Comprehensive engine maintenance at Seawork
A team of diesel engineers from Seawork exhibitor Royston Limited has just completed a major engine overhaul of the Caledonian Isles, the largest ship in the Caledonian MacBrayne fleet.
The ferry was in the Garvel Clyde Ship Repair yard at Greenock for a scheduled refit and the Royston team completed a full overhaul of its starboard Mirrlees Blackstone MB 275 engine.
The Caledonian Isles was launched in 1993 and provides daily passenger and cargo services to the Isle of Arran on the Ardrossan to Brodick route. Diesel power specialists Royston Limited have been responsible for the care and maintenance of its propulsion and power plants for the past four years and perform a complete overhaul of each medium speed 1,800 kW engine on alternate years. This can occupy a team of up to 14 Royston specialists for around 12 days, in which time they will completely dismantle the engine for survey and maintenance.
The work includes the removal for overhaul of piston liners from the 275mm bore engine as well as its air coolers, cylinder heads, dampers, cam box and camshaft and the replacement of all main bearings. The engine is then fully tested in-situ after being restored to an ‘as new’ condition.
Caledonian MacBrayne are now one of many fleet operators using the Royston service who are able to realise cost and organisational benefits from using this multiple engine-type service provider. The company’s employees include engineers from a variety of OEM backgrounds who work to maintain their skills and positive attitudes at the highest levels.
This approach, together with the responsiveness of its project managers, enables Royston to assemble teams quickly to work efficiently on engines of any make or age. Ship operators consequently benefit from the convenience of being able to entrust all of their ship’s engines and generators to a single company that is able to fly its specialists to work anywhere in the world and fit in with the vessel’s docking schedule.
This is particularly helpful for fleets with a variety of engine types as maintenance can be conducted in the most cost efficient way and with the minimum of vessel downtime. Because Royston possesses the expertise to overhaul any make or age of diesel engine, it can ensure that fleets with discontinued products remain fully operational.
In addition to its engine maintenance and repair services, the company also manufactures the enginei engine monitoring system. This enables operators to remotely monitor the fuel consumption of every vessel in its fleet and to ensure that they are being operated in the most fuel efficient and economical way.
