S2 News

WinGD will record the first installation of its new X-S short-stroke engine design following successful factory acceptance tests with engine builder Dalian Marine Diesel in March.The six-cylinder, 62cm-bore 6X62-S2.0 engine will be installed on a pulp carrier being built for a Chinese owner at COSCO Dalian shipyard.The X-S series succeeds the well-established RT-flex50 and RT-flex58 engines and is available in 52cm and 62cm bore sizes, for the range of fuel options including traditional diesel or dual-fuel LNG…

Swiss marine power company WinGD will realise the first commercial instalments of its new variable compression ratio (VCR) technology on two new dual-fuel LNG powered vessels being built for NYK Line.A 95,000 DWT bulk carrier being built at Oshima Shipbuilding and a 7,000 CEU pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) being built at Shin Kurushima Dockyard will be the first two-stroke powered vessels that can dynamically optimise combustion depending on the fuel being used – delivering improved emissions…

Port Angeles, Wash. boatbuilder BRIX Marine has launched its newest pilot boat, Aldebaran, for a customer in Central America.The trailerable 11.3-meter-long rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) is powered by twin 300-horsepower Yamaha outboards with 3 bl 15.75" X 18" SS props.The boat's Naiad hull has a 23 degrees progressive deadrise,, 5086 alloy aluminum hull skins, D-shaped foam EV50 (approx.

South Korean authorities cited the risk of Chinese economic retaliation when they charged marine technology firm SI Innotec last year with violating trade laws for its work on Taiwan's new military submarine program, according to a police document seen by Reuters and two people familiar with the matter.In a Feb. 17, 2022, affidavit to a judge seeking the arrest of SI Innotec executive director Park Mal-sik, police said authorities feared a repeat of the sweeping sanctions imposed by Beijing in 2016, after Seoul decided to install THAAD, a U.S. anti-missile system.

Two new oil spill response barges were recently completed at ASL Shipyard in Singapore for Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC).The two 3,500 tonne barges, Sentinel 303 and Sentinel 304, will be delivered to WCMRC in October, with arrival in Canada by the end of 2022. The response barges will join WCMRC’s fleet of pollution response vessels stationed along the south coast of British Columbia.These new barges represent a significant enhancement to the pollution response capabilities already in place and will benefit the entire local maritime industry…

BEN Buchele introduced a robust, low-maintenance three-phase asynchronous motor whose stable grey cast iron design is touted to withstand the harshest environmental conditions: salt water, salty air and extreme temperatures from -31 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit (-35 to 50 degrees Celsius). Depending on the requirements, the motor can be designed without a fan, with its own fan or with a forced cooling fan for the operating modes S1 (continuous operation), S2 or S3 (both short-time…

The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday said it was probing nearly 350 reports of oil spills in and along the U.S. Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Ida.Hurricane Ida's 150 mile per hour (240 kph) winds wreaked havoc on offshore oil production platforms and onshore oil and gas processing plants. About 88% of the region's offshore oil production remains shut and more than 100 platforms unoccupied after the storm made landfall Aug. 29.The Coast Guard has been conducting flyovers off the coast of Louisiana looking for spills.

Following reports of oil spills found along the Southeast Louisiana coast in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, the U.S. Coast Guard said Monday it had conducted overflights Sunday that focused on two locations previously identified for further investigation."Members of the National Strike Force aboard a Coast Guard HC-144 flew over Bay Marchand, south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, and the Enterprise Offshore Drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, in a continued effort to track and monitor any threats they may pose to the environment," the U.S.

While facing the same challenging market conditions as offshore vessel owners and service companies worldwide, Norway’s Island Offshore recently broke free from the enforced conservatism of the E&P sector, by adding not just a new ship to its fleet, but one that re-writes the rulebook in capabilities, technology and despite its size and power, environmental credentials.Simply put, Island Offshore’s new deep water installation Vessel ‘Island Victory’ is the most powerful multi-purpose offshore vessel ever built…

Switzerland-headquartered developer of low-speed gas and diesel engines for marine propulsion Winterthur Gas & Diesel Ltd (WinGD) has launched four new short-stroke engines to address economic engine speeds and accommodate space constraints on several vessel types.The engine designer said in a press note that the range, starting with the X52-S2.0 and X62-S2.0 and their dual-fuel counterparts X52DF-S1.0 and X62DF-S1.0, feature a short piston stroke that is ideal for vessels with a shallow draught, small propeller diameter or low main deck height. Container feeders, ro-ro and con-ro vessels, multipurpose cargo vessels and vehicle carriers all have design conditions that demand a shorter stroke.

Parker Shinn and Morrelli & Melvin introduce the ArgoX90, a unique concept designed to significantly reduce space launch and rocket component recovery costs.Rocket reusability has become the space industry’s focus to reduce cost. While SpaceX has landed boosters on drone ships hundreds of miles out to sea, expensive parts of a rocket have still proven unrecoverable. The ArgoX90 may change that.“A boat like this could lower launch costs by 10% in some cases,” said Shinn, who conceived of the original concept.

MetalCraft Marine’s 10 Meter Interceptor model is a formidable workboat. Defined by the sum of its myriad parts, it really can be seen that ‘the equipment makes the boat.’ This month, we ask "What's in Your workboat?"In a business where there is rarely any shortage of pretty boats, cutting edge designs and equally impressively performing workboat tonnage, it is also true that the real value to any design is cemented by the very equipment that makes it run. Typically, however, comparing apples to apples when it comes to selecting your next patrol, fire, SAR or pilot boat is almost impossible. Until now.Kick the tires. Pop open the hood. Put this one up on the jacks. Spend a little time under the chassis.

Thirty-six hours after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, the port of San Juan was back up and running, scanning the incoming relief cargo as it arrived. Now, nearly a year after the historic storm, San Juan remains one of the most secure and efficient ports in the world, scanning and adjudicating cargo shipments at an unprecedented speed, with wait times similar to pausing at a stop light. It was the first and only port in the Western Hemisphere to scan near-100 percent of incoming containerized cargo (bulk, un-containerized cargo is not scanned).

Marine News showcases the best of North America’s 2017 workboat deliveries. There is something for everyone. Notwithstanding the lingering offshore energy downturn, there were plenty of bright spots for North American shipyards in 2017. If a hull was delivered in 2017, we took a look at it, with several areas as a focus for inclusion into this edition. For starters, it is always exciting when a domestic yard delivers a vessel – or multiple vessels, for that matter – to foreign buyers. We can compete in a foreign arena; on price, quality and on-time delivery. This year was no different. No less important is the environmental footprint of a vessel, and there was plenty to report on from that angle in the past 12 months. The domestic waterfront is indeed getting greener and cleaner.

Louisiana-based boatbuilder Metal Shark has announced several new contracts with Latin American and Caribbean operators, further expanding the company’s presence in the region. At a recent ceremony with Puerto Rico’s Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla in San Juan, the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD) officially commissioned its first three Metal Shark 36-foot Fearless-class center console patrol boats. The welded-aluminum offshore center console vessels have been designed to operate at speed in the large ocean swells prevalent off the Puerto Rican coastline. Featuring high performance ventilated stepped-bottom running surfaces and powered by triple 300-horsepower Mercury Verado engines, the PRPD’s new patrol boats achieve speeds up to 55 knots.

The U.S. Office of Naval Research has awarded BAE Systems an $11 million contract to develop next-generation electronic warfare (EW) technology that will quickly detect, locate, and identify emitters of radio frequency signals. Known as the Full-Spectrum Staring Receiver (FSSR), this technology will enable near-instantaneous battlespace situational awareness, emitter identification and tracking, threat warning and countermeasure and weapon cueing. Conventional situational awareness systems are not able to deliver the high level of coverage and responsiveness that FSSR will provide.

iDirect Government Technologies, Inc. (iGT), a wholly owned subsidiary of VT iDirect, Inc. (iDirect), today announced the availability of iDX 3.2.3 software, which meets the  military, intelligence and public safety communities growing needs for increased bandwidth and higher throughputs. iDX 3.2.3 features Adaptive Time Division Multiple Access (ATDMA), which improves return channel performance and increases network availability under rain fade and satellite link degradation. The software enables customers to design networks for a typical case scenario instead of worse-case scenario, saving time, costs and complexity without loss of performance.

Kvichak Marine Industries, Inc. recently delivered a multi-mission 66’ all-aluminum Shallow Draft Crab and Salmon Tender to the Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation (NSEDC). The vessel was christened the Paul C. Johnson in honor of the late Paul “Koublou” Charles Johnson of Unalakleet, AK at a ceremony at Fisherman’s Terminal in Seattle. Designed by Kvichak Marine to the mission specifications of NSEDC, the 66’ x 25’ vessel is intended for very shallow draft crab and salmon tendering operations in the Norton Sound region, and will draw just 4’-6” when fully loaded.

Shell Marine has unveiled its next generation Shell Argina and Shell Gadinia trunk piston oils for the medium-speed engine market. As owners face pressures to shift toward cleaner fuels that address emissions regulations, Shell said demand for distillates and low-sulphur heavy fuel oil will only increase as shipping approaches a global fuel sulphur content cap of 0.5 percent, imposed by IMO from 2020. Already, dual-fuel engines are taking an increasing share of the medium speed market.

KVH Industries, Inc. introduced the TracVision TV8 maritime satellite TV antenna system. TracVision TV8 is designed to provide the tracking, reception and extended coverage area needed for yachts and merchant vessels calling on ports around the world. It is compatible with nearly all Ku-band services around the globe, and it also supports such services as DIRECTV, DISH Network and DISH HD, and Bell TV in North America, and TrueVisions, Astro, and Sky TV in the Asia-Pacific region.

Metal Shark’s stock boats program shakes up the patrol boat game; here and across the big pond. If the news that Louisiana-based boatbuilder Metal Shark is ramping up production to build an inventory of stock vessels, with the goal of reducing lead times and enhancing service sounds familiar, but perhaps not on this side of the big pond, that’s because the move truly represents an innovative concept for North American builders. Savvy shipbuilding stakeholders everywhere, of course, know that Netherlands-based Damen has been doing it (successfully) for years. That kind of program, however, isn’t easily pulled off, nor should it be undertaken lightly.

Nordic fuel cell technology company PowerCell is in the final stage of development of its next generation fuel cell stack platform, the S2. The S2 covers a larger power range up to 25 kW and maintains the same tolerance towards CO and reformate gas as the present platform, the S1. The new fuel cell will have good stability and a compact and robust design for both automotive and stationary applications. PowerCell, the Nordic fuel cell technology leader, is currently in the final stage of development of its second fuel cell stack platform, the S2.

Ku-band coverage boosted with Seychelles region extension delivering high-speed data. Airbus Defence and Space has expanded its Ku-band VSAT (Very Small Apperture Terminal) coverage in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), using the Intelsat IS-702 S2 satellite. The new coverage enables improved availability of Pharostar, Sealink and WaveCall VSAT voice and data services for vessels transiting or operating primarily in the Seychelles area, north to Ethiopia and south to Madagascar. Several diverse maritime groups will make use of more available high speed VSAT, including commercial fishing, government, naval, shipping and yachting vessels. An improved Ku-band footprint will also enhance security and anti-piracy efforts in the region.