Offshore staff
KONGSBERG, Norway – VARD Shipyard has commissioned Kongsberg Maritime to supply permanent magnet (PM) thrusters for installation on two new offshore wind farm maintenance vessels.
The construction service operations vessels are on order from Rem Offshore.
Kongsberg’s full contract scope includes PM tunnel thrusters and a retractable azimuth thruster. According to the company, PM thrusters help to ensure improved maneuverability, reduced noise (in the vessel and in the sea) and higher propulsion efficiency, with reduced energy consumption and emissions.
The thrusters will be controlled by the company’s K-Master bridge solution, which combines dynamic positioning and maneuvering functionality in a joystick-driven system that can be managed by a single operator.
Unlike conventional thrusters, the PM thrusters’ propeller blades are not driven directly using a motor and shaft. Instead, an electromagnetic field generates a rotational force (torque) via a compact PM motor integrated around the outer diameter of the propeller.
The system is said to enable direct drive to the propeller, with no gears, and the rapid power delivery is said to help the control systems to reduce vessel movements in the sea.
VARD expects to deliver the first vessel during the first half of 2023. It has an option to build two more vessels of the same design.
09/21/2021
