Feature 8 | TURBOCHARGER REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE MTE celebrates with further expansion
Marine Turbo Engineering (MTE), which celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2010, is successfully exploiting the benefits of having a network of turbocharger workshops in Bangladesh, Grand Bahama, India, Singapore, the UK and USA .
R
ecently MTE’s Singapore workshop has been expanded with relocation to a new site with 13,000m2
of
space for workshop service and repairs, reconditioning and spares storage. Workshop staff in Singapore can offer independent, specialist turbocharger advice in association with leading shipyards in the area. In the past few months, MTE’s Asian
team has recently demonstrated its retrofit expertise, working on a bulk carrier which was experiencing repeat failures of the Napier turbochargers on its Wartsila 4L20B auxiliary engines, along with oil seepages from the sealing arrangement, preventing higher load operations. Mark Dean, service director, said: “Our retrofit team went to work, establishing the right unit and sharing our experience as an independent turbocharger specialist. This allows a more balanced approach to choosing the most suitable unit for reliability and availability of spare parts.” A successful retrofit of all three auxiliary engine units on the bulk carrier was completed from MTE’s Singapore workshop in April this year, when the vessel was travelling between Bangkok and India. A sister vessel was subsequently retrofitted on route between Singapore and Australia. To further strengthen its market position
MTE has recently formed a strategic alliance with SPM Instruments, which coincidentally also has its 40th anniversary in 2010. Mr Dean said: “Together we aim to increase awareness about the importance of regular monitoring of a turbocharger’s performance and the need for regular inspections and cleaning, despite longer life expectancy of critical components such as bearings.” Overall MTE says sales in 2009 increased
from 2008 levels and the company expects 2010 will match last year. The reason, Mr Dean suggests, is that “Many more companies are preferring to use
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independent workshops, providing quality, reliable servicing at more cost effective rates compared with some OEM networks.”
Recent warranty work undertaken by MTE for Mitsui MAN on one of its TCA 77 unit’s lubricating oil header tanks at its USA workshops.
An engineer from MTE’s Singapore workshop checking turbine tip clearances after assembly.
Particularly high volumes of work
are reported at MTE service stations that operate in India, in Mumbai and Vishapatnam, as a result of increased service related business around these ports and also Chennai and Goa. “Our US workshops based at Ft Lauderdale and Mobile have also been kept busy serving customers in the Houston and New Orleans area in addition to Florida ports such as Port Everglades, Miami and Tampa,” said Mr Dean. Overall there has been a slow down
of purchasing additional fleet spares, but maintenance work has increased, with the Marine Turbo network offering exchange items and reconditioned parts such as rotors and cartridges. SRCT
Shiprepair and Conversion Technology 3rd Quarter 2010
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