R& D

T E X T: R I C K M c A R T H U R

Breaking the mould in

CONTAINERSHIP DESIGN
Designed and developed by Wrtsil in close collaboration with the Graig Group and the DNV classication society, the MARLIN series of container feeder vessel designs offers shipowners approximately 30% improved fuel efficiency per TEU carried, as well as other important benets including lower emissions.
series of up to 26 of the fuel-efficient newgeneration MARLIN 2000 Blue design has been ordered by the UK-based Graig Group for construction at the Jin Hai shipyard com plex in China. Vessels will be delivered in pairs every two and half months. According to Graig, discussions on charters for the vessels with several global liner companies are at an advanced stage. In addition to significantly improved fuel effi ciency compared to vessels currently in service, MARLIN series designs offer improved capacity

and slow steaming potential, better loading flexi bility for different container types including a high reefer intake and lower emissions. All the designs are the product of extensive research and tank test ing and consultation with end users.
BLUE, JADE OR GREEN?

a Bangkok-max container feeder, has a nomi nal cargo capacity of 2056 TEU 20% more con tainers than feeder vessels of comparable size - is direct diesel powered and offers 30% fuel savings per day per TEU carried. Unlike most other con tainerships of similar capacity, it has a wide and flexible range of service speeds from 10 to approx imately 20 knots. As emissions regulations become tighter and bunker costs rise, two other MARLIN concept designs are expected to become increasingly attrac tive to charterers. Slightly larger than MARLIN 2000 Blue, MARLIN 2500 Jade is diesel-powered and offers similar fuel and efficiency gains but is delivered with either scrubber or SCR emissionreduction technology. MARLIN 2500 Green has dual-fuel and LNG options and is ideally suited for container feeder vessels intending to operate in ECAs (Emissions Control Areas).
A STEP-CHANGE IN THE CONTAINER FEEDER INDUSTRY

All three basic MARLIN designs feature an opti mised hull shape, increased capacity compared to other configurations, and accommodation in the forward part of the hull. MARLIN 2000 Blue,

Commenting on the initial order last July, Hugh Williams, CEO, Graig, said, This series responds to the industrys needs. There is a gap in the

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Research & Development

THE MARLIN SERIES OFFERS FAR BETTER EFFICIENCY, CAPACITY AND LOADING FLEXIBILITY.

containership market for quality, fuel-efficient, com petitively-priced and environmentally-sound feeder ships to service the ultra-large containerships now being brought into service by major shipping lines. The advanced MARLIN family of designs will fill that gap, and we expect this order to be the first of several series of larger capacity future-proof vessels, backed by the strengths of the MARLIN consortia. This is a step-change for the feeder section of the container industry, he continued. It marks the beginning of a two-tier market for feeder ships. The top tier will be those which are like MARLIN, clean and fuel efficient and matching the economies of scale of the new megaliners. Graig is offering MARLIN family designs as a package. We have a high-capacity shipyard con tracted, finance in place and employment mod els worked through, said Williams. Three basic versions are available, suitable for owners ready to invest and lines wanting to charter cleaner and more efficient feedering.

VESSEL SUPERSTRUCTURE AND BRIDGE PLACED FORWARD

When Wrtsil made the strategic decision to enter the ship design sector, the intention was to enable discussions with shipowners at a very early stage in each project, with the aim of demonstrating to cus tomers the value of incorporating products from Wrtsils portfolio in the final designs, says RikuPekka Hgg, Vice President Ship Design. Container feeders are of interest because the potential market for such vessels is large, he con tinues. The large container lines have introduced megacarriers of 13,000 TEU, and theyre now talk ing about 18,000 TEU. All these containers will have to be distributed and the effects will cascade through existing tonnage. While feeder vessels have traditionally been 10001200 TEU, the changing market means they will become larger. Vessels in the MARLIN container feeder series not only offer high levels of fuel efficiency, placing the superstruc ture forward provides excellent visibility and allows

[ INNOVATIO N ]

BENEFIT
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MARLIN Blue HFO DNV 1A1 Container Carrier, NAUTICUS (Newbuilding) E0, DG-P, BIS, TMON , NAUT-OC, BWM-S, CLEAN COMF-V(2)

MARLIN Jade HFO with SCR + Scrubber DNV 1A1 ICE-1A Container Carrier, NAUTICUS (Newbuilding) E0, DG-P, BIS, TMON, NAUT-OC, BWM-T, CLEAN COMF-V(2)

MARLIN Green DUAL-FUEL DNV 1A1 ICE-1A Container Carrier, NAUTICUS (Newbuilding) E0, DG-P, BIS, TMON, NAUT-OC, BWM-T, CLEAN COMF-V(2), GAS FUELLED

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Research & Development
The MARLIN Consortium offering turnkey solutions
WRTSILS PARTNERS IN THE MARLIN

the vessel to carry more cargo than other designs. The focus in MARLIN designs is on the China Seas, an area where the potential for container transportation is highest. As Bangkok is a critical location, we defined Bangkok-Max as specifying the criteria for MARLIN, says Hgg. The vessel dimensions have therefore been optimised for a length of 172 metres and a corresponding beam and permissible draught. The benchmarking we have carried out indicates significantly better per formance than others in this trade.
LOWER HULL RESISTANCE MEANS LOWER FUEL CONSUMPTION

The MARLIN Blue 2000 is equipped with aWrt sil 6-cylinder RT-flex 58T-D 2-stroke main engine, a very fuel-efficient design, and a 6.5 metre fixed-pitch propeller (FPP). We also put a lot of emphasis into developing the vessels hull

lines, says Hgg. Not only to achieve low resist ance and hence lower fuel consumption, but also to analyse acceleration in the forward section of the ship so that life for crew members is entirely acceptable. As well as model tests we did a sea keeping test, and then produced a video to dem onstrate how the vessel will behave. Investigations of sea conditions in the China Seas involved taking the sea spectrum of the entire area and then utilising the resulting wave periods and data on the occurrence of different weather phenomena in model tests. In simple terms, we can transport more cargo using less fuel. says Hgg. And using less fuel means you emit less exhaust gas, so MARLIN designs are cleaner in two ways through the reduced power require ments which follow from their overall design, and through the very fuel-efficient Wrtsil engines used to power them.

CONSORTIUM are the Graig Group and DNV (Det Norske Veritas), an independent foundation whose stated purpose is safeguarding life, property, and the environment. DNV was established in 1864 in Norway to inspect and evaluate the technical condition of Norwegian merchant vessels. Wrtsil Ship Design is a world-leading player in economical, efficient and environmentally-sound ship design. It currently has more than 300 vessels under design or construction and more than 3400 designed vessels in operation. Shipyardindependent, Wrtsil Ship Design operates world wide, has offices in ten countries and employs approximately 350 people. UK-based Graig has been building, managing and owning ships since 1919, and is now a broadbased international ship-owning and shipping services group delivering a wide range of shippingrelated services, including technical management and crewing for a mixed eet of vessels on behalf of a number of owners. Graig has offices in Cardiff, London, Shanghai, Singapore and Manila. The marketing model for the MARLIN series containerships is similar to that of Graigs Diamond 53 programme for new-generation Handymax bulk carriers. This successful partnership and services-focused concept involves strong Asian partners, 60+ owned shipbuilding contracts, and has a total contract value of some USD 2 billion (EUR 1440 million). Key features of the MARLIN package offered by Graig are an advanced suite of optimised, efficient and green designs, competitive pricing, attractive nance packages and experienced partners. Other benets include a strong supervision team and both contract and high-level shipyard support during construction, series production at selected Chinese shipyards and experienced technical managers for post-delivery services.

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