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Pukyong National University (PKNU) has chosen GE’s Power Conversion business to provide the SeaStream Dynamic Positioning (DP) system for their training vessel for fisheries industry training. GE’s SeaStream DP will enable the ship to perform operations – for example controlling horizontal movement or holding position against harsh wind and in choppy waters – with stability, safety and precision for a long time.

“We have more than six decades of onboard vessel training experience and are now adding the 14th vessel to the fleet. We are glad to work with GE, whose robust technology will contribute to us adding the largest and best equipped new vessel to our fleet,” said Professor LEE JONG-GUN, director of the PKNU Ship Training and Operations Center, PKNU.

SeaStream DP is also a smart system that will contribute to the ship’s overall efficiency and operational effectiveness.

The “Energy Efficient” mode of the DP system can help reduce fuel consumption. The position and heading of the vessel are both controlled automatically, predictive software is used to anticipate position variation and to limit thrust changes if the vessel is predicted to remain within the so-called ‘soft’ operating window, or an inner tolerance band. If the vessel is predicted to move outside its ‘hard’ operating window (outer tolerance band), the system develops optimum thrust to remain within that window. Advanced algorithms are used to optimize vessel heading to further reduce power consumption and limit thruster/machinery wear and tear.

GE studies have shown that fuel saving in this mode may be up to 10 percent or more, with an associated NOx reduction of up to 20 percent, depending on environmental factors and exact operational profile.

“GE’s DP system is more mariner friendly, which is an excellent choice for fishery training purposes. With an informative and easily-operable human-machine interface, the system provides unprecedented flexibility and effectiveness that allows operators to truly focus on their maritime operations,” said Ed Torres, CEO of marine and oil & gas, GE’s Power Conversion business.

“We have partnered with multiple universities in Korea to provide DP systems in recent years, helping to train students with valuable skills and to fuel their ambition to pursue a successful career at sea,” said Azeez Mohammed, president & CEO, GE’s Power Conversion business. “We are excited to be part of the journey, helping the next generation of maritime professionals excel with one of the most advanced technologies for efficient ship operations.”

Built by DAE SUN Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd, the training ship is 97 m long and 15.4 m wide. It has a gross tonnage of 3,990 ton and a capacity of 160 people.

Press Releases: ge.com

Photo Courtesy: ge.com

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The easy-open casing design of GE’s LM2500 and LM6000 family of marine gas turbines simplifies onboard maintenance and repair that can save navies millions of dollars annually. Like an automobile hood, GE’s design uses specialized hinges and braces to allow the whole compressor casing to be easily opened. The low-pressure turbine also has a split casing design.

“To better understand how our unique split casing design has prevented hundreds of gas turbine removals from ships, GE reviewed historical maintenance and repair data from three naval customers,” said GE’s Brien Bolsinger, Vice President and General Manager. “We determined that thanks to GE’s easy-open split case design that allows for onboard intermediate level repair and maintenance, the United States Navy saved approximately $45 to $90 million in 2017 alone; and the Royal Canadian and Royal Australian Navies save $4 to $9 million each per year. The savings depends on the size of the fleet; the U.S. Navy operates about 400 gas turbines on over 110 ships,” Bolsinger added.

In-place split casing repairs typically cost less than $100,000 and work can be performed in two to three days. Not all repairs can be made in place, as the gas turbine may be removed due to event severity. However, the easy-open GE gas turbine casing allows for a thorough and immediate assessment to expedite repairs. Borescope inspections are not conclusive as they provide a limited view of the gas turbine internals. Repairing an engine in place is particularly important on single gas turbine propulsion ships, which do not have redundancy, and whose availability would be significantly impacted if an engine removal was required.

The split casing design simplifies the following intermediate level maintenance and repair actions:

Foreign object damage from the unexpected ingestion of a foreign object like salt water or ship’s structure

material which happens to all gas turbines.

Domestic object damage repair.

Occasionally, a gas turbine requires a trim balance to lower vibration as an engine matures. This procedure can

be performed in place without removing the gas turbine from the ship. Preventative maintenance actions including inspections and component upgrades that extend gas turbine life can be done in place.

Many of these maintenance actions can be performed on-site because of GE’s split casing gas turbine design.

Conversely, without a split casing, a complete engine removal is required, increasing repair time and gas turbine unavailability to weeks or even months. In addition, the cost of repair per event increases to ~$1.5 to $3 million.

Press Releases: ge.com

Photo Courtesy: ge.com

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