Drawing on a commercial ship design heritage that has seen over 750 of its vessels built over the last 30 years, Rolls-Royce has designed ships that are now in service or being built for coastal duties in India, Spain, France, Iceland, Greenland, Norway and the UK. All of the ships feature a full range of Rolls-Royce propulsion and motion control equipment.

The UT527 design on display at Pacific 2008 is designed to rescue large numbers of survivors and remain at sea for long periods. Up to 320 people can be accommodated aboard the ship, which can remain at sea for three years, changing crew and being replenished while on duty. Its key duties are fire fighting, emergency towing and pollution control. A medium sized helicopter and two smaller daughter craft offer greater capability on specific missions.

The 92m long ship, powered by Rolls-Royce Bergen diesel engines, would have a bollard pull of 130 tons and be capable of over 20 knots. An un-refuelled range of 20,000 nautical miles at 16 knots is predicted.

David Bricknell, Rolls-Royce Systems and Product Strategy Director – Naval said, ‘We have established a strong position in the coastal protection field, successfully transferring our proven commercial UT-Design technology experience to this sector. The UT527’s power and propulsion system is designed to be low maintenance to support its extensive operational period.’

Navies, coastguards and public agencies are increasingly interested in ships which can monitor, patrol and protect their waters and also carry out pollution control, salvage and fire fighting tasks.