Page 57: of Marine News Magazine (November 2023)

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recent years, Kytölä said. In 2022, the company dedicated €241 million (about $255 million) to R&D expenditure, or 4.1% of its net sales, up from €165 million (about $175 million) and 3.2% in 2018.

In particular, the company has been working to maxi- mize the ef? ciency of its portfolio of gas, diesel and dual- fuel engines, while also developing its next wave of prod- ucts capable of running on carbon neutral and carbon free fuels. In 2022, it introduced the Wärtsilä 32 methanol engine, and an ammonia concept is slated to be ready by the end of this year, followed by a hydrogen concept ex- pected in 2025.

To help reach its decarbonization objectives, Wärtsilä invested €250 million in the creation of its state-of-the-art

Sustainable Technology Hub (STH) in Vaasa, Finland, of- ? cially opened in June 2022 to foster innovation, collabo- ration and production of green technologies.

Juha Kytölä,

The facility features a modern fuel laboratory, technol-

Director of R&D and Engineering, ogy and engine testing facilities, remote monitoring center,

Wärtsilä as well as a state-of-the-art production system with high levels of automation and ? exibility for meeting tomorrow’s evolving technologies. The center itself, which employs gines; exhaust treatment; LNGPac technology for LNG about 1,500 people, is also energy ef? cient, with advanced storage, supply control and monitoring; tunnel thrusters; energy recovery systems that enable self-suf? ciency for catalysators; integrated electrical and automation systems; heat energy. Electricity produced while testing is used in and NACOS Platinum combined control system for navi- the hub’s own processes, while remaining power is fed to gation, automation and dynamic positioning as well as the grid, and residue heat is stored and used. power and propulsion. All the Wärtsilä equipment and

Juha Päivike, Wärtsilä’s director of logistics chain man- systems aboard the Aurora Botnia are covered by a 10-year agement and STH facility stream, said the ? rst element of Wärtsilä Optimized Maintenance agreement, and through the STH to be launched was its partner campus, which an additional agreement with Wasaline, Wärtsilä is able to serves as an “ecosystem of collaboration” by bringing utilize the vessel as an R&D test platform and technology groups of experts together to drive meaningful innovation. demonstrator—“a ? oating test lab” Päivike said.

“What we want to see is that we accelerate this [shift to Another important element of the STH is its unique green technologies]. We want to be in the driver’s seat. We manufacturing and logistics set up, which can be quickly need to then have the proper facilities for our experts to be adapted to meet new demands as technologies evolve and close to the innovation, to collaborate with other compa- new products are created. “Flexibility has been a corner- nies, other bid partners, customers, even universities and stone for everything we do,” Päivike said. “Instead of hav- academia, research institutes,” he said. “The innovation ing product speci? c assembly lines, we are actually having cycle is getting faster and faster, so you need to adapt to assembly based on size of products and also having a lot new ways of how you tap onto these possibilities—and of focus on new product introduction so that the manu- not always using your own efforts to develop something facturability, quality, also the safe operations, etc., are all uniquely for yourself, but looking at partnerships where considered in the launch of any new product.” you can jointly bene? t from the innovation.” Wärtsilä is looking more at how it can link from product

An example of the type of collaborative work underway design and engineering all the way through manufacturing is the Wasaline dual-fuel LNG ro-pax ferry Aurora Botnia, and operations, Päivike said, opening up new opportuni- which makes daily transits between Umeå, in Sweden, and ties in areas such as 3D-based assembly simulations. “We

Vaasa, docking a short distance from the STH facility. are creating a more solid line from planning to manufac-

The 150-meter-long vessel, touted by its operator as turing operations. This means that all the way from the one of the world’s greenest, features an integrated pack- design level we are directly linked to the shop ? oor, which age of Wärtsilä solutions, including four Wärtsilä 31 en- means that there are more ways to improve ef? ciency.” www.marinelink.com MN 57|