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Steerprop steps up its establishment in North America

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Products & services Products & services

Published: 11 July 2022 11 July 2022

Steerprop, a leading designer and manufacturer of propulsion systems, is continuing to build up its presence in North America by appointing key management personnel to lead its local operations.

As previously communicated, Steerprop is establishing a subsidiary in Houston, Texas to meet its North American customers’ needs for local support. This strategic move includes setting up proprietary sales and maintenance services as well as building substantial warehouse facilities.

The establishment process has now reached its next level as Steerprop appoints two experienced propulsion professionals to manage and lead its local operations:
– Hank Morgan has been appointed President of Steerprop Inc. as of July 1, 2022. Morgan has long and comprehensive experience in sales and after-sales service in the North American marine market. In his new role he is responsible for developing Steerprop Inc.’s business operations, providing new and existing customers with the high level of support that Steerprop customers worldwide have grown to depend on.
– Samuli Järvinen has been appointed Chief Operating Officer of Steerprop Inc. His extensive experience from various roles within Steerprop Services is perfect for ramping up the subsidiary’s operational activities. Järvinen is responsible for bringing Steerprop’s world-class services to North American customers, ensuring fast and professional maintenance and availability of Steerprop Original Spare Parts.

“The time has now come to move into the next phase of strengthening our presence in North America. From our prespective, the market is moving in a positive direction as we see the number of loyal Steerprop customers increasing. With Morgan’s strong ability to resolve customers’ challenges and Järvinen’s solid knowledge of Steerprop technology, we will be able to serve our customers even better from now on,” says Riku-Pekka Hägg, President and CEO of Steerprop Ltd.

“With these appointments, we cement our long-term commitment to our customers in the area, and we look forward to continuing the development of our local service business and customer relationships,” Hägg continues.

MJM Marine receives multi-million pound contract from Marella Cruises

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Products & services Products & services

Published: 08 July 2022 08 July 2022

Cruise ship outfitter MJM Marine has been awarded a multi-million-pound contract with Marella Cruises, for significant refurbishment work onboard Marella Discovery.

Engaging MJM to deliver the project, Marella Discovery will undergo the multi-million-pound outfitting of its cabins and suites, with works scheduled to take place in November 2022 whilst in drydock in Cádiz, Spain.

Having recently worked with the cruise operator aboard Marella Explorer supplying antimicrobial lighting solutions for public restrooms, in partnership with VYV, MJM presents another major milestone in the onboard installation of the VYV technology, with its introduction to the wet units within the Marella Discovery cabin refresh project. The innovative and sustainably conscious antimicrobial applications enable MJM to supplement stringent onboard measures with further antimicrobial coverage within the cabin spaces, offering an additional layer of protection for passengers and crew to sail safely and securely with a new standard of environmental wellness.

Gary Annett, CEO of MJM Marine said, “Our team here at MJM are delighted to be partnering with the team at Marella Cruises for the outfitting of the cabins and suites onboard Marella Discovery. We are continually adapting and enhancing our offerings to match the new ways of operating in the cruise industry, post pandemic. Through our partnership with Vyv, we can present solutions to Marella that facilitates safeguarding measures alongside the delivery of our bespoke turnkey outfitting expertise, all without compromising on the quality and craftsmanship synonymous with our company values.”

“Teaming up with MJM Marine and LightPartner Lichtsysteme GmbH & Co. KG creates a winning partnership for playing an important role in the wellness and sustainability measures implemented onboard Marella cruise ships by helping to satisfy the demand for demonstrable environmental wellness features,” noted Colleen Costello, CEO of Vyv. “Once installed, our overhead lighting technology works non-stop to protect the environments passengers and crew frequent from many common germs, so they can cruise without worry.”

The multi-million-pound Marella Discovery cabin and suite refurbishment contract further provides a unique opportunity to aid the growth of both MJM and the local economy, as the company announce a significant number of new job prospects, particularly in the Newry, Mourne and Down area where MJM Marine are headquartered.

Gary added, “We are very proud of our company heritage in Northern Ireland and as we continue to expand our diverse portfolio of large industry clients and projects, such as Marella Cruises’ Discovery, we are delighted to present more opportunities back to the community, adding to the multi-skilled and accomplished MJM workforce that consistently deliver the highest calibre of outfitting onboard every project.”

Versonix deploys cutting-edge machine learning technology

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Products & services Products & services

Published: 02 July 2022 02 July 2022

Unlocking its full potential to drive new levels of efficiency and performance, Versonix has deployed cutting-edge machine learning technology to its Seaware Analytics module.

Facilitating the flow of reservation data into the data repository, the ML engine weighs actual patterns against target booking curves, correlating performance between various categories and departure dates. Allowing customers to control strategic pricing for multiple virtual categories and implementing pricing strategies for all physical categories. Providing this flywheel of data enables the module to move from recommendations to semi-automatic and eventually fully automatic and real-time adjustments. All the while, Seaware “learns” as it continues to work with clients and partners on fine-tuning the model.

Versonix realizes machine learning technology is a competitive necessity and essential to impacting the travel and leisure industry’s future. Below are 6 major ways ML brings value to our customers:

Six major ways of machine learning

– Cost reduction: Applying ML and intelligent automation solutions to automate tasks that are relatively low value and often repetitive, reducing costs through improved efficiency and quality.
– Speed to execution: Reducing the time required to achieve operational and business results by minimizing latency.
– Reduced complexity: Improving understanding and decision making through analytics that are more proactive, predictive and able to see patterns in increasingly complex sources.
– Transformed engagement: Changing the way people interact with technology, enabling businesses to engage with people on human terms rather than forcing humans to engage on machine terms.
– Fueled innovation: Redefining where to play and how to win by using ML to enable innovative new products, markets and business models.
– Fortified trust: Securing a business from risks such as fraud and cyber and improving quality and consistency while enabling greater transparency to enhance brand trust.

WinGD X-EL Energy Solutions brings engine expertise to energy system integration

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: Products & services Products & services

Published: 23 June 2022 23 June 2022

Swiss marine power company WinGD has introduced a new battery-hybrid power integration and sustainability advisory service, X-EL Energy Solutions. By integrating two-stroke marine engine control into the electrified vessel power system for the first time, X-EL Energy Solutions aims to widen the range of vessels that can benefit from electrification as shipping seeks to improve efficiency and reduce emissions.

 With X-EL Energy Solutions, WinGD has developed proprietary expertise and digital tools to simulate, design and deploy the entire vessel powertrain, incorporating in-line shaft generators, frequency converters, thrusters and, whenever required, battery systems, integrated with the main engine. The overall power configuration is controlled by a holistic energy management system that offers dynamic optimisation to real-time vessel operating conditions.

 “Electrification will be crucial both to reduce emissions and to reduce consumption of expensive fuels. Our holistic approach to designing power arrangements involves the entire energy system, not merely the main engine or any other individual component or a sub-system. The X-EL solutions are in complete alignment with the maritime industry’s ongoing energy transition by enabling greater efficiency,” said Stefan Goranov, General Manager Sustainability Solutions at WinGD.

 As the most efficient energy provider on big merchant vessels, the two-stroke engine plays a central role in the overall power system, offering far greater fuel efficiency and lower operating costs than auxiliary generating sets when used to generate electricity, especially on partial loads. WinGD’s engine design expertise gives it unique insight into how engines need to interface with other components of the energy system to maximise energy efficiency.

 WinGD has developed strong relationships with suppliers of key components, including shaft generators, frequency converters and batteries, to enable accurate simulation of complete energy systems. This ensures an optimal system can be developed virtually, reducing the risk of integration challenges while the vessel is being commissioned and in service.

 WinGD’s proprietary energy management system ensures that the vessel has the right power delivered in the most fuel-efficient way at all times. It combines simulation of the energy system with real-time monitoring to identify the most suitable mode of operation for current conditions as well as improving reliability and load response across the integrated power system.

The launch of X-EL Energy Solutions follows WinGD’s first contract to deliver hybrid system integration and energy management, for four LNG-fueled pure car and truck carriers due to enter service in 2023. The vessels will be powered by X-DF2.1 dual-fuel engines as part of a battery-hybrid system developed by X-EL Energy Solutions.

Goranov explained: “By integrating electric hybrid technologies that are customised for the individual vessel’s characteristics and operating profiles, along with our proprietary energy management system, we can ensure lifecycle capabilities for meeting operational and regulatory challenges.”

As well as designing and integrating systems X-EL Energy Solutions also offers advisory services, using its expertise and digital technologies to simulate optimal configurations and control strategies of energy systems for ship owners, shipyards, integrators, and naval architects.