Metal Cover News

Global maritime welfare charity The Mission to Seafarers outlines emergency support work with surviving crew members of the Thorco Cloud – a general cargo vessel which sank in the Singapore Strait after a collision on December 16. The other vessel involved, chemical tanker Stolt Commitment, received only minor damage and is in a stable condition. Cayman Islands-registered Stolt Commitment and freighter Thorco Cloud bearing the Antigua and Barbuda flag collided in the eastbound lane of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) in the Singapore Strait.

This past May marked the unveiling of an ocean-going product deep in the heart of Bavaria, specifically at the lake at Ammersee near Munich, where MAN B&W presented its newest engine series – the TCA (Turbocharger Axial). Encompassing two years of research and development, the first production turbocharger, the TCA77, has entered into service with an MAN B&W 7S50MC-C two-stroke diesel engine. With the TCA77 being first production turbocharger form this series, the new turbocharger development combines a radial-flow compressor wheel with axial-flow turbine blading. In addition, frame sizes ranging from the TCA33 – all the way up to the TCA99 – are currently in development.

When the Snorkels were first delivered, there was concern the power track used to hold the hydraulic hoses wasn't strong enough. Norshipco is so oriented to steel components, they were afraid the composite Snorkel power tracks wouldn't hold up. They were wrong. In fact, the material used in them tolerates the wear of grit better than metal power tracks and isn't susceptible to salt water corrosion. And, if a link is broken, it can be individually replaced without disassembling the entire system. There is also a metal cover over the tracks protecting them from welding splatter; and if they're dented, the cover can easily be straightened in Norshipco's shop. Another feature appreciated at the operational level is the design of the Snorkel hydraulic system.