Cummins Vessel Reference #583

While many ports are experimenting with a range of designs for their docking assist tugs, three ports on Korea’s rugged west coast choose to stay with a well-proven design. Near Seosan City the ports of Daesan, Taean and Boryeong are set over a 15-mile expanse. Variously handling container ships, petroleum tankers and deep draft coal bulkers the work of a docking tug is diverse. In addition to the diversity of shipping, the rugged coast has a tidal range that can extend vertically up to nine meters with routine cross currents of two to three knots.

The associated ports are served by several towage firms, one of which, Haeyang Shipping Co., Ltd, currently operates four tugs. Business is brisk and the firm is currently building an additional tug at their own shipyard, which is, like the ports, in Chungnam Province. Currently building at the Haeyang’s Geumgang Shipbuilding yard is a slightly larger sister ship to their six-year-old Haeyang No.7. Capt. Oh Nam Kyo of the Haeyang No. 7 is well satisfied with the performance of his boat with which he typically handles over 20 ships per day. Most jobs can be handled with one or two tugs but the VLCCs can have up to six tugs to safely handle their mass.

The Haeyang No. 7 is similar to many of the tugs working ships in Japan with a large round well fendered bulwark extending out from the bow. This assures gentle contact with the plate of the shipsides. A forward mounted hawser winch allows for ships to be worked over the tug’s bow and provides good visibility from the forward controls in the wheelhouse. The distinctive over hang of the bow design results a length over all 32 meters with a waterline length of 27 meters with an 8.7-meter beam.

For propulsion power and maneuverability the large mid-ship engine room has a pair of Cummins KTA50-M2 diesels each delivering 1800 HP to Schottel SRP 1010 Drives. With nearly 10,000 hours on the engines, Chief Engineer Jung Man Geun reports that they have performed flawlessly over the eight years that the boat has been in service. A top-end-inspection and overhaul was carried out as per government regulations when the engines reach 5,000 hours.

The drive shafts to the aziumthing drives include a section of cardon shaft and a CENTRA flex mount with several bearings. The drive shafts pass through one of the boat’s five watertight bulkheads. Access to the drive room in the lazarette is through a door located aft on the main deck. This guarantees that there will never be a door left open with the resultant forward flooding from the lazarette as has sunk so many tugs over the years. The engine exhaust also passes through the aft bulkhead and into the lazarette, where the mufflers are located, before exiting through the stern quarters. Operators like this as it allows a cleaner deck and the high speed diesels operate with much less smoke than do the medium speed engines of some of their competitors.

The new boat, currently under construction at the Geumgang Shipbuilding yard, will be slightly longer at 33-meters overall with a 29-meter length on the waterline and the same 8.7-meter beam. Engines for the new boat were supplied by STX Engine Company, the Cummins dealer for Korea, It will have the same Cummins KTA50-M2 engine package delivering a total of 3600 HP. The drives will be the latest version Schottell SRP 1012 an updated version of the SRP 1010 on the Haeyang No.7. This combination, with the long fine hull, will give the boat a 13.5-knot speed at 100% MCR and a 12-knot service speed. President and owner of Haeyang Shipping Co., Ltd, the sister company to the shipyard, is Mr. Ki Woong Kim. A staunch advocate of the Cummins high speed engines, he explained that he was at first leery of the durability of high speed engines compared to their medium speed counterparts, “But I am not concerned now, I bought my first Cummins KTA50-M2 about 13 years ago. It now has 30,000 hours with only one overhaul.”

The Haeyang harbour tugs are built to a design by Inchon-based naval architect firm Kumho Marine Engineering. As the current vessel is being built for domestic use it will be classed by the Korean Register of Shipping. Mr. Ki explains that they are entertaining requests to market the same vessel built to any requested classification for about US $4 million.

At the end of January 2010 the hull of the new boat was nearing completion in the big new building shed. The shed is mounted on tracks so that it can be moved to facilitate the use of large cranes to turn the hull when ready. Nearby two marine railways are nearing completions. Seatrials on the new boat are expected to be in April as much of the superstructure is already fabricated.

For further information:

Mr. Ben Lee
Marine and High Horsepower Account Leader
Cummins Korea Ltd.
25th Floor, ASEM Tower, 159-1
Samsung-dong, Kangnam-ku
Seoul, 135-798, Korea
Phone: 82 2 3420 0910
Fax: 82 2 3452 4113
Moblie: 82 10 3013 0910
E-mail: ben.lee@cummins.com

Oh Byung-jin
President
Geumgang Shipbuilding
#350, Youngbo-si,
Chngnam, Korea
Phone: 82 41 931 7670
Fax: 82 41 931 7669
Mobile: 82 106435 5444
E-mail: obj5482@yahoo.co.kr

Jong-Gui KIM
General Manager
Commercial Engine Business Team
STX Engine Co., Ltd.
80. Seongsan-dong, Changwon
Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea 641-315
Phone: 82 55 280 0837
Fax: 82 55 280 0539
Mobile: 82 10 2658 3918
E-mail: jonggk@onestx.com