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Good Hulls and Obsolescent Engines Converted into Profit Earning Ships not economical to operate even moderately old vessels, though the hulls may be perfectly sound, with the original steam machinery installations, because of the very definite advance in marine engineering during the last decade. Furthermore the hull charac- teristics satisfactory for the power nec- essary to give the speed accepted as normal ten years ago are not suitable for higher speeds. What to do with these otherwise sound vessels is a prob- lem which has received serious practi- cal study both here and abroad with strikingly valuable results. Two in- stances in the United States may be briefly mentioned. First, the conversion of the two Hog Island ships re-named DELNorRTE and Dretsup for the Mississippi Shipping Co. These two vessels were originally de- signed for a shaft horsepower of 2500 and a normal sea speed of 10.75 knots. Changes were made in both turbines and gears, the latter being practically rebuilt, increasing the service speed to 13 knots. Many other improvements were made at the time, including al- terations to the hull, new rudder and propeller, and high class accommoda- tions for 28 passengers. A detailed de- scription of this conversion appears in the October, 1931 MARINE REVIEW. G net econ men realize that it is Outstanding American Conversion Another important American conver- sion was that of five ships for the Bal- timore Mail Steamship Co. These ships were built for the United States shipping board in 1918 and were of 11,800 tons deadweight, 440 feet in length between perpendiculars, 56 feet in beam and had a normal sea speed of 10% _ = =knots. After conversion the length over all became 507 feet % inch, length between perpendiculars, 486 feet and the cruising speed was if- creased to 16 knots; speed on trials, in one instance going as high as 18.5 knots. The hull changes involved re- moving the bows and sterns and add- ing about 40 feet at the forward ends of the ships with a new design of bow and a new stern frame and rudder. The original machinery installation of 2900 shaft horsepower was removed For information used in this article acknowledgment is made to Wilton’s Engineering and Slipway Co., Rotter- dam, Holland and to G. De Vries for his paper on Improvements to Existing Ma- rine Steam Engine Plants, read before a meeting of the Dutch Institution of Marine Engineers at Rotterdam in 1931. By Kristen Tvede and in the same machinery space a modern turbine geared plant of 9500 horsepower driving a single propeller was substituted. One of these vessels, in the run from Newport News, Va. to Havre, 3341 nautical miles, in 84 days, consumed 76.3 tons of bunker oil per day. Detailed particulars on this conversation will be found in Marinr Review for April, 1932. Even greater efforts are being suc- cessfully applied in European ship- yards in cooperating with the _ ship- owner in answering the question of what to do with those otherwise per- fectly good ships which have become obsolescent, due to present day re- quirements and advance in marine en- gineering. Abroad competition is still keener due to the widespread use of the economical diesel engine vessel. In Sweden the Lindholmen-Motala shipyard at Gothenburg, in coopera- tion with representatives of the Lentz uniflow engine, made a thorough study of the application of this type of power in conjunction with other fuel saving O rapid has been the improve- ment in marine steam engin- eering during the past few years that it is no exaggeration to say that 10 even 8-year old orthodox steam vessels are out of date. What is an owner to do? He is beset in two ways. His op- erating costs are 20 to 30 per cent higher than they need be and due to the slow speed of these not old yet obsolete ves- sels he is not in a position to compete for the best paying freights. This article is intended as food for thought on a way out of the dilemma. First plan care- fully then act promptly and vigorously. The facts must be met with courage. Success or failure is in the balance. Editor's Note RESO EE TE SLO ETL ELE EES TET MARINE REVIEw—June, 1932 modern steam engineering features. As a result a number of patents of various fuel saving improvements in design were granted in 1927. In that year this shipyard modified two engine installa- tions, saving 31 per cent in coal con- sumption. In 1928 five vessels were modified, at a fuel saving of between 29 and 33 per cent. In 1929-30 this company received orders for the im- provement of 11 vessels, resulting in a fuel saving varying between 25 and 38% per cent. Dutch Shipyard Offers Solution In Holland, Wilton’s Engineering and Slipway Co., Rotterdam, recogniz- ing the problem of the shipowner, pre- pared to offer a solution by carefully studying and evaluating in a practical manner all of the important modern developments in naval architecture and marine engineering. The well estab- lished fact that increased length will reduce resistance was amplified by the suggestion that the Maier ship form be applied to the fore body in the pro- cess of lengthening the vessel. A hull formed on these lines, it is claimed, while giving more favorable propor- tions for minimum resistance also re- acts favorably on the ship’s behavior at sea with the result that there is less loss of speed during heavy weath- er. In extensive model tank trials the Wilton engineers demonstrated that a rebuilding of a fore body of an existing vessel to the Maier ship form is def- initely advantageous and especially so when combining this change with the adoption of the latest information i the design of propellers of greater ef- ficiency. Other factors entered in, such as the influence of streamlining the after body, shaftbossings and rud- ders to increase the effectiveness of the propellers. By converting the passenger vessel StaAmMAT, built in 1922 for the Rotter- dam Lloyd, having a length of 500 feét, breadth, 61 feet 8% inches, depth o8 feet and of 11,400 gross tons, Wilton’s Engineering & Slipway Co. successfully carried out on a large scale the im provements suggested by carefully con- ducted model experiments. When originally built this vessel was intended for service between Hol- land and the Dutch East Indies at an average speed of 15 knots. Compara- tively recently completed new vessels for the same owner have an average speed of 17% knots and it was decided, if feasible to do so, to increase the speed of the SLAmaArT so that she could 29