Maritime Propulsion

 

The latest development is in line with the recent IMO requirement that ships over 5,000 gt should report fuel consumption to their flag states and will enable more accurate monitoring of fuel consumption and vessel emissions to be made.

 

The enginei system uses volumetric or mass flow measurement for enhanced fuel data analysis and reporting options incorporating detailed performance data, fuel optimization rates and mission critical information.

 

In the conventional enginei installation, the operational mode of the vessel is indicated by manual notification into the system by a crew member. Operational modes are defined by different activities being undertaken by the vessel at different times and stages in a journey, with fuel consumption and emissions levels being influenced by the specific type of activity, speed and weather conditions. 

 

The accurate monitoring of performance during different modes can therefore have a significant impact of the economic operation of the vessel.

 

Working with marine engineering specialists from Newcastle University, Royston has now developed an upgraded version of the enginei fuel management system that utilizes sophisticated data processing and statistical analysis to automatically identify the vessel’s operational mode.

 

By identifying individual operational modes automatically, the auto-mode capability removes the risk of human error introduced by the manual intervention of crew members and avoids the consequent risk of misinterpretation of engine and voyage data.

 

In this way, more informed and accurate decisions based on trusted information on fuel consumption can be made.

 

Development of the advanced new auto mode system has included trials undertaken in partnership with offshore fleet services company GulfMark, on board its Highland Prince OSV which has a diesel electric propulsion system with four main Caterpillar engines and two auxiliary engines.

 

Royston’s enginei fuel management system acquires comprehensive real time engine and vessel performance measurements beyond the usual RPM, GPS and fuel inputs to take in a range of other engine control unit outputs. 

 

On board the vessel, touch screen monitors on the bridge and in the engine control room show all aspects of key vessel criteria using displays and presentations of trending graphs against voyage data. The information captured on board is also available for remote interrogation by onshore management and supervisory staff through a secure online portal and web dashboard.

 

Damian McCann, product manager for enginei fuel management systems at Royston, said: “The auto mode detection capability eliminates the risk of human error and ensures the detailed and accurate monitoring of engine performance and fuel consumption.

 

“For example, different members of the crew may recognize or register different operational modes based on their relative experience or there may be time delays in logging manual changes to the type of activity being undertaken.

 

“This can lead to data entry errors, leading to inaccuracies in the interpretation of performance data provided. With the new auto mode detection capability, this risk is eliminated, leading to more accurate and meaningful engine monitoring, from which key operational decisions can be made.”

 

The enginei integrated fuel management system is compatible with all marine engine types and can be interfaced with new-build engine installations or retrofitted to operating vessels.