MAN Diesel & Turbo signes an agreement with Dalian Marine Propeller
On 30 August 2013 MAN Diesel & Turbo signed an agreement regarding the production of its Kappel propeller portfolio with Dalian Marine Propeller Co., Ltd (DMMP) – part of the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) Group – at its facility in Frederikshavn, Denmark. The deal allows DMMP to produce and sell MAN Alpha Kappel design propellers in China, the Company said in a press release.
Representing DMMP, Executive Vice President Chen Baoqi said: “Entering into this agreement with MAN Diesel & Turbo, ensures and strengthens DMMP’s leading position in the market place and delivers the most efficient and environmentally friendly propeller solutions to our shipowners.”
Torben Johansen, Head of Propeller & Aft Ship, MAN Diesel & Turbo, said: “This agreement will greatly help us to penetrate the FP propeller market with our highly efficient Kappel design principle as DMMP is among the major suppliers of large-scale propellers for Chinese shipbuilding.”
MAN Diesel & Turbo subsequently announced that DMMP has signed a Kappel design propeller contract with Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd for three + 8500 ceu PCTC (Pure Car/Truck Carrier) car carriers, the largest of their kind in the world. The shipowner is Höegh Autoliners, the leading global provider of Ro/Ro vehicle transportation services. Frederikshavn reports that tank tests on different propeller configurations displayed the Kappel design’s superior efficiency compared to other propellers.
DMMP is the largest plant specializing in the manufacture of marine propellers in China and has nearly fifty years of production experience. The company delivers about two hundred propellers annually to a broad range of global shipowners.
Taken over by MAN Diesel & Turbo in 2012, Kappel propeller blade designs offer fuel savings of up to 6%, compared to conventional designs. Notably, this improvement in efficiency is related to blade design alone. Compared to a conventional design the Kappel propellers have shown lower pressure impulses which can be utilized for bigger and more efficient propellers because of the reduced clearance between hull and propeller tip.