Page 43: of Marine News Magazine (November 2024)

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Sometimes advanced technologies can complicate operations, but Wetta stressed that’s not the case with Vaneta

Marie. “There are a lot of comput- ers on the dredge, and for traditional dredge operators, that can be scary,” he said. “But when you sit in the chair of the dredge, there’s basically two screens and eight buttons. One screen looks like a video game, and that’s DSC Vi- sion: a rendering of what the bottom looks like in a 3D-colored map. The other side [are the] gauges that the op- erator looks at to control the dredge.

The operator doesn’t have to be aware of everything around him [as that’s] handled with the automation system.

If there is a problem, he and the chief engineer will be noti? ed.”

Another standout feature of the

Vaneta Marie is its dual diesel-electric power package, delivering 9,621-horse- power of total installed horsepower. “The [Wabtec] engines are the only in this class that can be [EPA] Tier 4 with- out a bunch of post-treatment or diesel exhaust ? uid,” Wetta said. “Looking at the exhaust, it’s pretty clear you don’t get any black smoke with the engines.

It sips fuel compared to some of the higher speed engines.”

The diesel-electric setup also un- locks other capabilities. “Because it’s diesel-electric, can take power from the grid; so this machine could run strictly off of an umbilical cord. It’s also designed, because we’re in a hurricane area, where we can export the power off these engines in a disaster event, and we could power a city or a plant.

So, it’s basically an eight-megawatt power plant that becomes a dredge.” www.marinelink.com MN 43|