Did you know that there are some simple ways to avoid the pain of unscheduled downtime? No cruise or ferry company wants angry passengers because of delays, and no LNG or offshore operator wants expensive fines from charterers.
Whatever kind of vessel you own or operate, you can prevent unscheduled downtime with three straightforward solutions.
Unscheduled downtime is a nightmare. Whether you’re operating a ferry full of paying passengers or a tanker with a valuable cargo of fuel, when your vessel cannot sail on time there will be negative consequences. The nature of these consequences varies depending on the type of ship, and often a vessel will need to operate inefficiently to catch up once the issue is solved. This compounds the negative effects.
How you prevent downtime depends on what’s caused the problem. Here are three common causes and the solutions that can help.
Picture the scene: the chief engineer on your LNG carrier is trying to leave port but the engines won’t start. If you can’t get moving quickly you will be liable for big financial penalties on top of your loss of earnings, with the additional threat of losing the charter.
However you get the issue solved, time is of the essence. Crew costs are rising and you’re not making any money to offset them.
Your engineer might be staring at a screen full of alarms as they try to work out why the equipment has stopped. And if you have a less experienced crew or an especially complex issue – for example a sensor problem which causes temperature readings to look normal when they’re not – problems become expensive fast.
Unexpected downtime can lead to serious problems whatever your vessel type. For example, this infographic explains the true cost of a single day’s delay for a cruise operator.
On top of the significant expense comes the threat of unhappy paying customers and the potential for reputational damage, both of which can harm profits.
Having operational support available around the clock to assist with troubleshooting can help you get your vessel sailing again as quickly as possible. In the case of the LNG carrier, the chief engineer had access to Wärtsilä Expertise Centres.
One phone call and a Wärtsilä expert immediately started investigating the case.
The expert gave the chief engineer step-by-step instructions of things to check, such as pressure and temperature levels and fuel quality. In addition, the expert had access to the vessel’s history and real-time data and trends from equipment onboard.
Most importantly, the expert knew where to find the problem and had the experience to solve it as quickly as possible.
The chief engineer and Wärtsilä expert collaborated in real time to resolve the case, the engine was successfully started and the vessel left port and got back on schedule.
Having operational support available around the clock to assist with troubleshooting can help you get your vessel sailing again as quickly as possible.
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Improved uptime – guaranteed. Check out an infographic about five ways a Lifecycle Agreement can help you get ahead of your competition.
Before equipment breaks down there are often small signs that show something isn’t quite right. The problem is that these signs might not be visible to your crew. For example, the following can be indications of poor engine health:
These changes aren’t enough to cause an alarm, and no one onboard would notice a problem. But there is still a way to monitor these signs and fix small issues before they develop into something more severe and take your vessel out of action.
And prevention is always better than cure!
Predictive maintenance services like Wärtsilä Expert Insight continuously analyse incoming data from sensors onboard a vessel.
Advanced rule-based analytics and a layer of artificial intelligence help to recognise when there’s a potential issue and flag it to the most important element of the Expert Insight service: Wärtsilä experts. They alert the customer to any anomalies and use their knowledge and experience to provide actionable advice and recommendations.
In one case the Expert Insight service picked up that the charge air temperature on board a vessel was too low, meaning the engine wasn’t operating efficiently. Working with the chief engineer onboard, Wärtsilä’s experts helped to solve the problem: a faulty actuator.
Another example of where Wärtsilä Expert Insight helped avoid a costly and time-consuming problem is the shuttle tanker Aurora Spirit. The service flagged an abnormality in the lube oil pressure at the turbocharger. This early warning helped the vessel’s owners to avoid a potential engine failure with a relatively simple bearing replacement.
The Japanese technical manager MMS Co., Ltd. uses Expert Insight as well. Here’s how the service spotted and helped solve an engine fault before it caused a breakdown.
Data from hundreds of operating vessels around the world is combined to build a vast knowledge base. This helps to catch problems earlier and benefits everyone involved. Although crew often move between vessels, because they have a dedicated Wärtsilä expert to work with they can rely on consistent advice around the clock from an experienced professional who knows your vessel. Crew also learn more about common issues and how to solve them.
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If you want less downtime, increased reliability and more control over your maintenance activities, your first port of call should be this Insights article: What’s the number one thing you could do for smarter ship maintenance?
Many vessels are still following maintenance schedules that are based on the operational hours of each piece of equipment. Maintenance stops are chosen when running hours hit predefined levels, whether equipment needs servicing or not.
There is some logic to this, because obviously you can’t simply run equipment until it fails. However, with the right data at your fingertips you can safely delay maintenance work until the equipment really needs it.
Data-driven dynamic maintenance planning (DDDMP) provides the flexibility to schedule maintenance for when it’s needed rather than according to running hours.
If performance data and inspections are all looking good, the time between overhauls can be extended. This cuts overall lifecycle costs.
Different maintenance activities can often be combined according to dry dock schedules to make the best use of docking time.
The Expert Insight service is at the core of DDDMP. The technology is used to track real-time data from the vessel and monitor the condition of fluids such as lube oil, cooling water and fuel.
These ongoing checks are combined with intermediate and open inspections that determine whether it’s safe to postpone maintenance activities.
Wärtsilä can either carry out all inspections for you, or your crews can be trained to handle intermediate inspections with Wärtsilä carrying out open inspections. This training is also a great way to build crew competence, which helps them to deal with unexpected events as quickly and effectively as possible.
In some cases DDDMP has allowed operators to take lucrative contracts that would have clashed with previously scheduled maintenance. In these cases Wärtsilä can provide a statement, accepted by classification societies and insurance companies, that shows that maintenance can be safely postponed for a given length of time.
Watch this insightful webinar: You will learn how to leverage data and AI to make smarter maintenance decisions, optimise fuel usage, and evaluate decarbonisation technologies.
Reliable equipment is one of the best ways to avoid unscheduled downtime. Choose proven equipment from reliable suppliers to gain these golden benefits:
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Unexpected downtime is a pain whatever kind of vessel you own or operate, but it can be avoided with three straightforward solutions:
With these solutions plus reliable equipment you can give your ship the best possible chance of avoiding unexpected downtime, which can damage your competitiveness, your profits and ultimately your reputation. For greater peace of mind, you can enter into an outcome-based business partnership to ensure your reliability and availability targets are met. These partnerships come in many forms, all with one thing in common:
The power to keep the pain of unexpected downtime at bay.
Act now to secure greater peace of mind. The first step is easy. Download this white paper to discover how a service agreement could give your maritime business a competitive edge.
This article about preventing unexpected downtime of vessels first appeared as one of Wärtsilä Insights stories.
