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Product News
The UK’s port waters are benefi tting from a piece of kit which remove pieces of fl oating plastic from the sea.
The award winning ‘Seabin’ has been installed at Plymouth Yacht Haven in Mount Batten to collect debris, plastics and microplastics from the water with the ability to collect over one tonne of marine waste each year.
“Working and living by the water, we see first-hand the impact of marine litter and its effect on marine wildlife around Plymouth,” said Steve Kitchen, marina director at Plymouth Yacht Haven.
“We all share responsibility to keep the waters in Plymouth as clean and biodiverse as possible. The Seabin has a reputation worldwide to help clean up oceans and protect marine wildlife, so it’s great to have this installation at Plymouth Yacht Haven.”
Cleaner seas
Made from recyclable materials, the Seabin draws water in before pumping it through a fine mesh and collecting the resulting waste. Waste can then be collected from the basket and recycled.
After being developed in 2016 in Australia, there are now almost 1000 Seabins worldwide with this bin being the first permanently located in the city of Plymouth. The device, which is made from fully recycled materials, has the ability to hold up to 20kg of litter at a time and can capture over 1.4 tonnes of debris per year.
Just months after Plymouth City Council declared an urgent need for ocean recovery in a ‘Motion for the Ocean’, the city became the UK’s first National Marine Park.
The bin was donated by Plymouth-based marine firm, Boskalis Westminster.
This is just one step which Plymouth Yacht Haven is taking to improve sustainability on the Mount Batten Peninsula.
It also signed up to The Wildlife Trust’s “30 Days Wild” campaign running throughout June. During this time, the team installed bug hotels, wildflower gardens and bird feeders around the marina to increase biodiversity on-site.
The team behind the autonomous Waste Shark vessel also ran demonstrations on-site and organised litter picks on Mount Batten beach.
CLEANER PORT WATERS
8 The seabin has the ability to
hold up to 20kg of litter at a time and can capture over 1.4 tonnes of debris per year
Credit: Plymouth Yacht Haven
HYBRID-ELECTRIC PORT VESSEL
A hybrid-electric vessel has been built for the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.
The BMT designed vessel, developed in collaboration with Penguin Shipyard International, will conduct patrolling activities, search and rescue, oil spill response, drone operations and salvage support for the port.
“As we work towards a sustainable Maritime Singapore, reducing emissions from the domestic harbour craft fleet is an important focus area. Developing a hybrid diesel-electric vessel with electric propulsion, we made sure that our new enhanced patrol craft would be ready for a greener future,” said Ms Quah Ley Hoon, chief executive, MPA.
Test bed
The advanced 35m aluminium catamaran, christened MPA Guardian, will also be used as the government’s test bed for new technologies and equipment.
Further extending the vessel’s rescue capabilities is a 7m fast rigid-inflatable rescue boat, mated with a unique Launch And Recovery System (LARS) that was jointly developed by BMT and Penguin.
The vessel propulsion system is an advanced hybrid-electric system based on a combination of electric and diesel mechanical propulsion. To best fulfil its operating duty the vessel can operate in different modes. In full-electric, zero-emission mode, MPA Guardian can cruise silently at six knots for up to three hours.
It can also operate in a diesel-electric mode to achieve continuous medium speed operation. In this mode, power is drawn from one of the two main engines to propel both shafts while recharging the batteries. This mode offers a significant advantage by way of emissions reduction and reduced wear and tear on the engines.
In conventional diesel mechanical mode, MPA Guardian can run at a top speed of close to 27 knots. In this mode the electric generation capability offered by the hybrid system also removes the need for diesel generators sets onboard.
These features give rise to a low-emission, future-proofed vessel that will contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of the Port of Singapore.
8 MPA Guardian is a test bed for new technologies and equipment
BRIEFS
Compact electric forklifts
Toyota’s latest forklift off ering is available with energy-effi cient Lithiumion power. The Traigo24 three-wheel electric forklift truck from Toyota Material Handling UK has been designed for simple, straightforward operations in confi ned or tight spaces. “There is currently a strong demand for electric CB forklifts, with many diff ering requirements from our customers, depending on the loads being handled, the working environment and the right energy solutions,” said Sam Gray, sales training & product development manager, Toyota Materials Handling UK.
Carbon neutral towage
Ship owners and operators will be able to take advantage of a new green towage solution to reduce in-port emissions. The port service provider PortsDirect has partnered with Svitzer to give its customers access to the EcoTow towage solution to help them drive up sustainability in their supply chains. ”Our partnership with Svitzer provides the opportunity to address Scope 3 emissions within the port environment, but also competitiveness,” said Kenny Bjergstad, managing director, PortsDirect.
