Parallel to the production of the first wing prototypes, work continues with the first vessel from the Oceanbird concept: Orcelle Wind. SSPA Maritime Center have tested the new and final hull dimensions in their towing tank in Gothenburg.
The experienced Naval Architect Carl Fagergren watches closely how the waves rolls out from the Orcelle Wind model when she is towed along the tank. He is leading the Ship Design project at Wallenius Marine, which will deliver Orcelle Wind to Wallenius Wilhelmsen in 2027, if everything goes according to plan.
“We will soon finalize the tender design of the vessel. These tests at SSPA Maritime center will give valuable input to the final vessel design. Once the design is finalized, the next step is to approach shipyards”, says Carl Fagergren, Project Manager for Orcelle Wind at Wallenius Marine.
Special testing procedure
The 260-meter towing tank at SSPA Maritime Center, RISE is used to optimize the hull and propeller form. The test performed with the Orcelle Wind model is a Roll Decay Test to assess how the roll motions in waves are damped.
A conventional ship could be tested in just one lab, but since Orcelle Wind will have six Oceanbird wing sails, the vessel will be affected by both air and water. Therefore, SSPA is testing each phenomenon individually at their different basins and will put the results together in one computer simulation.
“The great challenge is to achieve a sailing vessel with high sailing performance, and at the same time a well performing motor vessel with all the safety requirements that comes to a motor ship” says Sofia Werner, Lead Researcher Wind-Powered Ships at SSPA/RISE.
Dependent on research collaborations
The Steering Committee for Orcelle Wind, with representants from Wallenius Lines/Marine and Wallenius Wilhelmsen, was at SSPA Maritime Center to witness the towing tank test and test the bridge simulator.
“The partnership we have for bringing the Orcelle project forward, is very dependent on the cooperation with the academia and the research institutes like SSPA/RISE. It has been incredibly valuable to see the tests here today,” says Richard Jeppsson, SVP Wind Powered Projects Wallenius Lines and Chairman of Orcelle Steering Committee.
