The technology group Wärtsilä has signed a five-year Optimised Maintenance agreement with Greece-based Latsco LNG Marine Management. The agreement covers the main engines for two large LNG Carriers (LNGC), the ‘Hellas Diana’ and the ‘Hellas Athina’, and was signed in March 2021.

Optimised Maintenance agreements are a key element within Wärtsilä’s Lifecycle Solutions offering and are designed to ensure operational certainty with maintenance cost predictability. In addition to asset diagnostics, maintenance planning, annual audits and spare parts, Wärtsilä will also provide the vessels with remote support and condition monitoring systems, including the company’s predictive maintenance service Expert Insight.

Expert Insight is an innovative service that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced diagnostics to monitor equipment and systems in real-time, spot anomalies, foresee potential problems, and enable rapid reaction accordingly. Should anomalous behaviour be detected, it is flagged to specialists at Wärtsilä Expertise Centres, allowing them to support the customer proactively with an appropriate resolution to the issue. The combination of AI, advanced diagnostics, and the company’s extensive equipment expertise greatly enhances the reliability, efficiency, and safety of the installed equipment.

“This agreement will ensure that these vessels can operate with maximum reliability, availability, and performance. This is of real value to us, and we very much appreciate Wärtsilä’s capabilities in delivering highly efficient maintenance support via its global network,” says Kostas Vlachos, Chief Operating Officer, Latsco LNG Marine Management.

“Our aim and strategy is to deliver higher levels of efficiency and safety to the shipping industry while minimising the impact on the environment. For this, we apply smart technology and performance optimisation services tailored to the needs of the customer. Expert Insight represents an important and very relevant advance in predictive maintenance, and we estimate that it can help cut unplanned maintenance by as much as 50 percent, while at the same time reducing fuel consumption and emissions by 3 to 4 percent,” says Rajeev Janardhan, Sales Manager, 2-stroke engine Lifecycle solutions, Wärtsilä Marine Power.

The two vessels were built at the Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) yard in South Korea. They are 297 metres in length and have a cargo capacity of 174,000 cbm. The ‘Hellas Diana’ entered service at the end of March this year, and the ‘Hellas Athina’ is scheduled to enter service in September. Both operate with WinGD X-DF dual-fuel engines. In August 2020, Wärtsilä signed similar Optimised Maintenance agreements with Latsco Marine Management for two of their large LPG vessels.

Wärtsilä currently has more than 700 vessels under maintenance agreements.