Projects

Cruise Vessels

Technical consultancies and litigation support to Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Celebrity Cruises, Festival Cruises. We carried out several failures investigations in relation to Diesel engines and machinery failures.
We had a strategic role as technical consultants for Royal Caribbean and Carnival Corporation in the court cases against Rolls-Royce. Cruise Vessels European Star, European Vision, Millennium, Infinity, Summit, Constellation and Queen Mary II had suffered from repetitive failures of Mermaid Propulsion Pods, designed and manufactured by Rolls-Royce. Consequently, Rolls-Royce was sued in USA by both shipping companies. We were hired by the lawyers of the shipping companies to investigate on the matters and to act as their experts.
Our consultancy ascertained that there was a flaw in the design of Mermaid Propulsion Pods. Our consultancy was instrumental for our clients: Royal Caribbean Celebrity Cruises reached a 65 million USD settlement with Rolls- Royce. Carnival Corporation was awarded 24 million USD by the court.
We were hired to carry out the internal the failure investigation in relation to the Engine Room Fire which disabled Cruise Vessel Carnival Splendour and to provide support in the subsequent USCG investigation. The USCG fully acknowledged the conclusions reached in our internal investigation.
Another notable case was related to the damages occurred to the injectors of the engines of a cruise vessel after bunkering at St. Petersburg, Russia, despite the fuel being compliant with the standard clogging of Fuel Oil filters and repetitive failure of the injectors were suffered. We were able to determine that due to contamination the fuel was behaving like a non-Newtonian fluid, increasing its viscosity during injection and leading to the sudden fracture and detachment of the nipples of the injectors due to extreme overpressure.

Power Generation

Several technical consultancies, factory acceptance tests, litigation support, and assistance on warranty claims in connection with failures on Diesel Engines, turbo-chargers, cogeneration plants and gas turbines for power generation and pumping stations. Issues mainly related with metallurgic defects, thermal creep, corrosion, stress corrosion, fatigue, thermal fatigue, vibrations incorrect design (scantling, arrangement, selection of components...), installation, lubrication, substandard filtration, maintenance… in addition to several consultancies related to the use of biofuel and biogas.

Shipyards & Delivery Claims

Several technical consultancies, litigation support, re-designng and assistance on warranty claims in connection with failures on Diesel Engines, alternators, shaft-lines, propellers, bearings, stern-tube bearings, thrusters, fuel oil and lubricating oil systems... acting either as consultant of Shipyards or Shipowners. In particular we have been often hired by Fincanteri to act as their consultants. We also acted as Owner experts in several warranty / ligations in China.

New-buildings, Conversions, Dry-Docks, Special Maintenance Operations

Design and Construction Survey of Ro Pax Mega Express and Mega Express Two for Corsica & Sardinia Ferries. Design review and optimisation of propulsion system of Ro-Pax and Military Vessels. Design and drydock assistance for the installation of sponsoons on Ro Pax Corsica Serena Seconda, Golfo dei Poet and Golfo degli Ulivi, Corsica & Sardinia Ferries and Lloyd Sardegna. Design and drydock assistance for the lengthening of Ro Pax Golfo del Sole, Lloyd Sardegna. Drydock organization and assistance for several commercial vessels, bulkers, tankers and bitumen carriers… Design and drydock assistance for special maintenance operations, such as renewal of slewing bearings for cranes and of steel wire rope of heavy lift cranes.

Ships in Service

Technical consultancy, failure investigation, litigation support and re-design of gearboxes of Ro-Pax, Military Vessels and High-Speed Crafts. Technical consultancy, failure investigation and litigation support for Diesel Engine propulsion train and propeller failures on Ro-Pax, Bulkers, Tankers, LNG carriers, Livestock carriers, Yachts and Mega Yachts…

Energy Efficiency and Fuel Saving

Review and Amelioration of Specification, Propulsion Optimization, design of non-conventional propellers, planning and supervision of model test and of sea trials, propulsion performance monitoring for several shipping companies, among them: A. P. Moeller Maersk, Carnival Corporation, Evergas, Corsica & Sardinia Ferries…

Others

Support to P&I in investigation on Sinkings and Salvages, Support to Charters in Disputes on Fail to Perform due to Heavy Weather, Technical / Economical Feasibility Studies, Torsional Vibration Calculations, Vibration Analysis. Pre-Purchase Surveys of Passenger and Cargo Vessels, Yachts and Mega Yachts. H&M and P&I Surveys and Risk Assessments of Passenger and Cargo Vessels, Yachts and Mega Yachts… Review and optimization of maintenance procedures / Reliability Centred Maintenance / Condition Based Maintenance.