Wärtsilä Corporation has been awarded an order to supply the 19.7MW power plant for a yacht carrier contracted by the heavy transport specialist Dockwise Shipping BV, based in Breda in the Netherlands.
The yacht carrier has been ordered from Yantai Raffles Shipyard in China with delivery due in autumn 2006. Its dimensions are: 205.34 m length overall, 32.2 m beam and operational draught of 5.80 m. The cargoes of yachts will be loaded by floating them over the deck, which measures 165 m long by 31 m wide, while the vessel is ballasted down. To protect the yachts the cargo deck is equipped with high side walls.
This vessel is the first to be designed and built for carrying luxury yachts. Dockwise has built up the yacht transport business since 1987 and owns four converted semi-submersible vessels dedicated to this business. The new vessel will be employed in carrying yachts primarily across the North Atlantic with monthly sailings between Florida/Caribbean and the Mediterranean. The vessel will have a service speed of 18 knots. This will reduce the current transatlantic transit time of 15 days to eight days.
The new yacht carrier will be equipped with a 19,680kW diesel-electric plant for propulsion, ancillary electrical power, and all shipboard electrical services. The plant will be powered by two Wärtsilä 12V38B main diesel generating sets, two Wärtsilä 6L20 auxiliary generating sets, and a 300kWe emergency/harbour generating set. The generating sets will supply twin Lips CS3500 pull thrusters for propulsion.
Manoeuvrability will be enhanced by a 1.64MW Lips CT225 transverse bow thruster. The two 5.1MW azimuthing pull thrusters will each be equipped with a 4.0m-diameter Lips skewed, pulling, controllable-pitch propeller and Sternguard MK2M shaft seals.
This is one of the first vessels to be equipped with Lips pull thrusters. The propeller is arranged ahead of the pod to achieve the best overall hydrodynamic efficiency and steering at high ship speeds.
The Wärtsilä main and auxiliary engines will incorporate common-rail fuel injection. This has the primary benefit of no visible smoke emissions under any operating conditions. Common rail, with its integrated electronic control, allows the fuel injection pressure to be maintained high at all engine loads and speeds thereby ensuring efficient, clean combustion right across the engine’s operating range.
The complete power plant will be delivered by a consortium formed by Wärtsilä and the Dutch company Imtech NV, a specialist in electrical installations and integrated bridge systems. The consortium is responsible for the initial design of the power plant: the supply of the complete generating sets, thrusters, all ancillary systems, electrical switchboards, and the integrated bridge system, including controls for the whole power plant. Furthermore Imtech delivers the components and controls for the ballast system.
The choice and design of the power plant has certain beneficial features that well suit the ship’s trade. For example, the choice of a diesel-electric plant gives flexibility in matching engines in operation to the service speed for good operating economy, while also providing for the high ballast-pumping capacity required when loading and unloading the ship. In addition, the combination of a diesel-electric plant, azimuthing main thrusters and the transverse bow thruster provides good manoeuvrability when approaching and leaving the yacht loading and unloading points. Additionally the common-rail engines reduce smoke to zero. This is a mandatory requirement for transporting luxury yachts.
Media contact: Marit Holmlund-Sund Public Relations Manager, Ship Power Wärtsilä Corporation Direct tel: +358 10 709 1439 Direct fax: +358 10 709 1425 e-mail: marit.holmlund-sund@wartsila.com Internet: www.wartsila.com
