After initially being designed to accommodate a different propulsion system, Njord Offshore’s four new wind farm crew vessels are all fitted with Volvo Penta IPS900 and will be in the water by early 2015.
As agents for their shipowners, Njord Offshore – the commercial and technical managers of a fleet of 21m and 26m transfer vessels – have ordered four new 26m catamarans containing quadruple installation Volvo Penta IPS900 complete propulsion systems, based on Volvo Penta marine commercial D13 engines and IPS pod units. The vessels are designed by UK-based naval architect BMT Nigel Gee and are being built in Singapore by Australian shipyard Strategic Marine.
The vessels will manage crew transfer and service for the offshore wind farm markets in the North Sea off the Danish, Dutch, German, and British coasts and will be ready for the water by April 2015.
The crew transfer vessels from Strategic Marine were initially designed to accommodate a traditional shaft drive. However when the director of Njord Offshore, Tom Mehew , tested Volvo Penta’s SC Amethyst demo boat at this year’s Seawork International exhibition in Southampton, UK, he was so impressed by the inboard propulsion system’s simple engine room installation, superior handling and bollard pull that designs were changed to accommodate Volvo Penta IPS.
“Our crew vessels, and their propulsion systems, are required to meet a diverse set of parameters. We need speed, efficiency and static bollard push, combined with reliability and redundancy,” Mr. Mehew explains. “Evaluating our specific needs after Seawork, we found that Volvo Penta IPS came out on top. The advantages of the system’s maneuverability and dynamic positioning functionality won us over.”
“Njord Offshore always puts a strong emphasis on safety, efficiency and reliability,” says Gerard Törneman, sales project manager for Volvo Penta Marine Commercial .
“It was only after the project had begun that they realized Volvo Penta was the most cost and time effective solution.
“Luckily, Strategic Marine’s naval architect BMT Nigel Gee was able to accommodate the sudden change of plan, ensuring that the vessels could still be delivered on time to the booming European offshore energy market.”
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