The vessel is the first to be built for carrying luxury yachts.

Dockwise has built up its yacht transport business since 1987 and owns four dedicated, converted semi-submersibles.

The new vessel will be deployed carrying yachts primarily across the North Atlantic, with monthly sailings between Florida/ Caribbean and the Mediterranean. With a service speed of 18 knots the newbuild will reduce the current transatlantic transit time from 15 days to eight days.

A 19,680kW diesel electric power plant will supply propulsion, ancillary electrical power, and all shipboard electrical services. The plant will be powered by two Wartsila 12V38B main diesel gensets, two Wartsila 6L20 auxiliary gensets, and a 300kW emergency/ harbour genset. The gensets will supply twin Lips CS3500 pull thrusters for propulsion.

Manoeuvrability will be enhanced by a 1.64MW Lips CT225 transverse bow thruster.

The two 5.1MW azimuthing pull thrusters will each be equipped with a 4.0m diameter Lips skewed, pulling, controllable pitch propeller and Sternguard MK2M shaft seals. This is one of the first vessels to be equipped with Lips pull thrusters. The propeller is arranged ahead of the pod to achieve the best overall hydrodynamic efficiency and steering at high ship speeds.

The Wartsila main and auxiliary engines will incorporate common rail fuel injection, which has the primary benefit of no visible smoke emissions under any operating conditions.

Common rail, with its integrated electronic control, allows the fuel injection pressure to be maintained high at all engine loads and speeds, thereby ensuring efficient, clean combustion right across the engine's operating range.

The complete power plant will be delivered by a consortium formed by Wartsila and the Dutch company Imtech NV, a specialist in electrical installations and integrated bridge systems.

The consortium is responsible for the initial design of the power plant, the supply of the complete gensets, thrusters, all ancillary systems, electrical switchboards, and the integrated bridge system, including controls for the whole power plant. Imtech will also deliver the components and controls for the ballast system.

The choice of a diesel electric plant gives flexibility in matching engines in operation to the service speed for good operating economy while also providing for the high ballast-pumping capacity required when loading and unloading the ship. Also, the combination of diesel electric plant, azimuthing main thrusters and the transverse bow thrusters provides good manoeuvrability when approaching and leaving the loading and unloading points.

MJInformation No: 207105