Products & services

Wärtsilä to adjust its Ship Power business to reflect the weak market situation

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 18 July 2015 18 July 2015

Wärtsilä's Ship Power business, today renamed Marine Solutions, plans to realign its organisation, operations and resources in response to the sluggish global marine market situation. These plans will affect personnel in all functions of Wärtsilä Marine Solutions' global operations. The realignment will mean the reduction of approximately 600 jobs, of which some 160 will be in Finland. A portion of the reductions will be realised through retirements.

In taking these measures, Wärtsilä seeks annual savings in the region of EUR 40 million. The effect of the savings will materialise gradually beginning from the third quarter of 2015, and will take full effect by the end of 2016. The non-recurring costs related to the restructuring measures will be approximately EUR 25-30 million.

"The marine industry has been slow in recovering from the global economic crisis and new shipbuilding contracting is weak. At the same time, the offshore oil & gas industry has been adversely affected by lower oil prices. In addition, there are risks related to vessel owners negotiating extensions to existing delivery contracts. The combined impact of these developments has created a challenging market situation for the entire marine sector.

These unfortunate capacity adjustments have to be made in this current environment of low demand in order for us to maintain our competitive position in the global market. Despite streamlining the organisation, our commitment to our customers remains absolutely solid," says Jaakko Eskola, President, Marine Solutions, Senior Executive Vice President, Wärtsilä Corporation.

These realignment plans are aimed at adjusting Wärtsilä's Marine Solutions business to be able to efficiently respond to the needs of its various customer segments. The effect of these adjustments will be specified when the consultation processes are initiated in the affected countries according to local practices and legislation.

Currently, Wärtsilä Marine Solutions employs 7,217 people globally.

MSC Cruises selects Thordon Bearing's COMPAC system for Seaside newbuilds

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 15 July 2015 15 July 2015

MSC Cruises has specified Thordon Bearings’ COMPAC water-lubricated propeller shaft system for the first of two (plus one option) Seaside-class cruise ships currently under construction at Fincantieri’s Monfalcone yard.

The 154,000 gross ton twin-screw vessel, the largest cruise ship ever to be built by the Italian yard, will be equipped with six COMPAC bearings in bronze carriers with tapered keysets to fit 664mm shaft diameters.

Thordon’s Commercial Director, Andy Edwards said: "We are delighted to have won this order to supply COMPAC to MSC’s new state-of-the-art Seaside-class. The ship, developed entirely by Fincantieri, represents a genuine evolution of the cruise ship. Its structure, shape and systems suggest a cruising future that goes way beyond current environmental regulations and our water-lubricated propeller shaft bearing will help MSC towards achieving that goal. There will be zero oil leaking from the vessel’s shaft line."

With a length of 323 metres, a width of 41 metres and capacity to accommodate 5,300 passengers and 1,413 crew members, the Seaside-class has been designed specifically for the U.S cruise market.

In addition to the environmentally compatible COMPAC system, MSC Seaside will feature advanced water treatment, waste heat recovery, exhaust gas scrubbing to reduce emissions, LED lighting, and optimised hull lines, propellers and rudders to reduce drag and fuel consumption by 25%. The ship is fully compliant with the Safe Return to Port requirement.

"The cruise industry is a significant market for our seawater-lubricated propeller shaft technology, but other sectors are now ordering COMPAC for a number of commercial and technical reasons," said Edwards.

"Seawater-lubricated propeller systems offer considerable advantages, not only in bearing wear life predictability and reliability, but they are also considerably cheaper to maintain, easier to install and there is absolutely zero risk of pollution."

Thordon Bearings now supplies its COMPAC system with a 15-year propeller shaft bearing wear life guarantee, which is available for commercial newbuilds with shaft diameters of 300mm or more.

"I really don’t think any other propeller shaft seal and bearing manufacturer – whether oil or water-lubricated – offers shipowners such a commitment," he said.

First steel was cut for the €700 million MSC Seaside in June 2015 for a scheduled delivery in November 2017. A sister Seaside-class vessel will follow in May 2018.

Scanship sells AWPs on four cruise vessels at a German yard

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 02 July 2015 02 July 2015

Scanship Holding ASA has through its subsidiary Scanship AS, been awarded contracts for delivery of Advanced Wastewater Purification (AWP) systems for four mega sized cruise vessels at a German shipyard. The first vessel will enter service in 2018 followed by the second and third in 2019 and the fourth in 2020. Two of the vessels are subject to financing with cancellation clauses expiring August and December this year. The AWP systems will treat grey water and black water in accordance to IMO Marpol MEPC 227(64) including chapter 4.2 with phosphorous and nitrogen removal.

"The contracts confirm our market leading position in the cruise newbuilding space for AWP systems. Being the first in the industry with approval certificates Med-B and Med-F according to this new standard has really put us in the front when technology are being selected for these mega ships," says CEO Henrik Badin.

MagicPilot to go – MKN launches new mobile app

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 13 July 2015 13 July 2015

With the MagicPilot to go mobile app MKN customers can take their combi steamer display with them wherever they go. The app is available in the Google Play Store and allows chefs to monitor their combi steamers by smartphone or smartwatch even when they aren’t anywhere near to the appliance. MagicPilot to go informs the user about the appliance status and gives an acoustic or vibration signal when action needs to be taken at the combi steamer, e.g. when the automatic cleaning cycle or the cooking process has finished. The remaining cooking times or set timers (RackControl2) are also shown. So, the chef doesn’t always need to be in the kitchen to keep his eye on the combi steamer. The mobile display provides some welcome breathing space in the busy daily routine in professional kitchens. A free of charge usage of the Android App is available upon registration.

ABB – top innovator for the marine industry in 2015

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 27 June 2015 27 June 2015

ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has won the “Innovation of the Year” award recognizing the company’s new Azipod D electric propulsion system for its important contribution to advancing modern shipping.

ABB, which was also named Propulsion Manufacturer of the Year for a second consecutive year, collected the honors this week during the renowned Electric & Hybrid Marine World Expo in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

The winner was selected by an international jury consisting of 38 maritime journalists, industry experts and academics who recognized the Azipod D’s higher flexibility, reliability and energy efficiency.

“We are delighted that our latest addition to ABB’s electric propulsion portfolio is recognized as Innovation of the Year, and that electric propulsion continues to grow many times faster than the world’s fleet,” said Peter Terwiesch, President of ABB’s Process Automation division. “The flexibility and fuel efficiency of electric propulsion is a key enabler to performance and competitiveness in shipping.”

Azipod D, created to boost propulsion options for segments such as offshore drilling, construction and support vessels, is the latest member of ABB’s gearless Azipod propulsion family. Since its introduction in 1987, Azipod has become the preferred choice of cruise vessels, icebreakers, ice-going cargo vessels and offshore accommodation ships.

The Azipod D requires up to 25 percent less installed power partly due to the new hybrid cooling that increases the performance of the electric motor by up to 45 percent. ABB’s Azipod D propulsion power ranges from 1.6 megawatts to 7 megawatts (MW) per unit.