Vision 2010 - Rolls-Royce

VISION
No. 1/2010
HighlightS in this issue: The future of anchorhandling vessels, page 9 | New customer
training capacity, Page 20 | Advances in deck machinery, page 15

No 1/2010
Contents
page 28:
Island Wellserver feedback
page 15: Launching heavy anchors
page 12: 30 years of Les Abeilles
3..............................................................................................................................................Viewpoint
4-5.....................................................................................................................................................News
6-11............................................................................. The future of offshore vessel design
12-13....................................................................................................... 30 years of Les Abeilles
14............................................................................................................................Recent deliveries
15-17..........................................................................................Advances in deck machinery
18...........................................................................................................................New towing tank
19..........................................................................................................Coast guard goes for gas
20-21.................................................................................. New customer training capacity
22-23............................................................................................................Improving operation
24.........................................................................................................................Service expansion
25-27............................................................................................................................E&P deliveries
28-30...........................................................................Value for money – Island Wellserver
VISION 1/10
Editor: Ellen Kvalsund
Contributors: Marianne
Hovden and Richard White
Design and layout:
I&M Kommunikasjon AS
Printed by: Egsetviketrykk AS
Circulation: 11,000
Photos in this issue:
Oda Spurkeland (p. 5),
Bourbon (p. 12-13),
Farstad Shipping (p. 14),
OMS Schiffart (p. 14),
Island Offshore (p. 14),
Richard White (p. 18-19),
Kleven Maritime (p. 19),
Sea Trucks Group (p. 25),
Aker Solutions (p. 26),
BP Norge AS (p. 27),
J. Ray McDermott (p. 27),
Statoil (p. 28 and 30),
Arild Gilja (p. 29-30).
Contact: Rolls-Royce
Communications Dept.,
NO-6065 Ulsteinvik, Norway
Tel. +47 815 200 70
Fax +47 700 140 05
Emails regarding this
magazine can be sent to:
marianne.hovden@
rolls-royce.com
VISION
HigHligHtS in tHiS iSSue: tHe future of ancHor Handling veSSelS, page 9 | new cuStomer
training capacity, page 20 | advanceS in deck macHinery, page 15
Front page: The UT790 CD
showcases radical new
thinking in anchorhandler
design. Read more on page 9.
Nothing stands still in
the offshore world
As exploration and production moves into new
regions with harsh climates and deeper waters,
new technologies are required. This provides
challenges to Rolls-Royce support vessel and
system designers – challenges they thrive on.
We are now introducing new ship designs
and products that we have been developing to
meet the industry’s future needs, and some are
presented in this issue of Vision.
Starting with ship design, we have the new
UT 790 CD anchorhandler, incorporating the
latest research into hull resistance and motions
in a seaway. This will provide owners with a
working platform meeting current and foreseen
regulations, combining power and safety for
anchorhandling operations in deep water and
tough conditions. To achieve this, we have
radically changed the traditional layout, moving
the hybrid propulsion machinery further aft
and the main and secondary winches forward
and down to lower the centre of gravity, and
wrapped them in a low resistance hullform
meeting Clean Design rules.
On deck, we are bringing in new solutions to
further improve safety and to handle new deepwater
anchors. One is a system for launching
and decking the heavy Torpedo anchors.
Another is a way of severing lines quickly
should an emergency situation arise during an
anchorhandling operation, rather than using
the standard emergency release procedure of
paying out line from the winch.
Rolls-Royce is making major investments in
upgrading existing service facilities and opening
new service centres in key locations around
the world. Some 650 UT-series vessels have
been delivered, with many more on order, and
even the earliest vessels are still giving good
service. Supporting these, the huge amount
of Rolls-Royce equipment in other vessels, and
the thrusters, engines and deck machinery in
rigs and drillships, is a high priority. The centre
in Galveston, USA, is now in full operation.
The upgraded service base in Rio, Brazil, has
just opened, as has a centre in Genoa, Italy, to
improve service in the Mediterranean region.
Finally, it is always rewarding when a new
technology is proven to be successful. The
UT 737 L Island Frontier did pioneering work
and UT 767 CD Island Wellserver, working for
StatoilHydro in the Norwegian sector of the
North Sea, has conclusively shown that light
well stimulation from vessels instead of rigs is
not only feasible, but very successful and costeffective.
We have received very positive reports
from the owner and the oil major on the vessel’s
seakeeping and its excellence as a working
platform and a place to live.
Best regards,
Anders Almestad
President – Offshore
Viewpoint
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News
Grand opening in Brazil
In August 2009
Rolls-Royce moved into
a brand new service
facility in the heart of
Rio’s shipbuilding and
repair district in Niteròi.
“This new facility is one of
the most advanced marine
repair and overhaul centres in
South America, and will greatly
increase our capacity to support
our customers. It will enable
us to attend to all products in
the Rolls-Royce Marine product
range,” sayd service manager
Aluisio Mariante.
The main service activities are
thrusters, CPP and diesel engine
overhauls, but they also provide
trouble-shooting attendances
and commissioning jobs on
new vessels. At present, 30
service engineers and 30 service
technicians are employed in the
Niteròi facility, while two service
engineers are based in Chile.
Customers who have visited
the new facility have been
impressed with the workshop’s
capability, quality and location.
“After we moved, we have
been contacted by customers
who we have never worked
with before. A good example is
Maersk, who recently had three
tunnel thrusters for overhaul
in our workshop,” Aluisio
continued. “We see service
volume growing.” Ninety
percent of the revenue comes
from the offshore business and
there are about 150 vessels
and 15 oil rigs in operation
in the Campos Basin today,
most of them with Rolls-Royce
equipment on board.
The official opening took
place 6 November 2009.
The next step in
hybrid propulsion
Hybrid mechanical/electrical
propulsion systems are now
well established in offshore
vessels, with the Rolls-Royce
UT-series leading the way. These
systems now take a major step
forward with the introduction
of the Rolls-Royce HSG-drive.
HSG-drive confers greater
flexibility in selecting optimum
propeller speeds for a particular
operation by eliminating the
need to run shaft generators at
constant frequency. The drive
controls the frequency so that
the engine and shaft generator
The Bergen lean burn gas
engines are known for their
low emissions, not only of NOx,
SOx and particulates, but also
of CO2.
Reports on Bergen gas
engines in marine operation are
very positive, with individual
units accumulating close to
20.000 running hours.
Rolls-Royce marine gas
engines are approved both
as generator sets and for
direct mechanical drive to the
propeller.
As the LNG bunkering
infrastructure grows, the fuel
becomes more attractive for
offshore service vessels in
the quest for lower exhaust
can turn at any speed, yet the
power fed to the switchboard
is at the correct frequency and
phase angle, and the input to
the switchboard is equivalent to
a genset running in parallel.
A hybrid propulsion system
can therefore be used to
best advantage in terms of
minimising fuel consumption
and emissions, as the HSGdrive
allows the various parts of
the system to run in the most
efficient part of their operating
ranges.
Bergen engine developments
emissions. This is reflected in an
increased number of requests
for switching from diesel to gas.
Because of this, the Bergen
gas engine range is being
extended. Currently the C-series
engine range for LNG operation
is well under development
and will take over from the first
generation gas engine, the
K-gas series. The C-series gas
has an increased bore, from
250 to 260mm, and the output
will be 270kW per cylinder. First
delivery is scheduled for the
end of 2010.
The gas engine range will
be completed by a new B inline
version, with engines for
delivery in mid-2011.
Signing ceremony in Galveston.
Derrick barge upgrade
Offshore exploration and
production contractor J. Ray
McDermott has ordered
thrusters and diesel generator
sets from Rolls-Royce for a
major upgrade of the derrick
and pipelay vessel Derrick/
J-lay Barge 50. The barge has
worked hard for 20 years, and
the time has come to replace
Bergen Record
Bergen engine
delivered in record time
With increased pressures in
today’s economic climate,
meeting and exceeding
customers’ expectations is vital.
The Rolls-Royce engine factory,
in Bergen, exceeded customer
expectations when it delivered
a ready engine in just five weeks.
A Norwegian customer
operating in Singapore
experienced an unexpected
breakdown on one of its main
engines in mid-August 2009. To
get the seismic vessel back at
work with as little operational
downtime as possible, a
replacement engine had to be
found quickly. A large team at
Rolls-Royce in Bergen in Norway
focused their efforts on meeting
this urgent request and just ten
days after signing the contract,
old equipment and generally
upgrade the vessel for another
20-30 active years.
Four Bergen gensets
will supply power, and six
underwater-mountable
thrusters will provide
propulsion and dynamic
positioning capability. See page
25 for more details.
a B-series 4,000kW engine was
on its way to the customer.
“The timescales of this
delivery have been absolutely
amazing. It can be fully
attributed to the synergy
and teamwork between the
engineers, logistic coordinators
and service personnel, and their
alone or united
A challenging electrical
systems installation, involving
two offshore units that can
operate individually or locked
together, has been successfully
completed in Dubai.
BassDrill’s project BassDrill
Alpha is a medium tender
barge which will function as an
auxiliary vessel for fixed rigs in
southeastern areas of Asia, for
drilling operations in 5-200m
water depth.
The barge is equipped with
most of a ship’s auxiliary systems
but is not self propelled, and
is therefore towed to the rig’s
operational site, positioning
itself relative to the rig using its
mooring system before linking
with and locking itself to the
rig. This done, rig and barge
function as a single unit. The
barge transports and erects
dedication and commitment to
customer service,” said Ronny
Ellertsen, contract manager for
the project.
Upon the engine’s arrival in
Singapore, a team of Rolls-Royce
engineers was already on site
to take out the old engine and
make the new installation. Sea
the derrick set for drilling and
workover operations, and
provides storage and handling
facilities for drilling mud,
cement, pipes and tubulars, as
well as accommodating up to
112 people.
The challenge in the
contract with the Lamprell
Energy yard in Dubai was to
make the systems supplied by
Rolls-Royce function both as
independent installations, one
in the rig and one in the barge,
and as a single system once
the units are locked together.
The systems involved are;
main electrical distribution,
internal communications, PA/
GA, integrated control and
automation, ESD, and fire and
gas detection.
trials were completed and the
vessel was back in charter just
five weeks after placing the
order.
One of the world’s largest
freighter aircraft was used to
transport the 45 tonne engine
quickly to the ship.
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The new hull design has much lower
resistance over the whole speed range.
Key:
Traditional with 22m beam
Traditional with 20m beam
Wave-piercing with 23m beam,
taken as 100%
Fig.1
Offshore vessel design is central to Rolls-Royce. Svein Kleven, chief
designer, talks to Richard White about the future.
FACING THE FUTURE WITH CONFIDENCE
Rolls-Royce has been successful in
maintaining its lead in offshore vessel
design. What do you feel are the qualities
that will continue this success into the
future?
I believe the answer lies in three main areas:
we have built up unique competence, we
have genuine experience and we combine
these two with creativity and science. To
expand on these points a bit, the unique
competence is built up by combining
individual competence in specialised areas
into a team competence. For example, we
have individuals and groups of people with
vast experience in CFD, we have people
with a deep knowledge of hydrodynamics,
stability, structures, propulsion systems,
electrical arrangements and so on. This
forms the basis. Then we have been
successful in combining these individual
talents into a team that can analyse future
requirements for offshore vessels, work
with customers to turn ideas into actual
vessels and provide comprehensive designs
so that shipyards can confidently build
vessels that are economical to construct
and are efficient in operation. The second
of the points, genuine experience, becomes
important here, with well over six hundred
UT-series vessels delivered. We have
learnt a lot from feedback from shipyards,
shipowners and oil companies. Experience
is important not only in the general concept
of new vessels but in particular in the details
that make for durability, sea kindliness and
habitability. The third point, creativity and
science, is the key to taking Rolls-Royce
designs and equipment into the future. We
always have to think: what is the next step,
what is the next requirement? We have
seen a rapid advance in design techniques
and the need for new types of vessel, for
example, to carry out well intervention
from comparatively small ships instead of
rigs, and clearly tomorrow’s needs will be
different from today’s. Science will help
us find better technical solutions while
creativity will enable us to meet demands
which have not yet been formulated.
The Bourbon Dolphin tragedy has cast
something of a shadow over the industry.
What do you think the long-term effects
will be?
Perhaps the biggest effect is that the
authorities now better understand
that deep water anchorhandling can
be hazardous if things are not planned
properly, and realised there may be a gap
between the statutory regulations and
the declaration of conformity. The rules,
regulations and approval processes need
to reflect the actual scenario offshore. It
is likely that more attention will be given
to detailed planning of operations with
regard to the crew safety on both the rig
and the vessels laying out moorings, with
agreed break points in operations if weather
conditions, or line pull forces, exceed
agreed limits. We have already seen a clear
tendency for increased margins to be laid
down. The whole offshore industry is eager
to improve safety through continuous
training and risk analysis, to ensure that the
criteria are not only met but that overall
safety is improved.
Research is continuing into ways of
instantly releasing wires and chains under
tension, as opposed to today’s emergency
release procedures.
The authorities are proposing that vessels
have both a gross and a net bollard pull
stated, the lower figure being the pull
available when some of the available power
is being directed to thrusters to keep the
vessel on the required heading. It also
appears that, due to lack of knowledge,
some anchorhandlers have been oversold
in relation to their actual stability
and capability. If the vessel does not fit
the purpose, the safety level depends on
the Captain’s ability to evaluate the actual
risk level and take the correct actions.
These actions need to be taken under
continuously varying situations where
unexpected incidents may occur. A better
planning and fit-for-purpose evaluation
would relieve the Captain of some of the
pressure and thereby improve the overall
safety level. We expect the Bourbon Dolphin
tragedy will lead to a better understanding
of the risk involved in offshore anchorhandling
and a continuous working to
improve the safety level.
In recent years we have seen a big
reduction in the hull resistance of offshore
vessels. How far can this process continue?
We are now well past the easy-win situation.
At one time offshore supply boats were
optimised for carrying capacity. Fuel
consumption, although important, was
secondary. With fuel consumption and
exhaust emissions now of great importance,
it has been possible to optimise hulls for
low resistance in the required operating
range. We have devoted huge resources
to this with calculations and model tests,
verified from vessels in service. The result is
that hull resistance is not only lower overall
but quite a wide band of operating speeds
can be available without severe increases
in fuel consumption. There is still a lot to
gain, and our Performance in a Seaway
programme with our University Technology
Centre in Trondheim is paying off. We can
design hulls that have a low resistance in a
seaway as well as under calm conditions.
However, in future the gains will be harder
to achieve. Naval architecture is always a
complex compromise, and a gain in one
direction will usually have to be offset by
less of some other quality. The future will
rather take advantage of better automation
and control systems. The complexity of the
vessel´s operational modes and flexibility
of systems may be simulated and the
operation may be optimised through selflearning
automation and control systems.
The clue is to make sure the vessel always
runs in the optimum made for the actual
operation.
What do you see as the main forces driving
offshore vessel design now?
As long as oilfields in general are getting
more inaccessible, the vessels need to be
fitted for deeper water depths, harsher
environments and less infrastructure
available. This trend is likely to continue
and will dictate the development of
offshore vessels. In addition, the overall
focus is on safety and the environment.
As regular readers of Vision are aware, we
have introduced many products in our Safer
Deck Operations portfolio to reduce the
risk to crew working on deck. An increasing
number of owners are specifying either
Clean or Clean Design notation for their
vessels. This covers emissions both to air
and to water. Double bottoms and double
sides with large void or water ballast spaces
and fuel and chemicals stored well away
from the sides of the vessel help to reduce
the risk of spills in a collision incident. The
Bergen diesel engines meet both the IMO
emissions requirements without additional
exhaust clean-up though many of the
UT-series designs now have provision for
fitting additional exhaust treatment such as
SCR, which further reduces NOx levels. Our
various types of hybrid propulsion systems,
which we apply mainly to vessels that have
to work in a variety of different ways such
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VISION 1/10 7

“Science will help us find
better technical solutions
while creativity will enable
us to meet demands
which have not yet been
formulated.”
as anchorhandling, dynamic positioning or
towing, ensure that the minimum of power
is used to meet the different operational
requirements and this, in turn, cuts fuel
consumption and exhaust emissions.
Rolls-Royce is positioned to meet
the increasing market for LNG-fuelled
propulsion systems, and already has
complete systems in service or on order.
For the offshore side the LNG supply
infrastructure needs to be built up faster
and well distributed to secure the logistics
of the fleet. The attraction is reduced CO2
emissions for a given power, very much
lower NOx levels and negligible sulphur
oxides and particulates.
Although there is much more to be done
in reducing greenhouse gas emissions,
offshore service vessels on the whole do
not use the heavy and high sulphur fuels
common in merchant ships – fuels that
represent residues left after oil has been
refined for land and air power. Exhaust
emissions are also reduced through our
work on raising hull efficiency, our studies
of performance in a seaway, improved
efficiency of individual products, and in
theoretical and practical work on hull/
propulser interactions.
But it has to be said that the question
of price, availability and quality of LNG
fuel is not a simple one, it also involves
international agreements via organisations
such as IMO, regional and national political
forces and technical considerations. These
general conditions need to be solved if the
industry is to be able to take advantage of
LNG fuel worldwide.
Where does Rolls-Royce offshore ship
technology go from here?
The UT 790 CD shows the direction of our
thinking in anchorhandler design. There
are gains to be made in hull efficiency,
propulsion systems and the use of realtime
monitoring, not only for maintenance
but also for voyage planning purposes.
The monohull still has a lot going for it
but we can see that multihulls could be
very interesting for certain offshore niche
markets.
A general problem is that more power
is needed to drive a vessel in adverse
sea conditions than in calm water. Can
we perhaps use some of the energy
from nature constructively to reduce this
difference?
The future of
anchorhandling vessels
The UT 790 CD design embodies Rolls-Royce design thinking for
the next generation of offshore anchorhandlers.
It integrates efficient and safety-conscious
deep water anchorhandling, easily driven
and seakindly hull lines, minimised
emissions, and enhanced crew safety and
comfort in a single package, which can be
summarised as: cleaner; safer; deeper.
These goals interact with each other,
and balancing conflicting requirements has
involved extensive calculation and testing.
The Cleaner goal, for instance, has led to
an efficient hull design combined with an
innovative triple screw hybrid mechanical/
electrical propulsion system. Shifting
moorings in very deep water means long
fibre ropes and heavy wires and chains
and a requirement for a high effective
bollard pull, which in turn demands plenty
of stability. Traditionally, a large beam for
stability would imply extra hull resistance,
but Rolls-Royce has developed a new form
which has a lower resistance than traditional
20m and 22m wide hulls, as shown in Fig.
1, page 7. This is combined with a wavepiercing
bow which runs cleanly with less
pitching and spray at wheelhouse level
than competing designs. The point where
8 VISION 1/10
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9

Fig. 2 UT 790 CD propulsion system in diesel electric transit mode (10 knots).
the upper part of the bow meets the
sloping glacis ahead of the wheelhouse has
been chosen with care. At a transit speed
of 14 knots in 9m significant wave height
water will reach this level. There is plenty
of safety margin in hand, but it gives the
captain a clear visual signal that maintaining
this speed in even more severe conditions
may bring heavier seas over the bow.
A triple screw propulsion system allows
the UT 790 CD to use the minimum of
fuel to do the job in the various operating
modes. A centreline large CP propeller
can be driven mechanically or electrically,
and has a flap rudder for steering. It is
flanked by two Azipull azimuth thrusters
with pulling propellers, electrically driven.
At the bow are two tunnel thrusters and
a swing-up azimuth thruster. There are
many possible operating modes, but some
of the main ones are illustrated (Figs 2 to
5), showing the various power flows for
sailing in diesel electric mode at 10 knots,
sailing in mechanical mode using only one
engine at 14 knots, combined systems for
maximum pull, and the efficient system
with a high level of redundancy for dynamic
positioning.
This high redundancy in propulsion
contributes to safety, and other safetyoriented
features of the design include
an all-round view from the wheelhouse,
unobstructed by uptakes thanks to the
use of a side exhaust system. The UT 790
CD also carries the full range of Safer Deck
Operations equipment developed by
Rolls-Royce over the past few years.
Deep water anchorhandling requires
powerful winches and storage for many
kilometres of wire, and large diameter fibre
rope, on winch drums. This has led to more,
and larger, secondary winches typically
mounted above the main towing and
anchorhandling drums, tending to raise
the vessel’s centre of gravity. To produce a
vessel that can use its power and capacity
to full effect, the new UT 790 CD completely
re-thinks anchorhandler layout, moving
the engines further aft and locating the
secondary winches low down where the
engineroom would traditionally be. This
solution allows for four high-capacity
secondary drums in a position where they
help instead of reduce stability.
Safety considerations go more than
skin deep. Following the tragic capsize
of an offshore vessel, not of Rolls-Royce
design, off Shetland in 2007, the Norwegian
Maritime Directorate introduced a number
of stability-related requirements with
immediate effect, and started a programme
to develop general new anchorhandling
requirements. The consultation period for
this has just ended, and Rolls-Royce has
been very proactive in the process. Rather
than introducing purely national rules, the
proposals will go through the International
Maritime Organization, and the final
requirements would have worldwide effect.
The process would take time, but since
offshore vessels ordered now can expect
to be in service for 30 or more years, the UT
790 CD design meets all the requirements
that are likely to come into force as a result
of the NMD work. It also meets the SPS 2008
code for special purpose ships. The main
point is that the extensive hull subdivision
is arranged so that following damage, for
example from a collision, the UT 790 CD
would float deeper in the water, but with
satisfactory damage stability and only a
small angle of heel. This would allow people
on board who are less accustomed to ships
than the marine crew to muster easily,
and give better conditions for operating
life-saving appliances. The philosophy is the
same as used now in passenger ship design,
and is distinct from the stability rules for
cargo vessels, where a substantial angle of
heel is permitted after hull damage.
Taken together, the combination of
form and function in the UT 790 CD offers
shipowners the right tool for today’s and
future AHT operations.
Fig. 3 Mechanical mode – transit at 14 knots.
Fig. 4 Diesel electric and mechanical transmission combined for maximum pull.
Fig. 5 Diesel electric dynamic positioning mode.
10 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 11

Abeille Bourbon at speed in a
typical rough sea off the French
coast
Two views of the rescue operation
for container ship MSC Napoli,
which broke its back in the English
Channel. Abeille Bourbon and a
British emergency towing vessel,
both designed by Rolls-Royce,
worked together to take the
ship to a successful controlled
beaching for salvage.
Pollution prevention, towage
and salvage services on the
French coast.
30 years of Les ABeilles
Les Abeilles, a BOURBON company,
celebrates 30 years of operation. Since
1979 it has provided pollution prevention,
towage and salvage services on the French
coast. On average, assistance has been
given to 25 vessels in distress a year, and
the worst consequences of some 15 major
marine incidents prevented during these
30 years.
The pride of the Les Abeilles fleet has
been two generations of UT-series vessels
designed to meet the French company’s
tough requirements.
Two vessels, designed and equipped by
Rolls-Royce, are the present flagships of the
fleet. Both are to the UT 515 design, built at
the Myklebust shipyard in Norway in 2005,
and are on long-term charter to the French
Navy. Abeille Bourbon is based in Brest, well
placed to cover the west coast of France
and the Channel approaches, and sistership
Abeille Liberté is stationed further up the
Channel at Cherbourg.
They took over from Abeille Flandre and
Abeille Languedoc, two vessels to the UT 507
design built in Norway in the late 1970s,
which achieved a high reputation and have
moved to other stations on the French
coast. BOURBON operates these vessels on
a long-term charter to the French Navy.
This level of coast protection does not
come cheap, but it has been found to be a
sound decision over the years. The Amoco
Cadiz tanker incident in 1978 left heavy oil
pollution on beaches, and was one of the
factors influencing the setting up of the
service, while the more recent Erika disaster,
and the sinking of Prestige off Spain, caused
oil pollution, public outcry and heavy
economic losses.
The French authorities cooperate with
the British, who came to similar conclusions
when they set up the Emergency Towing
Vessel scheme. An example of this was
the successful beaching for salvage of the
container ship MSC Napoli, which broke
its back in the Channel, and was towed to
an agreed location by Abeille Bourbon and
another UT-series vessel, Anglian Princess
from the British ETV fleet.
Abeille Bourbon, likewise its sister ship,
is an 80m long vessel with a bollard pull
of 209 tonnes, based on a UT-design and
equipment package. To reach casualties
quickly a high transit speed was called for,
almost 20 knots, while 16.5 knots can be
kept up into a Force 7 wind. Four engines
are coupled in pairs to Rolls-Royce CP
propellers, with a total power of 16,000kW.
The main hydraulic winch has two drums,
each holding 1,600m of 80mm wire rope,
and is backed up by towing pins, shark
jaws and tugger winches. Firefighting is an
important capability, as is oil recovery.
The older pair of vessels were smaller, at
63m long, and have a bollard pull of about
160 tonnes continuously or up to 175
tonnes for short periods, with a free running
speed of 17.5 knots.
“During the past 30 years our coast
protection vessels have assisted about 800
ships,” says Mr Christian Quillivic, Managing
Director of Les Abeilles. “In over 400 cases
this involved saving vessels in distress that
might have become serious casualties.
We reckon that this splendid work by our
crews prevented at least 15 ecological
catastrophes. The first generation vessels
Abeille Flandre and Abeille Languedoc
won the hearts of the French people. The
experience they built up helped us to
define the requirements for Abeille Bourbon
and Abeille Liberté, and our flagships are
now establishing the same level of
respect.”
Abeille Bourbon, showing deck
arrangements.
12 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 13

Recent deliveries
Far sagaris
Far Sagaris is the second of four vessels to the UT 731 CD design
for Farstad Shipping. The 87.4m anchorhandling tug supply vessel
was built by STX Norway Offshore AS – Langsten based on hull
steelwork fabricated in Romania.
A bollard pull of about 250 tonnes is available, and Far Sagaris
has a deadweight of about 3,900 tonnes, a 760m 2 deck area and
accommodation for 40 people.
In addition to Clean Design, this AHTS also meets DNV Comfort
class requirements. A four main engine layout uses two 4,500KW
and two 3,000kW Bergen engines.
Rolls-Royce provided the design and all main equipment and
systems.
Island Chieftain
1
Stages in deploying a heavy Torpedo
deep water anchor using the A-LARS
system.
Handling
heavy
anchors
Island Chieftain was delivered from STX Norway Offshore AS –
Brevik to owner Island Offshore in September 2009, three months
after the delivery of her UT 776 CD sister ship Island Commander.
These new generation supply vessels are Rolls-Royce designed
and equipped, with diesel electric propulsion and a deck area of
more than 1,000 m 2 .
Island Chieftain is equipped for oil-spill preparedness along the
rugged Norwegian coast.
E.R.ATHINA
E.R. Schiffart has taken delivery of the first of two platform
supply vessels of the UT 776 CD design. E.R.Athina was built
by STX Offshore Norway AS – Brevik to a high specification,
which includes Clean Design, Comfort class V(3), FiFi 1, dynamic
positioning to IMO class 2 and accommodation for 25 people.
E.R.Athina is 93m long by 20m beam. Total deadweight is
approximately 4,650 tonnes, and about 3,000 tonnes of this can
be as cargo on the 1,000m 2 deck. The four C-series Bergen main
engines drive two 2,500kW Azipull thrusters, complemented by
two tunnel thrusters and a swing-up azimuth thruster under the
bow.
2
3
4
Torpedo anchors, mainly used in Brazilian deep water fields, are
very heavy, at up to around 130 tonnes, and it is desirable to
increase safety on deck and to reduce the peak tension in the line
as an anchor passes over the stern roller of the anchorhandling
vessel.
To meet this need, Rolls-Royce has developed the A-LARS –
Anchor Launch and Recovery System. A-LARS can also make the
handling of other large offshore anchors easier.
Petrobras has approved the technical solution for vessels
tendering for contracts, and two A-LARS have been ordered for
vessels to be built in Brazil.
Rolls-Royce has used the anchorhandling knowledge in the
local maritime cluster to come up with a product that has benefits
to shipbuilders as well as ship operators.
The basis is a pivoted arm that normally lies in a housing flush
with the AHTS’s deck near the stern. From its stowage the anchor
is slid along the deck using auxiliary winches until it is located over
the arm. Hydraulic cylinders under the arm then raise both arm
and anchor. The torpedo anchor thus takes up a position balanced
over the stern roller with the chain from the winch running over
a pulley on the raised end of the arm. Paying out the winch then
launches the anchor, while the A-LARS ensures that the peak loads
are only about half of those encountered if the anchor had merely
been pushed over the stern roller. At the same time the heavy
anchor is under full control, and is also restrained from sliding
sideways by guiding it between the towing pins. In the launch and
recover position the A-LARS arm is past the vertical and resting on
stops, so the hydraulic cylinder is not bearing any load during the
most loaded phase of the operations.
An attraction of this system is its compactness, meaning that it
can be fitted to existing anchorhandlers without large changes to
the vessel’s structure.
14 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 15

Bang, You’re free
Since the capsizing tragedy in 2007, the
offshore world has been looking for new
ways of releasing an anchorhandler from
anchor wires, ropes and chains in an
emergency. The normal emergency release
system pays out the line instead of just
letting it go, to avoid the dangers of an
uncontrolled release of kilometres of wire or
heavy chain from the winch. However, the
hunt has been on for a system independent
of the winches. Industry and authorities
have looked at a wide spectrum of potential
solutions. These range from investigations
of the likely effects of letting large winch
System testing on an explosives range.
Part of installation on deck.
drums and chain wheels run free, to
explosively separating the winch from the
vessel, to means of cutting the line. The
first two could pose an additional danger
to a vessel that is, by definition, already in
difficulties.
Rolls-Royce carried out an exhaustive
investigation of means of cutting lines close
to the stern roller. Design teams looked
at all the possibilities in detail, including
shears, giant abrasive cutting wheels and
much else. While some of these mechanical
means could be made to work, they came
up against two major problems – how to
complete the freeing of the vessel within
the short time available from initiating the
procedure from the bridge and until action,
and how to store enough energy for a quick
cut in the case where the vessel had already
suffered a blackout.
An explosive solution was finally seen to
be the most attractive, and a copper knife
is the chosen tool for doing the actual
cutting. The principle is the well-known
one of the shaped charge. A quantity of
commercial explosive is formed around
a specially shaped copper section.
When the explosive is detonated the
shock waves melt the copper and send
it as a high velocity jet against the steel
wire, chain or synthetic rope, severing it
practically instantaneously.
The Rolls-Royce system has been
tested extensively on ranges, and in
the course of 2010 the prototype will
be installed in an anchorhandler. In its
practical form it comprises a series of
small shaped charges suitably backed
up and supported under a bolted deck
hatch located in a suitable place on
board the vessel. The charges are in
line across the deck, forming a cutter
that spans the possible locations of
the wire between the outer pins of the
two towing pin sets. As the explosive
is detonated, the molten copper knife
is fired upwards, first cutting a slot in
the hatch, then severing the loaded
line and relieving the vessel of the load.
A new hatch is carried on board, and
can quickly be bolted in place of the
old. The anchorhandler would then
normally return to base for re-arming.
Function trials have been carried
out to the satisfaction of the technical
department. Now the focus has moved
from the technical aspects to the
operational. There has to be an agreed
regime for handling the charges, and
arming the system, which is designed
round widely used commercial
explosive and detonators. There also
have to be clear procedures for remote
firing from the bridge, with sufficient
steps to ensure that careless pressing
of buttons cannot cause the system
to trigger, but equally that it can be
fired within the required time, which
does not allow much warning. Suitable
systems have been devised and are
going through the approval process.
This Rolls-Royce system has been given
the name SSR, short for Safe and
Secure Release.
Compact winch with
permanent magnet motor.
Permanent magnet developments
for winches...
From the initial application to rim drive
manoeuvring thrusters, Rolls-Royce has
been extending its permanent magnet
(PM) electric motor technology to other
areas, in particular winches. Over the past
four years direct drive permanent magnet
motor winches have been designed, and an
extensive and successful test programme
carried out with a nominal 50kW winch.
Larger units meeting the requirements
of the offshore and fishing industries are
currently being developed.
The next phase sees a permanent
magnet motor, with a torque similar to the
large Rolls-Royce low pressure hydraulic
motors, fitted to a drive unit for an anchorhandling
winch in place of a hydraulic
motor for evaluation in the Rolls-Royce
Brattvaag test rig for winches.
What is the attraction of PM motors
for winch drive? Gisle Anderssen, who is
general manager for sales and marketing,
Offshore S&S, explains:
“ The Brattvaag low pressure motors that
are very popular for offshore and fishing
winches have a reputation for very smooth
control and quick reaction, partly due to
the low moment of inertia of the drive
system combined with the high torque.
There is a customer desire for the same
qualities in electric driven winches, but with
current technology this has been difficult
to achieve. Generally the large gear ratio
between electric motor and drum makes
the winch system stiff.
Now, the Rolls-Royce PM motor
technology promises an electric drive that
combines the technical requirements and
future market needs. Since establishing
its Power Electric Systems department,
Rolls-Royce provides the complete power
electric system and controls to allow the full
benefits to be realised.
As well as being a power source for
anchorhandling winches, PM motors form
the basis for compact direct drive fishing
winches.”
...and thrusters
A quay-based test stand has also been built
to assist thruster development. Test units
can quickly be installed, lowered into the
water for testing, and raised for inspection.
Much of the work continues to be done
on small motors of about 50kW, which is a
handy size for development purposes. The
team’s knowledge base enables results to
be applied with confidence to thrusters
many times more powerful. The facility
can also take development thrusters up to
about 500 kW, and apart from being a tool
for advancing rim drive motor and propeller
technology, the rig allows control systems
to be perfected and endurance testing to
be undertaken.
16 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10
17

A model being tested in the new
Stadt towing tank. The lightweight
carriage is unmanned and carried
on overhead tracks, allowing rapid
acceleration and high speeds.
The wave maker is computerdriven,
using electric actuators,
and can generate any relevant
wave spectrum.
Coast guard goes for gas
A series of new Norwegian coast guard
vessels has hybrid machinery allowing the
ships to run on either diesel fuel or LNG,
giving maximum flexibility and greatly
reduced exhaust emissions. Rolls-Royce
has been heavily involved, providing the
main diesel engine, the propulsion system,
deck machinery and controls. The power
electrical system contract was originally
awarded to Scandinavian Electric, and
during the building process the company
became part of Rolls-Royce.
KV Barentshav is the first to go into
service, to be followed by KV Bergen and
KV Sortland. The building contract went to
Myklebust Verft, part of Kleven Maritime
group, based on hull steelwork fabricated
in Romania. The lead ship is based in the
northern part of Norway and its duties
include EEZ protection with fisheries
control, emergency towing, search and
rescue, and pollution prevention. Given
these diverse duties, the vessel needs to
have a propulsion system that is efficient
under widely varying conditions of load
and speed.
The new coast guard trio follow offshore
vessel design to a large extent, in view of
the towing requirement. They are 93m
long, 16.6m beam, and classed with DNV.
An unusual hybrid machinery system
has been adopted, with LNG and diesel oil
as alternative fuels and both mechanical
and electrical transmissions. The single
4m diameter CP main propeller can be
mechanically coupled to the Bergen
32:40 L8P diesel engine, which is rated
at 4,000kW, and/or to a 2,500kW electric
motor feeding power into the reduction
gearbox. This motor is supplied by
a selection of gensets, powered by
Mitsubishi high-speed gas engines in a
separate engineroom. Liquefied natural
gas is bunkered into a single 234m 3
insulated flask, and the liquid is warmed
to low-pressure gas before being fed to
the engines. The main engine can also
generate electricity by means of a shaft
generator driven from a gearbox on
the front end of the Bergen engine, the
same gearbox driving the pump for the
vessel’s FiFi1 firefighting system. A flap
rudder provides steering, assisted for
manoeuvring and dynamic positioning by
735kW tunnel thrusters fore and aft, and an
883kW vertically retractable azimuth bow
thruster, all from Rolls-Royce.
On trials, KV Barentshav achieved a
bollard pull of just over 100 tonnes. On
the mechanical drive, the vessel will reach
speeds up to 18 knots, while 20 knots is
obtainable with the electrical addition. On
gas power alone the ship can sail at up to
15.5 knots.
In keeping with a long-standing
arrangement, the three new Norwegian
coast guard vessels are privately owned,
by Remøy Management. They are on 15
year charters to Kystvakta, and have a crew
that is a mix of civilian and coast guard
people. Remøy provides the deck officers,
chief engineer and cook, while the Coast
Guard (Kystvakta) provides the captain and
remainder of the normal 18-person crew,
which may include people doing national
service. KV Barentshav has accommodation
to a good standard for up to 40 persons.
A new towing tank opens
Model towing tanks have played an
important role in developing new and
better ship hull forms for a very long
time, and will continue to do so in the
future. Towing tank establishments exist
in many countries, offering various levels
of capability and research expertise, but it
is not often that an entirely new facility is
opened. So, it was something of a milestone
when the brand new Stadt Towing Tank
officially opened recently.
It is located near Måløy in Norway,
and can work together with companies
on the same site who specialise in rapid
production of shapes for moulding,
including large hull models to run in the
tank.
The 182 metre long water tank is 8 metres
wide and 4 metres deep. Unlike most
experiment tanks that have a large manned
carriage spanning the channel, from which
the model is towed, the Stadt tank uses a
lightweight carriage running on rails under
the roof, which tows models and records
data on a bank of computers. At one end of
the tank is a wavemaker system, which can
send any desired spectrum of waves along
the tank towards the model, simulating
waves up to nine metres high in real life.
Alongside the tank is a group of four flats, so
that people from companies using the tank
can live on-site, saving travelling and hotel
costs. There will also be secure workshops
on the floor below to maintain client
security.
An attraction of the lightweight carriage
is that it can accelerate and stop quickly, so
that more of the tank length can be used
for measurements. Large models of high
speed vessels can be tested.
Rolls-Royce is involved in the new facility,
both as one of the industrial shareholders
and as a customer, primarily using model
tests to verify design solutions developed
using calculation methods.
“ This towing tank is adding a very
valuable capability and strengthening the
marine cluster on the northwestern coast
of Norway, “ says Magnar Førde, who is VP
Innovation and Technology , Offshore, in
Rolls-Royce. “ The location near to our ship
design offices in Ulsteinvik and Ålesund
makes it very convenient, and specially
the rapid prototyping capabilities for
production of models are attractive. We look
forward to start using this new tank and
gaining experience with its capabilities.“
The Stadt tank and the in-house
cavitation tunnels at the Rolls-Rolls-Royce
Hydrodynamics Research Centre in Sweden
complement each other. Together they cover
a range of naval architectural research and
verification.
KV Barentshav shows off its firefighting and self-drench protection capability.
The Bergen 32:40L8P main diesel engine and
PTI electric motor. Gas engines are located in a
separate engineroom.
18 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 19

When it opens in 2011, the training centre
will offer courses for both Rolls-Royce
customers and the company’s own service
engineers.
Rolls-Royce is transforming its customer training in the Marine
business by investing in a new customer training centre in
Ålesund, at the heart of Norway’s maritime cluster.
The training facility will be located in Ålesund, Norway, adjacent to the University College, the Offshore Simulator Centre and the Norwegian Centre of
Expertise Maritime.
New customer training capacity
The training centre, which is due to
open during autumn 2011, is being
developed in response to the rapidly
increasing number of vessels with
Rolls-Royce equipment installed. A wide
range of courses will be available, covering
all the maritime disciplines, including
training related to hand-over of new
vessels, technical familiarisation of the full
range of Rolls-Royce products, dynamic
positioning, automation, remote control
systems and anchorhandling operations.
“Up until today we have had training in
nine product centres located in Ulsteinvik,
Ålesund, Brattvåg, Bergen, Kristinehamn,
Rauma, Kokkola and Dunfermline.
Travelling from site to site is history when
the new training centre is finished”, says VP
Customer Training Knut Johan Rønningen,
“but more specialised product training
could still be delivered on site.“
The centre will also provide basic product
training for Rolls-Royce service engineers
who work with customers around the
world. “The ground floor will contain a
workshop where service engineers and
customers can take part in hands-on
training like mounting and demounting
engines, thrusters, deck machinery etc.”, says
Rønningen. In addition to the workshop,
there will be full size simulators for DP
and aft bridge, winch and waterjet, and
special rooms for automation and control,
power electric systems and remote control
systems for propulsion. On the second and
third floor there will be conference rooms,
classrooms and offices.
“General course material, manuals,
syllabus, etc. are being developed
beforehand, while some of the training
programmes must be customised as
a response to the customer’s needs,”
Rønningen explains. “Offering the right
training to our growing customer base
enhances the levels of service we can
provide. “The increased industry focus on
health, safety and the environment, and
in particular deck safety, is a key driver for
research and development across the industry
and this centre will focus on courses specific to
these areas.
It is expected that around 5,000 people
will use the new Rolls-Royce training centre
each year. Located in Ålesund, it will benefit
from being adjacent to the Ålesund University
College, Offshore Simulator Centre and the
Norwegian Centre of Expertise Maritime.
The new training centre will be part of the
Norwegian Competence Centre Marine and
will share large common areas with other
maritime companies, conference attendants
and students. This is expected to create
synergy effects for all involved parties as it will
be a meeting point of leading expertise and a
display window for the maritime industry.
Knut Johan Rønningen.
20 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 21

Torque (%)
Rolls-Royce Service Centre
Satellite
Ethernet
Rolls-Royce ship network
Central unit
Azimuth
feedback
(deg)
ROLL
Propulsion
azimuth units
Heading
(deg)
PITCH
YAW
SURGE
SWAY
Engines data
collection unit
Engines
Tunnel- and
azimuth swing-up units
Roll/pitch
(deg)
Analysis and prediction
for better operation
Velocity
(knots)
Predictability is a valuable virtue in many
areas of life, not least in marine machinery.
If trends in the condition of equipment
can be monitored and correctly interpreted,
it can mean the difference between
overhauling before failure occurs, instead
of after a breakdown – just in time instead
of just too late – with consequent saving in
direct cost and consequential damage.
The Rolls-Royce HEMOS system is the
enabler in this process. Fundamentally,
sensors on the equipment collect data on
various parameters. Some are in the control
loop for operating the equipment, and as
such form part of the UMAS system. Others
capture a wider range of information,
ranging from oil quality to navigation and
meteorological data, and HEMOS transmits
this information flow to land for analysis.
Depending on where the vessel is, satcoms
or mobile phone modems can be used for
transmission.
Rolls-Royce is setting up centres for ship
data analysis, and in this can draw on its
long established systems for condition
monitoring for civil aircraft engines. From a
large stream of data the correct conclusions
must be drawn, involving both intelligent
software and people able to make correct
diagnoses. And from these conclusions
can be derived advice on servicing and
preventive maintenance. Effectively, it is a
step in digitalising service.
From the customer’s perspective, HEMOS
and continuous health monitoring has
several advantages. One is timely advice on
maintenance. Another is in planning work
to be done during drydockings or port
visits. Rolls-Royce can improve its service
offer by knowing well in advance what
spares or exchange units are likely to be
needed, so that they can be available at the
right location at the right time. The process
also helps with maintaining an optimal
level of parts in stock, reducing the cost of
parts storage, and rationalising production
of spares, with economic advantages to all
parties.
One benefit is that the system can give
a workable basis for total care packages.
These are common in the aircraft industry,
also with stationary power generation
stations, where operational profiles or the
regulatory framework are strictly defined.
This gives the customer predictable costs
and transfers some risk to Rolls-Royce.
They are, so far, less common in the marine
industry, where operations are usually
less predictable and vessels are very
individualistic. Where thrusters, for example,
in one vessel may experience quite
different lives from those in an apparently
similar ship. HEMOS can be helpful in
assessing what risk is being transferred, and
hence the correct price of a care package.
HEMOS is in use in pilot installations
as part of the development and
commercialisation process. The Farstad
vessel Far Searcher has had an installation
for the past year and a half, with useful
results. One is improved maintenance
planning, what might be termed the
conventional benefit of continuous
condition monitoring. Another, with
considerable long-term possibilities, is
combining machinery data such as power
and moment-to-moment fuel consumption
with navigation and weather data to
improve the vessel’s overall operating
efficiency and thus cut exhaust emissions.
The diagrams above show the main
machinery from which information
is collected by the Hemos system for
operational analysis, and the ship
movements in stern/quartering seas.
Information is then transmitted
by satellite to a Rolls-Royce service
centre.
A short extract from the data trace is
shown above. The information was
captured on an offshore vessel in
transit in stern quartering waves with
a significant height of 5.5m. Torque
and steering angle of the main
azimuth thrusters can be correlated
with vessel motions.
22 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 23

Service
Galveston facility at full capacity
The new Rolls-Royce repair and
overhaul facility situated within
the Port of Galveston is now at
full capacity. “In fact, it is starting
to look a bit small already,” says
Branch manager Leif Jonny
Ulleland.
The location is ideal in regards
to serving the vast offshore oil
and gas customer population
in the Gulf of Mexico. “We
have a good mix of US-based
and European customers, all
of which have been giving
very positive feedback on
Supporting efforts to expand
our global customer support
capabilities, Rolls-Royce has
enlarged it’s service and
spares centre in St.John’s,
Newfoundland, one of the
busiest ports in the Canadian
Atlantic region.
Officially opened in
September 2009, the new
Rolls-Royce service centre in
Saint John’s will provide stateof-the-art
repair and overhaul
expertise for customers
throughout the East Atlantic
Provinces and the Canadian
Great Lakes region. Rolls-Royce
has invested in this location to
support its expanding customer
base in the region.
the investments Rolls-Royce
has made in Galveston,” says
Leif Jonny. The facility has
the capacity to overhaul all
Rolls-Royce thrusters, winches,
engines and control systems, to
name a few.
As of today, there are 28
full time technical personnel
employed at the service centre,
however that number has been
consistently boosted by an
additional 10 to 15 personnel
from other US sites to meet the
workload demands.
“Our investment in
Newfoundland is part of a
broader strategy to increase
value to our customers and
better meet increasing demand
in the offshore, merchant
and naval markets in Canada
“I see that the customer’s
approach to service is changing,
says Leif Jonny. It is more
efficient for the customer to
have one knowledgeable and
reputable partner who takes
care of all support issues for
them.” Our early success in
Galveston is substantially
because Rolls-Royce understands
this and has designed
value-added business processes
accordingly.”
New Canadian service centre strengthens
global marine support network
and around the world,” says
Rolls-Royce Marine Regional
Director, Bill Malacrida.
The Newfoundland facility will
employ up to 36 people within
the next three years.
Expansion in
Singapore
meets the
need
The Rolls-Royce marine
service facilities in Singapore
trebled in size during 2007, to
offer a complete repair and
overhaul service. Customers
have welcomed the increased
flexibility this has delivered.
As the number of UT design
vessels and those equipped
with Rolls-Royce equipment
operating in Asia has grown, so
has the number of experienced
service engineers operating
from the enlarged 1,100m 2
Singapore service facility.
Located in Tuas, it is just a few
minutes drive from most of the
local repair yards. A complete
repair and overhaul service for
the broad Rolls-Royce product
range – propulsion, deck
machinery and Bergen diesel
engines – is available under
one roof.
As global and a growing
number of Asian operators
maintain and repair their ships
in Singapore, or nearby yards
in Malaysia and Indonesia,
the throughput of work has
steadily increased. To meet
the demand, the population
of experienced field service
engineers and technicians
now totals 48. The ability
to offer factory repair and
overhaul services is proving
increasingly popular with a
number of customers for class
requirements overhauls and
planned maintenance; services
that are delivered to agreed
timescales and cost with a
formal warranty.
Mid-life upgrade
for derrick/pipelay vessel
Offshore exploration and production
contractor J. Ray McDermott has ordered
thrusters and diesel generator sets from
Rolls-Royce for a major upgrade of the
derrick and pipelay vessel Derrick/J-lay
Barge 50.
Since it was built in England in 1988,
Derrick Barge 50 has worked hard, and the
time had come to replace old equipment,
generally upgrade the vessel for another
20-30 active years and to meet the
requirements of an attractive contract.
Six Rolls-Royce UUC 305 underwatermountable
azimuth thrusters will replace
the old thrusters, three at the bow and
three at the stern. Each unit is rated at
3,000kW and has a variable frequency
electric motor drive and a fixed pitch
propeller. They will interface with the
dynamic positioning system that was
upgraded two years ago and will also
give a speed of 8-9knots in transit. Four
Bergen B32:40V12ACD generator sets will
provide power for the vessel’s deck, hotel
requirements and thrusters.
J. Ray McDermott is based in Houston,
USA, and the company has the Gulf of
Mexico as its main operational focus. The
upgrading work will start in the fourth
quarter of 2011, and the vessel is due to
go back into service at the end of the first
quarter of 2012.
“We have worked with the customer for
a long time on this upgrading, and were
able to supply the right equipment at the
right time to suit their conversion plan.
Our thrusters and engines are well proven
and accepted in the offshore market.
Our focus on service support in the Gulf
of Mexico, with our recently extended
workshop in Galveston, was also important
in securing the order. The contract calls for
the generator sets to be supplied in August
2010, with the thrusters following a year
later, “ says Jarle Hessen, general manager
for offshore propulsion sales.
Derrick Barge 50 is 151.5m long, with a
beam of 46m and a maximum draught of
9.45m. It is equipped with a large crane
that can lift 7,000 short tons in dual mode
or 3,527 tons at 25m outreach on the
main hook. Its other prime capability is
pipelaying, and the J-lay system can handle
up to 20 inch pipe. When not working in
DP-mode the 8-point anchor spread can be
used.
24 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 25
E&P deliveries

E&P deliveries
E&P deliveries
Market leader
in rig and drillship propulsion
Rolls-Royce has for many years been a
supplier of propulsion systems, power
plant and anchor mooring systems for
offshore rigs and drillships. During the
recent order boom in the offshore segment
the company became the undoubted
market leader, and many of the vessels
ordered then are now going into service.
These units mainly use the UUC range of
azimuth thrusters that are mounted and
demounted underwater without the need
to drydock. Rolls-Royce is dominant in the
drillship market, and has about half the
semisubmersible drilling rig market for
thrusters used for propulsion and dynamic
positioning.
“There are several reasons for this
strong position,” says Jarle Hessen, general
manager for offshore propulsion sales.
“One is location. Most of the Rolls-Royce
product development sites are in the
Nordic countries, close to waters with
tough weather conditions. This led to
the development of robust and reliable
propulsion systems for harsh operation
as well as severe ice conditions, powerful
and enduring deck machinery and other
products. These were attractive to offshore
rig operators in the 1980s and 1990s and
have proved to be reliable over the years.
This meant that Rolls-Royce was the
favoured supplier when the new E&P boom
started in 2005 – having the right product
with good references. Another reason for
continued market success is the worldwide
service and support network. This starts
with the ship building or maintenance
process where effective back-up is provided
for the shipyard, and continues through
the rig or ship’s life with overhauling and
exchange services, for instance in Ulsteinvik,
Norway, and the new workshops in
Galveston, USA, and Rio, Brazil.”
Among the major long-term customers
are Stena Drilling, Transocean and Seadrill.
The current four Drillmax drillships are each
fitted with six thrusters individually rated at
5.5MW. A series of five Transocean drillships
uses six UUC 455FP azimuth thrusters per
vessel and Seadrill has put into service three
drillships and five semisubs in the past
three years, also equipped with UUC type
thrusters. Recent semisubmersible drilling
rig deliveries include two sixth generation
Aker H6e units designed for harsh
conditions such as the Barents Sea. Each of
these is fitted with eight of the UUC 405 FP
thrusters for main propulsion and dynamic
positioning, and Bergen gensets were
specified to supply the rigs’ electrical power
requirements. The unusual circular Sevan
drilling rig SSP Deepsea Driller has eight UUC
355 FP thrusters and eight Bergen gensets.
Propulsion and manoeuvring systems
for shuttle tankers have long been a Rolls-
Royce speciality, with many successful
references. Teekay is currently taking
delivery of the first in the Great North series
built at Samsung. There are also numerous
conversions of Suezmax and Aframax
tankers to shuttle tankers. One job in such
a conversion is to replace the existing
fixed pitch propeller with a Rolls-Royce
controllable pitch propeller for precise
manoeuvring at the loading buoy. Shuttle
tankers are forecast to have a bright future
in Brazil, since exploitation of the new deepwater
discoveries involves offshore loading.
Floating production, storage and offloading
vessels (FPSO) typically use multiple
azimuth thrusters for propulsion and DP.
BP Skarv, built in South Korea for BP Norway,
has five UUC 355 FP Rolls-Royce units.
Azimuth thrusters for this type of
application normally have variable speed electric drive, fixed pitch
propellers and nozzles.
Bergen diesel generator sets are well suited to arduous
offshore life, and are also approved for emergency use where a
requirement is to run at large angles of inclination.
Many rigs and floating production units use Rolls-Royce deck
machinery, including specialised anchor mooring winches and
fairleads.
The drop in oil price, and difficulty in financing projects, has
reduced E&P investment. Brazil, however, has major plans for
developing its new offshore fields, and requires rigs, pipelayers,
floating production units and shuttle tankers, as well as support
vessels. Of the Brazilian-owned rigs and drillships ordered to date,
Rolls-Royce is to provide thrusters for four.
Another market starting to open up is the Arctic, which will
involve operating in heavy sea ice. Here, Rolls-Royce propellers
and thrusters have pedigree, with experience from icebreaker
propulsion since the early 1980s and the more recent icebreaking
supply vessels for the Sakhalin II gas field. These proven azimuth
thrusters are rated at around 8MW at highest ice class, and up to
10MW for applications with less ice loading.
26 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 27

Value for money
Øyvin Jensen from Statoil in
Island Wellserver’s control room.
Subsea wells need maintainance and intervention. Previously, this has
been done by use of costly traditional semi-submersible rigs but since
April last year Statoil has had the two Light Well Intervention vessels
(LWI units) Island Wellserver (UT 767 CD) and Island Frontier (UT 737 L)
to carry out this type of work, very successfully.
“We are very pleased with the vessels
from Island Offshore, and their operations
are good business for both Statoil and
the fields,” says a content Øyvin Jensen,
manager for Statoil’s LWI-operations.
Compared with the use of traditional
drilling rigs, these LWI units cut the cost of
well intervention work for Statoil by 50-70%.
But it is not all about the money. Safety
is a focal point of the oil company and the
Health, Safety & Environment (HS&E) results
on LWI are very good. “We are very happy
with the HS&E standard and statistics,
and Island Wellserver is just as good as any
large drilling rig when it comes to safety.
After quite a few visits on board I’m also
happy to see that the vessel seems to be
a very good place to work and the crew
feels comfortable in their home away from
home,” Jensen states.
Island Wellserver has proven to be a
successful tool for maintaining wells, and
so far the vessel has worked on 11 wells
in total. Since the end of May it has been
operating at Åsgard, Heidrun and Norne
field at Haltenbanken. Each mission takes
about two to three weeks, depending on
how many times they need to enter the
well.
Island Wellserver can carry out well
interventions in waves of up to six metres
height, and maintain its position in standby
mode under conditions corresponding to
Beaufort 9. “From November till February/
March the effectiveness of an LWI vessel
drops a bit as opposed to a large drilling
rig, but at the same time it is faster, more
flexible and cheaper with an LWI vessel,
which can easily go to shore to change
equipment. Usually the vessel brings
equipment for two or three well operations
at a time, thus saving valuable time as they
don’t need to mobilise so often,” Jensen
explains.
Island Wellserver will stay on Haltenbanken
till the middle of December, when it heads
further south to the Tampen area and the
Statfjord and Gullfaks fields. It will return to
the north in the spring.
Island Wellserver will be in operation for
Statoil until March 2014 on the exiting
contract .
As well as performing to the satisfaction
of Statoil, the ship has also proved a good
vessel for Island Offshore and the ship’s
crew.
“Island Wellserver is a fantastic working
platform,” reports Captain Magnar Slettevoll.
“ I have been on a variety of modern
offshore vessels, and Island Wellserver is
28 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 29

many times better than the average when
it comes to seakeeping. When working in
DP-mode it lies quietly, with very little in
the way of motions. We often have to do
transits in poor weather conditions, either
to be in position on the field to start well
intervention as soon as a good weather
window opens, or if operations have to
be terminated, to make our way to base –
maybe in storm conditions. We have had
more than 70 knot winds and 11m waves,
and the ship behaves beautifully, with very
little pitching or rolling. If we have broken
off an operation it has been at intervention
of weather limits, not because of limitations
in our vessel. This excellent seakeeping
gives a safe and comfortable working and
living environment for the crew. The ship
and its Rolls-Royce systems have been
reliable.”
Living conditions on board also meet
with approval. “Island Wellserver is quiet
and vibration-free and fully meets the
expectations aroused by the Comfort
Class notation. We don’t have any difficulty
attracting and keeping first-class crew
members!”
No ship is perfect, because some
desirable qualities are in direct conflict with
each other. Direct vision from the bridge is
limited, because of the need to house the
free-fall lifeboats required by the Mobile
Offshore Unit rules formulated with rigs
rather than support vessels in mind. “But
this is just something to get accustomed
to,” notes Slettevoll. A further initial criticism
was that some operations require that
people work at the top of the tower,
where they were impeded by exhaust
gases from the uptakes in particular wind
conditions. To tackle the problem, Island
Offshore fitted fresh air apparatus in the
tower, and Rolls-Royce modified the uptake
design, lengthening the exhaust pipes and
incorporating a constriction to increase the
speed of the gases and take them clear of
the tower.
Captain Magnar Slettevoll.
During well intervention work, the vessel
operates in accordance with DP3, and the
redundancy requirements mean that fuel
consumption is a bit higher than would be
achievable with lower DP requirements.
With Island Frontier as pioneer, Island
Wellserver has conclusively shown that light
well interventions can be carried out safely
and cost-effectively from UT Design vessels.
Norway
Aalesund
(Head Office, Merchant)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 05
Aalesund (Control Systems)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 77
Aalesund (Ship Design,
Fish and Merchant)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 10 37 01
Austevoll
(Power Electric Systems)
Tel: +47 56 18 19 00
Fax: +47 56 18 19 20
Bergen
(Power Electric Systems)
Tel: +47 55 50 60 70
Fax: +47 55 50 60 52
Bergen (Engines)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 55 19 04 05
Bergen (Foundry)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 55 53 65 05
Hagavik (Steering Gear)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 56 30 82 41
Brattvaag (Deck Machinery)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 20 86 00
Hareid (Rudders)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 21
Longva (Automation)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 20 83 51
Oslo
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 23 31 04 99
Tennfjord (Steering Gear)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 20 89 00
Ulsteinvik
(Head Office, Offshore)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 05
Ulsteinvik
(Ship Design, Offshore)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 13
Ulsteinvik (Propulsion)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 01 40 14
Volda (Propulsion)
Tel: +47 815 20 070
Fax: +47 70 07 39 50
Denmark
Aalborg
Tel: +45 9930 3600
Fax: +45 9930 3601
Finland
Helsinki
Tel: +358 9 4730 3301
Fax: +358 9 4730 3999
Rauma
Tel: +358 2 83 791
Fax: +358 2 8379 4804
France
Rungis Cedex
Tel: +33 1 468 62811
Fax: +33 1 468 79398
Germany
Norderstedt - Hamburg
Tel: +49 40 381 277
Fax: +49 40 389 2177
Kamerunweg - Hamburg
Tel: +49 40 7809190
Fax: +49 40 78091919
Greece
Piraeus
Tel: +30 210 4599 688/9
Fax: +30 210 4599 687
Italy
Genova
Tel: +39 010 572 191
Fax: +39 010 572 1950
The Netherlands
Pernis - Rotterdam
Tel: +31 10 40 90 920
Fax: +31 10 40 90 921
Poland
Gdynia
Tel: +48 58 782 06 55
Fax: +48 58 782 06 56
Sweden
Kristinehamn
Tel: +46 55 08 40 00
Fax: +46 55 01 81 90
Spain
Madrid
Tel: +34 913 585 319
Fax: +34 913 585 704
United Kingdom
Dartford
Tel: +44 13 22 31 20 28
Fax: +44 13 22 31 20 54
China
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2526 6937
Fax: +852 2868 5344
Shanghai
Tel: +86 21 5818 8899
Fax: +86 21 5818 9388
Dalian
Tel: +86 411 8230 5198
Fax: +86 411 8230 8448
Japan
Tokyo
Tel: +81 3 3237 6861
Fax: +81 3 3237 6846
Kobe
Tel: +81 7 8652 8067
Fax: +81 7 8652 8068
Republic of Korea
Busan
Tel: +8 251 831 4100
Fax: +8 251 831 4101
Russia
Vladivostok
Tel: +7 4232 495 484
Fax: +7 4232 495 484
Miramar, Florida
Tel: +1 954 436 7100
Fax: +1 954 436 7101
Houston, Texas
Tel: +1 281 902 3300
Fax: +1 281 902 3301
Galveston, Texas
Tel: +1 409 941 6302
Fax: +1 409 941 6319
New Orleans - St. Rose
Tel: +1 504 464 4561
Fax: +1 504 464 4565
Seattle, Washington
Tel: +1 206 782 9190
Fax: +1 206 782 0176
30 VISION 1/10
VISION 1/10 31
EUROPE
ASIA PACIFIC
(INCL. MIDDLE EAST)
Australia
Melbourne
Tel: +61 3 9873 0988
Fax: +61 3 9873 0866
Perth
Tel: +61 8 9336 7910
Fax: +61 8 9336 7920
India
Mumbai
Tel: +91 22 6640 38 38
Fax: +91 22 6640 38 18
New Zealand
Christchurch
Tel: +64 3 962 1230
Fax: +64 3 962 1231
Singapore
Singapore
Tel: +65 686 21 901
Fax: +65 686 32 165
United Arab Emirates
Dubai
Tel: + 971 4 8833881
Fax: + 971 4 8833882
www.rolls-royce.com/marine/contacts
NORTH EAST ASIA
AMERICAS
Brazil
Rio de Janeiro RJ
Tel: +55 21 3860 8787
Fax: +55 21 3860 4410
Canada
St. Johns
Tel: +1 709 748 7650
Fax: +1 709 364 3054
Vancouver
Tel: +1 604 942 1100
Fax: +1 604 942 1125
USA
Global contacts

Reshaping the anchorhandler
Page 9
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