In-Depth Industry Insight: Fuel Saving PINFABB ECO Demonstrates Success on Sea Trials

In 2015, stabilising fins company Pinfabb SRL successfully installed its PINFABB ECO System to a ship owned by Finnish company, Godby Shipping AB.

In order to maximise efficiency and safety and reduce shipping emissions, Godby Shipping upgraded the stabilising fins system of the Miranda by installing PINFABB ECO and replacing the existing stabilisers control.

The installation process on the Miranda took only a few days to be performed and using the existing stabilisers cabinets and cables, PINFABB ECO was integrated using the existing hydraulic and mechanical plants.

Using just the one 1 metre cable, the signals were easily connected. The New Digital Automation (FDA) was installed inside the old automation box, while all the connections, from the local bridge, are performed using the single Ethernet cable.

On May 27, 2015, the Miranda underwent sea trials to test the system during a voyage from Genoa, Italy to Palermo, Italy and back.  Different attitudes and fin settings were testes during the trip to find the best and most efficient solution.

During the tests, the roll motion and roll accelerations of the ship were significantly reduced.  Fin drag consumption was also lowered by extending the fins, allowing the efficiency of the ship to be improved without affecting the cruise speed, and meaning that fuel consumption and CO2 emissions can be decreased.

PINFABB ECO is the third version of Pinfabb’s Stabilisers Digital Control, designed to increase ship efficiency, reduce CO2 emissions and offer flexible installation.  The system can not only be installed on any type of stabilisers, no matter the plant or the age, but also provides high quality stabilisation at low speed.  Acting as a Fuel Saving Tool, the system can reduce fin drag, thereby reducing fuel consumption by up to 60%.

PINFABB ECO benefits from a notably advanced Human-Machine-Interface that provides real-time information to enhance decision-making onboard and onshore.  Furthermore, the system can be installed smoothly and integrated with no problems with existing ship equipment, and has so far shown to be one of the easiest to install stabiliser electronic controls in the market.

The system has been designed and built with great attention to ease of installation. It comes with five electronic cabinets that are connected using a single Ethernet cable for simple fitting.  As the PINFABB ECO main panel components are composed to industry and military standards, the system is both reliable and flexible. Start and stop buttons have also been added to increase ease of operation by the crew.

Matteo Fabbricotti, Pinfabb SRL CTO and PINFABB ECO developer commented: “We are really proud to have been chosen by Godby Shipping, a company that is well known for the efficiency of its fleet, so it was a prestige for us to install our PINFABB ECO on board Miranda. I am especially satisfied by the progress of the installation that has demonstrated how PINFABB solution is a clever and simple step for ship owners/operators who want to renew their stabilisers with a very competitive and innovative solution.  As soon as installed the system was immediately put into service, demonstrating once again how PINFABB ECO is fully compatible with every stabilizing fins system”.

Godby’s Technical Manager and Miranda Superintendent, Mikael Fredriksson said:” Pinfabb showed a very professional attitude during the whole project. Cooperation between Godby Shipping / the Miranda crew / Pinfabb went smoothly and we are very pleased with the end result of the project. I can recommend Pinfabb ECO to other operators.”

Ship Efficiency Review News
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