Wärtsilä Underwater Mountable Thrusters

Each component and aspect of the underwater mountable thruster series has been selected to achieve a high level of reliability. With the Wärtsilä PCMS (Propulsion Condition Monitoring Service), the reliability and availability of the thruster can be improved even further. As this service is recognized by the main marine class societies, the thruster overhaul intervals can be extended according to the condition of the equipment

The Wärtsilä Underwater Mountable Thruster series feature an 8 degree tilted propeller shaft and nozzle, which direct the propeller jet away from the hull and other thrusters. In addition to reducing hull interaction losses, this also greatly reduces interaction between the thrusters, thus making the so-called ‘forbidden zones’ considerably smaller. The unique design means that customers can expect up to 20% more effective thrust than conventional non-tilted thrusters, depending on vessel configuration and application.

The excellent efficiency and performance of Wärtsilä Underwater Mountable Thruster is further enhanced by the capability to design and configure the optimal configuration and power requirements to fit the vessel actual operating profile and needs of the owner. This is achieved through the use of advanced calculations including hydrodynamics and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and includes the ability to add system failures to ensure safe operation. The result of these calculations and analysis allow for an accurate view of the thruster position, combination of thruster type, and most importantly the power required to deliver the thrust to support vessel operations safely and efficiently – this detailed insight allows the correct total vessel power requirement to be calculated rather than estimated, which can reduce the cost of the total power train configuration.

By bringing together these technologies and expertise in a single configurable solution approach, the optimal solution can be agreed, which when combined with Wartsila’s thruster performance results in reduced overall weight and increased performance. This ensures that owners, operators and yards benefit from significant savings and efficiencies not before possible.