Klaus Schmidt, Director Naval Application Engineering at Rolls-Royce business unit Power Systems, said: “The topics of climate protection and sustainability are currently gaining in importance in the naval sector. We want to use Euronaval to enter into a dialogue with our partners from industry and the armed forces about which climate-friendly solutions will be the right ones for diverse naval applications.”

Rolls-Royce Power Systems is evolving from an engine manufacturer to a provider of integrated sustainable solutions from bridge to propeller. The Rolls-Royce business unit is pioneering the development of methanol engines and already has hybrid propulsion systems for marine applications in its portfolio. Fuel cell solutions are soon to follow as another climate-friendly power and propulsion solution. Next year, Rolls-Royce will release its mtu Series 2000 and 4000 marine engines for sustainable fuels. This will enable the reduction of CO2 emissions from existing diesel engines by up to 90 per cent, compared to the use of fossil diesel, without any changes to infrastructure. Future versions of the proven mtu Series 1163 and 8000 large marine engines, which will meet the IMO Tier III emissions directive with mtu SCR systems, are also to be approved for use with sustainable fuels. They were recently unveiled at trade show SMM.

“We consider synthetic fuels from sustainable sources to be the most realistic option for marine applications on the way to more climate-friendly use, at least for larger combat ships,” said Klaus Schmidt. “As a company that always wants to offer its customers the best and most suitable technical solutions, we are also prepared for other scenarios through our current development programmes. We look forward to exchanging ideas with our partners and customers during Euronaval and beyond.”

Rolls-Royce Power Systems’ solution provider strategy also includes novel augmented reality (AR) technology that the company is presenting at Euronaval. It is a response to the challenge faced by many navies of having to keep increasingly complex propulsion systems running with fewer crew during longer deployments. The mtu AR technology acts as a kind of digital assistant: it presents the functioning of propulsion and energy systems in a very clear and easy-to-understand way through a combination of text, animations and videos and can help with maintenance and repair work. For this purpose, the AR system projects information onto physical hardware. During maintenance, for example, it shows which steps have to be carried out how and with which parts and tools are needed, all laid out on the physical hardware. In addition, the AR system can also show where components are located, for example sensors that have triggered an error message, and guide the user there.

The mtu AR technology can be used either via glasses or a mobile device (tablet or smartphone). It provides an improved understanding of how systems work, simplifies maintenance, enables self-help even without many years of crew experience and increases safety on board. This new development from Rolls-Royce makes another important contribution to ensuring that navies can fulfil their mission reliably and successfully.