Econowind and Jumbo Maritime have collaborated on a recent installation
The shipping industry is increasingly embracing wind-assisted ship propulsion technology, and most recently heavy lift shipping and offshore transport company Jumbo Maritime has joined the movement. Wind power technology supplier Econowind has installed two leased VentoFoil units on the heavy lift vessel Jumbo Jubilee in a retrofit project that marks what the company says is the first time a geared vessel has been equipped with wind-assisted systems.
These are also the latest in a series of technologies installed on the vessel in a bid to boost fuel efficiency and cut carbon emissions. This recent move, with the installation of the two Econowind VentoFoils, will help the company assess the impact of wind-assisted propulsion on the vessel’s efficiency.
Jumbo technical manager Andres Cassanova explains: “While not fully optimised for our vessel type, these sails will help us to gather valuable insights on real-world fuel savings and explore further optimisations that will allow Jumbo to reduce its environmental footprint even more.”
The relatively small footprint of the sails is said to make them an ideal solution for installation on a heavy lift vessel, where deck space is required for project cargoes. Additionally, the sails are flexibly mounted on a customised frame, engineered in-house by Jumbo structural engineer Estelle Bongers. As a result the sails can be moved, or even transferred to another vessel, should additional space be required for cargo.
The installation of the VentoFoils follows the application of an anti-fouling coating on the ship’s propeller to maintain efficiency, as well as the introduction of an AI-powered anti-fouling hull coating monitoring system. This latter system captures a wide range of data including vessel speed and geographical position, as well as sea water temperature and other environmental conditions and parameters. This allows the system to make predictions and provide notifications when there is a risk of accelerated fouling and means that Jumbo can perform an inspection and undertake maintenance in advance of a decrease in fuel efficiency. It also ensures the coating system can be maintained using less aggressive methods, preserving it for longer durations between dockings.
A further measure taken by Jumbo is the installation of an eco-control system to the vessel. “This can be viewed as a type of intelligent cruise control,” explains Cassanova. “It allows us to set a fuel consumption or maximum speed limit. With this, the eco-control system takes over and, based on rpm and propeller pitch, is continually adjusting to ensure optimally efficient performance, minimal fuel consumption and emissions.”
With these various technologies installed on the Jumbo Jubilee, Jumbo expects to achieve significant fuel savings. A crucial factor in this, says technical superintendent Patrick Feddes, is collaboration. “If you want to reduce your environmental footprint, it’s not only down to one part of the company. It’s a team effort between those onboard the ships and those on shore. The technologies play an important supporting role in creating energy savings, but a significant factor is awareness and cooperation throughout the various departments of the organisation,” he suggests.
Jumbo’s partner in this particular project, Econowind, has been producing wind propulsion for seagoing vessels since 2016. Its 16m aluminium VentoFoil, which is ideally suited for the short-sea market, is produced at its Zeewolde factory in the Netherlands, but the company is now also collaborating with Bijlsma shipyard in Warten, where it is building 30m high steel VentoFoils, which are designed for large ocean-going vessels. The company is scaling up production to meet demand and is also upgrading the technology. For example, it is further automating the control systems, reducing the need for crew interventions, and harnessing the benefits of artificial intelligence, for example utilising weather forecasting data.
