Strategic Marine Orders 100 Caterpillar Engines

Singapore-based shipbuilding group Strategic Marine announced it has placed an order with Caterpillar dealer Trakindo, for 100 of its Cat C32 engines.

This follows its previous pre-order of 50 similar engines in May 2022 and is aimed at providing security to clients and avoiding long wait times for key components.

While the engine supply chain disruptions of the past few years have been alleviated somewhat as global manufacturing catches up post-Covid, a rise in shipbuilding activity is placing continued pressure on the supply of engines to power the majority of the aluminum boat builder’s wide range of vessels. Strategic Marine has recorded multiple recent orders for fast crew boats and crew transfer vessels from clients in Europe and Asia within the last six months.

In addition, costs have been locked in to hedge against rising prices and current extended delivery times, the builder said.

“We always seek to exceed the needs of our customers first and endeavor to anticipate any potential issues that may cause delays or affect timely delivery of our vessels to our valued clients,” says Strategic Marine Chief Executive Officer, Chan Eng Yew. “We appreciate the trust placed in us to produce the vessels that are now in high demand and leverage on our well-established relationships with close partners such as Trakindo to fulfill these requirements.”

General Manager at Trakindo Widjanarko Hidajat said, “Strategic Marine and Cat engines have been solidly working together to power all types of vessels over the years. We are pleased to build on this relationship by committing 100 engines to our strategic partner and are excited to support them as they continue to grow their business along with the uptick in the market.”

The Cat C32 can produce between 600hp to 1800hp at 2,300 RPM, depending on how it is set up, with peak torque kicking in at 1,500 RPM. The 100 Cat engines are IMO III-ready with the addition of a selective catalytic reduction system.