(MINI LACE) A SAIL-ASSISTED CARGO VESSEL

Mini Lace, a 3000-dwt cargo ship owned by Ceres Hellenic Shipping Enterprises, of Piraeus, is a two-hatch vessel typical of many coasters and inter-island ships; length is 214 ft, breadth 50 ft, and loaded draught 17 ft; CB is 0.8. Normal operating speed, with her 1000-hp Diesel engine, is 7 knots at 80% mcr. She now has a 2490-ft2 auxiliary sail, with which she is operating in the Caribbean. The rig, a retrofit designed by Windship Development Corp., of USA, needs no additional crew and does not interfere with cargo-handling; it has been designed for use in winds of up to 35 knots; with the sail furled, design survival wind-speed is 150 knots. The retrofit cost 250,000 <it was a one-off prototype installation>. The sail, made from Dacron, is triangular and mounted on an unstayed mast forward; the mast is rotatable to facilitate sail-handling, which is done hydraulically and controlled from the bridge or by a hand-held remote control. The sail has a lattice-girder boom to which it is secured at the clew only. No manual handling is required at any stage; furling of the full sail takes 2.3 min. During the rig's initial trial period, the vessel covered over 5000 miles at 7 knots, with a fuel saving of 20%. The article mentions that the Windship company has recently developed sail-assistance retrofits for a conservation vessel and for the US Navy's AGOR-14 oceanographic research ships.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Ship & Boat, 35 <1982>, p. 24 <Oct.> (1 p., 1 phot.)
• Authors:
  • Pike, D
• Publication Date: 1982

Language

• English

Subject/Index Terms

• Subject Areas: Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00683701
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: British Maritime Technology
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 14 1995 12:00AM