Hydroniq Coolers has entered into a partnership agreement with Wärtsilä and supplied its biggest ever Rack seawater cooling system to Wärtsilä’s innovation and production center – the Smart Technology Hub.
“In the Smart Technology Hub we seek to validate a common and centralized sea water cooling system creating flexibility for large installations. The innovative solution of Hydroniq has lower own consumption and most of all resistant to fouling as well as enabling easy and fast cleaning during maintenance,” says Juha Päivike, Smart Technology Hub Program Director at Wärtsilä.
The Smart Technology Hub is a new centre of research, product development and production located in Vaskiluoto, Vaasa, Finland. It is part of Wärtsilä's Smart Marine and Smart Energy visions. The Hub will be unique in its field, enabling more agile, more efficient testing and product development of solutions for the maritime and energy industries.
“To be chosen as supplier of the seawater cooling system to what is arguably the world’s most modern technology development centre for marine technologies is a proud moment for us,” says Inge Bøen, CEO of Hydroniq Coolers.
Hydroniq Coolers has supplied a Rack seawater cooling system that will consist of 6 cooling units, each 2.5 meter tall and a total cooling surface of 1820 square-meter, which will be utilized for testing of Wärtsilä’s marine engines at the Smart Technology Hub. The high-capacity Rack seawater cooling system has been developed in collaboration between Hydroniq Coolers and Wärtsilä’s design team.
©-Tony-Hall
“This is the biggest seawater cooling system we have supplied, both in terms of size of the cooling bundles and total cooling capacity which is equivalent to cooling of approximately 15 cargo-vessels with a size of 15.000 DWT. It matches Wärtsilä’s ambitions of utilising the Smart Technology Hub to develop new world-leading technology solutions,” says Inge Bøen.
Hydroniq Coolers has manufactured and assemble the seawater coolers at its headquarters outside Aalesund, Norway. It was delivered to Wärtsilä’s Smart Technology Hub in late February this year. Start-up and commissioning will be undertaken later this year.
Marine cooling systems are utilized to reduce temperatures in engines and other auxiliary systems through use of seawater to avoid overheating of the engine and other critical systems. The Rack seawater cooler is predominantly installed as a hull-integrated cooling system onboard vessel. However, it is also highly effective for industrial applications onshore where seawater is used as cooling aid.
Hydroniq Coolers is owned by Norwegian investment company SMV Invest AS (formerly Sperre Mek. Verksted AS). The company’s name “Hydroniq” refers to regulation of temperature through utilization of liquids.
