Eco-friendly launch joins HPA fleet

Within weeks of going into service, Hamburg officials were quoted as saying the 16.8m long and 4.6m wide Hafenaufsicht was fulfilling all the expectations.

The boat cost about €1 million to build at Elbe shipyard Hermann Barthel and replaces an earlier boat. It is designed to meet the latest German environmental regulations and is modelled on criteria required for Germany’s ‘Blue Angel’ eco-design certification.

“It is our aim” said HPA head Jens Meier, “to consistently develop the port and put environmentally friendly boats into service. Hafenaufsicht is part of this”. Hamburg Economics Senator Frank Horch added that Hamburg was also trying to reduce emissions and said the port also played an important role.

The new boat has an optimised hull shape, a low-emission propulsion system and meets modern emission standards. It also boasts an additional soot particle filter in the auxiliary engine and a water-lubricated shaft plant. Engine heat is utilised for the heating system. The boat also uses eco-friendly lubricating materials.

It is for one-man operation and draws just 1.6m and displaces 32 m3. Propulsion is provided by a MAN Type D 2842 LE403 Diesel of 529kW at 1800 rpm developing 13 knots and operating over ZF 2000 V reverse gears. Its hydraulic rudder plant is from engineers Karl-Heinz Kühn and Barthel Werft.

Hafenaufsicht also has Alphatron Type JMA 610 river radar and radar pilot along with JLR-4341 GPS and A100 AIS equipment also from Alphatron. That firm and Cassadian Tetra supplied the boat’s radio communication equipment while Alphatron also supplied the echolot Type Alphadepth MF and the auto pilot unit Type Alpharudder. The Zetfon signal horn came from Zöllner.

In 2012 HPA introduced another eco-friendly general purpose port motor barge Hafenkapitän. Also from the Barthel yard, that boat is I9.6m long and 5.1m wide and draws 1.5m. Although bigger than Hafenaufsicht it is propelled by the same MAN Diesel type and develops the same speed.

HPA said emissions from the Hafenkapitän engine were 30% lower than legally required demands. It was also the first boat for HPA which had a solar energy producing plant on the superstructure, the port authority said.

This year the HPA has already taken delivery of the 35m dredger newbuilding MODI. Its next new workboats could well be tug/ icebreakers. Two newbuildings, of about 18m length and 6.2m width, are on firm order with the Hitzler Werft in Lauenburg. HPA’s Martin Boness told The Motorship they were expected to be handed over mid October this year. Options for two more have been secured but there is no word yet of conversion to firm orders.

By Tom Todd