Classification society DNV GL has issued an approval in principle (AIP) to Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL) and South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) for a bow windshield designed for an ultra large container vessel (ULCV).
As explained, the newly developed bow windshield reduces the wind resistance on the hull body while a ship is running.
In addition, the solution is said to reduce CO2 emissions from 2 to 4% due to the optimal design for a ULCV.
In 2015, MOL developed and installed the bow windshield on its mid-size containership, MOL Marvel, in order to explore the device’s potential to reduce wind resistance, save fuel and reduce CO2 emissions. In 2017, the company confirmed that the wind resistance-reducing windshield for containerships cuts CO2 emissions by about 2%.
At the same time, SHI also developed a bow windshield for a ULCV.
Using both companies’ technologies, MOL and SHI started a joint-development project for the optimal bow windshield design for ULCV which resulted in gaining the latest approval from DNV GL.