W'rtsil', the marine industry's leading ship power system integrator, has been awarded two large orders from the Spliethoff Group, headquarted in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The orders are for propulsion systems for eleven ships that the Spliethoff Group has ordered at the Ouhua Shipyard in Zhejiang, China. The W'rtsil' scope of delivery includes engines, propellers and efficiency rudders, as well as bow thrusters forming a complete integrated propulsion system for the ships.

The new orders are for five 16,800 dwt Heavy-Lift vessels to be operated by BigLift Shipping, and six 12,500 dwt Multipurpose vessels. Deliveries of the Heavy-Lift vessels will take place between August and December 2010, and the Multipurpose vessels will be delivered between December 2010 and May 2011. With these additional newbuildings the total order book is now about 20 vessels under delivery with W'rtsil' propulsion solutions for the Spliethoff Group

"These new contracts strengthen the successful and long-standing relationship between Spliethoff and W'rtsil'. More than 60 Spliethoff vessels in operation are equipped with W'rtsil' propulsion systems" says Reinier de Vries, Senior Account Manager, W'rtsil' in the Netherlands.

For the Heavy-Lift vessels, W'rtsil''s scope includes an 8-cylinder in-line W'rtsil' 46 main engine with an output of 8400kW at 500 rpm, a controllable pitch (CP) propeller, a W'rtsil' Energopac efficiency rudder, and a bow thruster.

"The propulsion technology carried by these vessels has been effectively optimized by designing an efficient rudder/propeller combination, and by employing a six-metre propeller. W'rtsil' used both computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and full-scale tank tests in finalising the design," adds de Vries.

For each Multipurpose vessel, W'rtsil' will be delivering a 6-cylinder in-line W'rtsil' 46 main engine with an output of 5430kW at 500 rpm, a CP propeller and bow thrusters. The design of the engine and propeller allows the customer to achieve maximum fuel efficiency.

Spliethoff is a long-time customer of W'rtsil'. The company's activities include worldwide transportation of forest products and comprehensive services designed to meet the needs of large projects, especially those undertaken by the oil, gas and telecom industries. Spliethoff is also engaged in global parcel delivery services.

The Spliethoff Group owns and operates a large and modern fleet of about 100 vessels, of which 55 are Multipurpose tween-deck vessels ranging between 12,000 and 24,000 dwt tonnes. When heavy-duty equipment is required, the company calls on the assistance of BigLift Shipping, a Spliethoff Group company.