SHIP REPORT
Jaguar
Simply Unconventional Designed by Dutch naval architects Vuyk Engineering Groningen, the Jaguar is the first of three VG 6000 E type vessels. The 6,000 dwt multipurpose special cargo vessels are destined for worldwide trade and unrestricted service. The vessels can transport special cargo and voluminous goods, as well as up to 266 20ft containers, and they are recognised to bring fierce competition to the offshore industry.
Commercial Savvy In 2009 the owners at Jaguar Shipping, Captain Gerard Gorter and Captain Jan Klos, met with the maritime engineers at Vuyk Engineering Groningen and Amasus Shipping. The owners were looking for a new build design that would set them apart in short sea shipping. To meet the owners’ complex requirements, Vuyk Engineering Groningen filled the design with a blend of innovative solutions and commercial savvy. They combined existing tried and tested – and already type-approved – components into a unique integrated system. Highlighting her possibilities in commercial deployment, the Jaguar features in a novel offshore wind turnkey package. In collaboration with deugro Denmark and Conquest Offshore, Amasus Shipping developed a feeder system for wind turbine components as well as the transport (with MV Jaguar) and installation of components and foundations.
Simplicity ShipBuilding Industry spoke to Maarten Sickler, Deputy Director at Vuyk Engineering Groningen, about the design and construction of the vessel. While the DC bus diesel-electric power system stands out among the vessel’s many innovative solutions, Mr Sickler was keen to highlight the unique cooperation that took place in the design. The cooperation with shipping companies and technical suppliers began at an early stage. In addition to Amasus Shipping, other special cargo stakeholders were involved. In the design and installation phase Alewijnse Marine Systems, also based in the Netherlands, and Vacon Benelux – the Netherlands-based subsidiary of Finnish drive manufacturer Vacon – cooperated on the power
MV Jaguar’s clever design and innovative use of tried and tested components heralded in a new set of cargo vessel class notations. system. Despite many parties at the table, the design was based on a single, clear vision. “Simplicity was the basis for the concept – standard components,” Mr Sickler noted. But, “put together in a unique world first.”
Highly Capable The experience of Amasus Shipping was invaluable in putting together the Jaguar’s capabilities. In the offshore market, she is particularly suitable for wind farm transport. Thanks to her DP capabilities, she can position close to jack-up vessels in rough weather. With stable seakeeping designed specifically for North Sea conditions, she has almost no roll. Her flexible hatch arrangements offer virtually every possibility in her 80m long box hold – from 266 TEUs to vertical cargo open top. Her diesel-electric propulsion system combines excellent fuel economy with low sulphur emissions, so she complies with the new IMO regulations coming into force on 1 January, 2015. And not to mention, her hull form requires almost no ballast.
Class Opportunities The Jaguar’s uniqueness is illustrated by the close cooperation with Bureau Veritas on class notations for diesel-electric propulsion systems in cargo vessels. At an early stage Vuyk Engineering Groningen asked the Bureau Veritas’ plan approval department, DPO in Rotterdam, to discuss the design. As a result, a skilled team from Vacon, Shipkits, Alewijnse Marine Systems and Bureau Veritas worked together with Vuyk Engineering Groningen on a different approach. Although aiming to comply with the Classification and Statutory requirements, for example in case of one critical failure in the propulsion plant, the design significantly reduced components both on the power
network and in alarm and monitoring. In addition, the VG 6000 E type vessel design already incorporated shore-based maintenance. This simplicity required a new set of class and statutory notations.
DC Bus In a normal diesel-electric power system, AC supplying generator sets deliver power to the AC mainboard. One of the system’s main problems is harmonic distortion of frequency and current. Harmonic distortion occurs through non-linear loads of standard frequency converters, which cause distortion of the electrical current supply. This results, for example, in flickering lights on board, or possibly in black-outs or component overheating problems. These generator sets need an advanced power management system – adding cost and bulk. The Jaguar’s diesel-electric power system overcomes this problem with a DC board instead of an AC board. The system was designed in close cooperation with AC drive supplier Vacon and built under the supervision of Alewijnse Marine Systems. Each line of generator set is equipped with a filter and AFE converter, filtering and transforming the delivered AC power from the generator set into DC power for the DC main board. All mainboard consumers are equipped with a standard industrial DC/AC converter, ensuring the supply of a clean sinusoidal AC current. In this way the harmonic distortion is solved at the start of the system, before the main board, instead of solving the problem at the end, or consumer side, of the electrical system. The DC bus system provides mature technology at prices comparable to the conventional alternatives. These systems are also relatively simple, thereby reducing the possible risk of component failure.
BUILDER Shipkits OWNER Jaguar Shipping YARD NUMBER 105 This article is an abridged version of the full ship report published in ShipBuilding Industry, Vol. 6, Issue 4, 2012.
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