Steerprop has signed a five-year contract with Siem Offshore regarding the propulsion monitoring service Steerprop Care Premium for three of the Norway-based offshore vessel company’s platform supply ships.

Steerprop Care is designed to enhance the availability of a vessel by continuously monitoring the health of the main propulsion system, revealing any changes in the behavior that could indicate upcoming maintenance needs.

“Machine learning guides our experts in predictive maintenance to focus on the right measurements at the right time, revealing consequential changes in the behavior of the propulsion system,” says Jarkko Sirrola, PDM Manager at Steerprop. “With these insights, our team can work more efficiently, and we are able to provide information on equipment condition so well in advance that our customer can plan the upcoming maintenance as efficiently as possible.”

Mr. Sirrola points out that the new contract with Siem Offshore is an example of the marine industry’s increasing interest in streamlining the maintenance processes through online monitoring services.

“The new level of predictive maintenance will ultimately lead to an enhanced availability of the vessel, increased safety and optimized maintenance based on the real requirements of the propulsion system”, he says. “This also makes it possible to lengthen the overhaul intervals, to optimize the spare part consumption, and to avoid unplanned maintenance.”

Gives comfort

Siem Offshore’s contract covers the three 5.500 DWT platform supply vessels Siem Pride, Siem Symphony, and Siem Thiima, which are equipped with Steerprop’s propulsion units. The ships operate in Norwegian and Australian waters and the contract runs initially for five years.

Aaron Barbetti, Maritime Manager at Siem Offshore in Australia, says that Steerprop Care Premium appears to be the best and most efficient way to continuously monitor the state of the propulsion systems.

“We became interested in Steerprop Care Premium because it gives comfort in the operation of the vessels and streamlines the maintenance process onboard”, he says. “The experience so far matches our expectations, and we hope to see long-term dividends together with Steerprop.”

Three levels of monitoring

The basic version of Steerprop Care is named Standalone, and it gives the onboard crew basic information about the propulsion system condition. It is included in every propulsion unit delivery since 2019. The online versions Steerprop Care Plus and Premium offer more advanced measurement capabilities, and if any development occurs that might cause future disturbances on a ship, Steerprop’s predictive maintenance team will notify the crew, and provide remote assistance if necessary. Steerprop Care Plus and Premium are also available as a retrofit installation.