraulic actuator must be combined in the right way, and who better to do this job than the steering gear manufacturer? The systems are designed to be fully mutually compatible and they work extremely well together.”

“Hebe main steering control systems are designed for operation from nominal 24V DC or 110/230/440V AC power supplies and are suitable for virtually all SOLAS vessel types and high speed craft,” says Carsten Pump, Hatlapa steering gear specialist at MacGregor. “They can also offer cost effective control solutions for smaller non-SOLAS units such as workboats and patrol craft.

“The modular aspect of the Hebe series provides a flexible approach to customized control requirements for single and multiple rudders – including operator selectable independent or synchronous operating mode facilities if appropriate – and can also be configured to interface with Azimuth steering pods and steering jets.”

The Hatlapa steering gear portfolio comprises four-cylinder ram-type steering gear up to 8,893 kNm, two-cylinder ram-type steering gear up to 950 kNm, rotary vane-type steering gear up to 1,100 kNm, twin-rudder steering gear, compact piston type steering gear and rudder carriers.

“The Hebe system is also compatible with MacGregor’s Porsgrunn steering gear,” noted Steinar Eliassen, responsible for Porsgrunn steering gear. Porsgrunn rotary vane-type steering gear has a torque range of between 600 and 5,850 kNm.

macgregor.com