Sealing Solutions News

Trelleborg Group, through its business area Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, has signed an agreement and finalized the acquisition of the Austrian company Nexus Elastomer Molds GmbH. The company provides advanced, customized tooling solutions and automated manufacturing cells, primarily for liquid silicone rubber.Nexus Elastomer Molds is based in Eberstalzell, Austria. Trelleborg has previously partnered with Nexus in both development and production. The company adds external sales…

Lagersmit, a provider of advanced sealing solutions and a member of The Timken Company, and Subsea Global Solutions, a leader in underwater ship repair and marine services, announced the renewal and expansion of their long-term partnership.The collaboration strengthens both companies’ presence in Singapore and the wider Southeast Asian maritime market, ensuring shipowners, operators, and OEMs in the region benefit from reliable sealing solutions and marine services.Subsea Global…

Trelleborg Group has, through its business area, Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, signed an agreement to acquire Masterseals, a Singapore–based company specializing in sealing solutions for the energy sector and industrial applications.Masterseals is known for its engineered sealing solutions produced in small series for demanding operating environments. In addition to manufacturing, the company also operates as a technical service center focused on aftermarket support and short delivery times. In 2024, the company generated sales of just over USD$4.18 million (SEK 40 million).

Subsea Global Solutions and Lagersmit have announced a technical seminar, "Innovations in Sustainable Subsea Maintenance, Repair & Shaft Sealing."The event will take place on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, from 09:00 to 13:00 CEST, at Noorderlaan 92 A, 2030 Antwerpen - Haven.The maritime industry is at a crossroads, facing mounting pressure from tightening environmental regulations, demands for emission reduction, and the need for cost-effective maintenance strategies.The seminar will…

Kongsberg Maritime announced the launch of its new Tunnel Thruster type TTH, the Harmonised series, setting new standards in performance and reliability with a compact, modular design that allows for flexible installation and optimal integration into a wide range of vessel types.Key innovations include:Compact thruster design for easier hull integration and reduced installation footprintModular design with one core module covering several propeller diametersHydrodynamically optimised…

Multinational petroleum corporation Petrobras turned to cable and pipe seals specialist Roxtec for verification of the cable and pipe transits on board the P-68 floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) in a Brazil shipyard before final approval from the classification society.Petrobras also asked the cable and pipe transit specialist to educate engineers and installers of Petrobras and the Jurong Shipyard on how Roxtec seals work.A Roxtec team consisting of sealing experts and inspectors from Sweden…

Roxtec reports that it has more than doubled its fire resistance testing capacity, opening in Sweden a new laboratory that creates conditions for continuous development of safety products.The fire lab is located at the Roxtec headquarters in Karlskrona, Sweden, and it will play a key role in the product development and pre-certification process for the sealing solutions. With the lab Roxtec engineers and technicians can prepare tests with exactness. Every test object must be tested as an entire system in a realistic environment.

International manufacturer Roxtec is helping protect Britain’s new £200m ($265m) polar research vessel - RRS Sir David Attenborough – after supplying a range of specialist safety seals.The new build ship is being funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) built by Cammell Laird in Birkenhead and run by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).It will operate in extreme conditions in both Antarctica and the Arctic, enduring up to 60 days in sea-ice for scientists to gather…

Cable and pipe transit specialist Roxtec's complimentary, web-based tool has become an everyday help for engineers striving to ensure safety and cost-efficiency. Roxtec Transit Designer is an online application that simplifies the selection of sealing solutions as well as the entire process concerning cable and pipe transits. Designers just enter their input to get full documentation. They can, in fact, generate hole-cuts, drawings and documents in minutes. Why do tens of thousands of design engineers use the Roxtec Transit Designer?

Piping transits are a potential source for fire spread, as fire in one room could easily break through them into adjacent areas. There are various sealing solutions offered to prevent this from happening, such as the SLIPSIL and DYNATITE sealing plugs from Beele Engineering. The Aalten-based company has expanded its supply range to now include XL versions of these products, and in doing so, has simplified further the ability to make pipe transits fire-resistant. Beele Engineering said its sealing plugs are deployed to make pipe transits fire-resistant and smoke and gas-tight.

With more than 90 percent of global trade carried by sea, shipping is a major battleground in the reduction of emissions. Tier III is the latest emission standard pertaining to NOx emissions from marine diesel engines. Tier IV is expected to come into effect for 2020 – with engine manufacturers already seeking sealing components to future-proof engines well into the next decade. Here we explore challenges faced by diesel engine operators in the face of Tier III, and how the correct selection of sealing materials could deliver better performing solutions.

Roxtec has launched a new inspection, maintenance and installation training company for the United States: Roxtec Services US aims to increase safety for the marine and offshore markets in the area of cable and pipe transits. High safety standards require correctly installed, properly maintained and easily inspected sealing solutions. As sealing experts, Roxtec said it knows how important cable and pipe transits are when it comes to protecting life and assets. No matter when the vessel or platform was built, it has most likely undergone upgrades which required changes to cable and pipe sealing. These upgrades, combined with years of maintenance in a tough, corrosive environment can quickly compound and negate any protection against fire, gas and water.

The new Wärtsilä REvolution system is a digital management system that controls, monitors, records and analyses the performance of seals autonomously in real time, increasing the predictability and reliability of sealing solutions in rotating equipment. Wärtsilä's new digital management system revolutionises sealing technology in the hydropower industry. The system incorporates machine learning, predictive modelling and model predictive control (MPC) techniques to provide customers with intelligent, real-time active management of the sealing interface fluid film, minimising wear and removing the sealing components from the maintenance schedule critical path.

Yet another company has set sails under the Roxtec flag. Roxtec Services AB offers inspections, maintenance work and installation trainings within the crucial area of cable and pipe transits. “We inspect and maintain sealing solutions on marine vessels and offshore units to make sure they keep up performance and meet the safety requirements from the classification societies,” said Roger Johansson, Executive Vice President Business Area Marine & Offshore at Roxtec. High safety standards require correctly installed, properly maintained and easily inspected sealing solutions.

W&O Supply and Chesterton team up to reduce harmful emissions out in front to the EPA’s monitoring program. It’s less expensive than you might think. From the UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency comes the September 2014 news of a barge operator fined for releasing dangerous gas into the atmosphere. The UK-based firm was made to pay almost £111,000 in fines and costs as a result of emitting unsafe levels of a gas; in this case, hydrogen sulphide (H2S). And, while an investigation by the MCA showed a number of health and safety failings by the operator, the bottom line was that not enough was done to stop the offending vapors from escaping into the atmosphere.

Starting in December 2014, IHC Sealing Solutions will operate under the new – but also old and trusted – name of Lagersmit. The new pay-off line ‘The Origin of Sealing Solutions’ pays tribute to the company’s rich history and its desire to supply the best sealing solutions, now and in the future. On 28 November 2014, the new name was unveiled at a party for the employees of the ‘new Lagersmit’. Why this new name and pay-off line? In the summer of 2014, the company became independent and consequently separated from Royal IHC. With this new independence, Lagersmit aims to focus more on its core business, which is to supply sealing solutions for ships, pumps and tidal turbines.

As the world’s economies search for sustainable, reliable, renewable energy sources, they are also more closely examining a range of fossil fuels to find the cleanest, least harmful of those to cut carbon emissions and improve air quality in the process. In the drive to cut carbon emissions, interest in liquefied natural gas (LNG) is growing. LNG is being looked at not only as fuel for generating electricity and heat, but also as a fuel for powering marine vessels, road vehicles and trains. With the recent development of abundant shale gas deposits in the United States, the LNG market is really set to take off. The common method for transporting natural gas worldwide is to liquefy it so it takes up less volume and can be transported in specialized LNG carrier vessels.

Orkot Marine Bearings, developed and manufactured by Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, contribute to the build of one of the world’s most efficient and largest containerships, the Maersk Triple E class family, built by Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding. Orkot TXMM and TLMM bearings were developed to meet the requirements of ever changing markets. The synthetic composite bearing materials incorporate solid lubricants to provide exceptional wear resistance, virtually no swell in water and great dimensional stability, the manufacturer said.

Orkot Marine Bearings, developed and manufactured by Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, contribute to the build of the world’s largest and most efficient containerships, the Maersk Triple E class family, built by Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding. Orkot TXMM and TLMM bearings, with their track record of performance over 60 years, were developed to meet the requirements of ever changing markets. The synthetic composite bearing materials incorporate solid lubricants to provide exceptional wear resistance, virtually no swell in water and great dimensional stability.

IHC Sealing Solutions has received an important third-party verification from DNV GL, a  ship and offshore classification society. This means that the company’s Supreme Ventus and Supreme Athmos seals (that guarantee zero oil emissions) are now compatible with mineral oils that are used in U.S. waters in compliance with the Vessel General Permit (VGP). On December 19, 2013, the revised VGP, issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), came into force. This new permit mandates the use of environmentally acceptable lubricants for all oil-to-water interfaces, such as stern tube and thruster seals, on all merchant vessels that are 79 feet or longer and sailing in U.S. coastal and inland waters.

Royal IHC (IHC) has reached an agreement to sell 100% of its shares in its subsidiary IHC Sealing Solutions to new owners Willem Steenge, who as CEO is partly responsible for the strong growth of IHC Sealing Solutions in recent years, and Rabo Participaties (RaPar). The sale enables IHC to strengthen its focus on its core business: offering integrated innovative vessels, advanced equipment and life-cycle support to the dredging, wet mining and offshore construction industries.

Wärtsilä has received an important service level recognition for its Wärtsilä Airguard and Wärtsilä Oceanguard propeller shaft sealing systems from Lloyd's Register. The recognition of Lloyd's Register, a marine classification society, confirms that the sealing systems meet the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) requirements. Wärtsilä, the marine industry's leading solutions and services provider and a pioneer in environmentally sustainable sealing solutions, is the first company in the industry to gain this recognition from Lloyd's Register. In March 2014, Wärtsilä announced that its Wärtsilä Airguard and Wärtsilä Oceanguard…

Last month a Hydrex diver/technician team carried out underwater stern tube seal repairs on a 110-meter offshore supply vessel in Bunbury, Australia. The rope guard covering the stern tube seal assembly was missing and the seal box had come loose after a mooring rope got tangled around the assembly. An emergency on-site repair was necessary. Hydrex therefore mobilized a diver/technician team to the vessel’s location and was able to carry out the entire operation on-site and underwater. This operation saved the owner an expensive and time-consuming trip to drydock.