Vigor Industrial, and of course Ulstein certainly hope so. They’ve been working together for the past two years to come up with a new Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) design for up to 25 new ships that would replace the aging Reliance and Famous- class of medium endurance US Coast Guard cutters.
One design the USCG is considering is Vigor Marine and the all new ULSTEIN SX151, of course featuring the unmistakeable X-Bow.
So could this be the USCG’s next generation cutters? Yes, but we will have to see if the design can beat out several other yards bidding for the contract.
Ulstein says that the ship measures 100 meters long by 16.4 meters wide and has a top speed of 22 knots and a typical operating speed is estimated to vary from 5 to 22 knots through combined diesel mechanic / diesel electric propulsion. The design can accommodate 124 persons, is equipped with a helicopter deck and hangar, and a hangar for three rescue boats.
In addition, Vigor has configured the Ulstein X-Bow® for maximum mission effectiveness with the following features:
- A large, stable flight deck
- A large hangar that comfortably accommodates an H-65 with the blades extended and a future UAV
- An innovative boat hangar for protected maintenance – day or night, fair or foul weather
- A flexible boat handling system to accommodate a variety of boats, including the MK IV Over-the-Horizon Cutter Boat and unmanned surface and subsurface vessels
- A powerful and efficient propulsion system
- Quiet and comfortable living spaces
“A capable offshore workhorse” for the U.S. Coast Guard?
Vigor OPC is not only affordable to produce, but it also reduces operational costs throughout the life of the vessel, according to Ulstein.
- 7-16% better fuel efficiency than a conventional ship, depending on speed and sea state
- A flexible and fuel-efficient propulsion system
- Spacious machinery compartments
- Reduced operational manning and maintenance requirements
Now we just have to wait until 2014 or 2015 to see if this viking ship becomes a reality.
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Don’t hold your breath. There are 10 other shipbuilders in this competition, all of whom also think they have the best design.
Tim Colton should be a G Capt. contributor, would bring the interesting maritime news sites down to 1 solid place for info.
Man, that is a pretty sweet lookin vessel but I dont see it being much more than a flight of fancy in the looming economy. This is the USCG we are talking about here, the branch that until recently had multiple WWII-era ships still on frontline duty. Those 60′s vintage boats are gonna have to be kept beating along for a while longer methinks.
What are the sea state operation limits? Large sail area to overcome when close aboard. Appears all living quarters are forward, how does that affect weight distribution? With no deck space forward, how will maintenance be performed?
It will have to be made in the US!!!
Should it also not be designed in the US? Why are we sending technical jobs overseas?
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Mqcpe5au_7M
I said earlier that there were ten other yards in this competition. I just discovered that three of these are no longer on the list. The remaining seven are Bath, Bollinger, Eastern, Ingalls, Marinette, NASSCO and VTHM.
Going to handicap the competition on yout site?
Bath and Ingalls can’t compete on price without telling a huge lie. VTHM and Bollinger both have egg on their corp faces. NASSCO, it’s not their forte but they could make a run at it. Marinette, taken over by former LM employees and they are busy with the LCS (and associated Navy costs have creeped in from the days when they built the WLBs, WLMs, etc). I can’t really see Vigor due to their lack of production experience. I’m interested if they can push that hull design to the required speed and not have significant roll accelerations in the bridge. There’s a lot of difference between plowing a wave at 18 knots vs 25. Eastern has done little gov’t work but has a lot of production experience with complicated ships. It will be an interesting horse race.
It should also be designed in the US from an American design company, then build in America with American sailors on board? Just saying.
And designed in the US by a American firm, not Norwegian
congratulations to the Coast Guard of the United States, always at the forefront in safeguarding human life at sea, every sailor knows he can count on their assistance when required.
I saw it before.
Having been literally through two hurricanes on the ocean with 100 ft waves, on a flat bottom LST that handled it well, I wonder just how far under water this bow type will drive the ship when a wave that size crashes down on it? I can’t see any real benefit other than it looks strange.
http://ulsteinlab.com/ – Scroll down and look at the video called ULSTEIN X-BOW in ocean race, to compare the x-bow and conventional bow design.
http://ulsteinlab.com/ – Scroll down and look at the video called ULSTEIN X-BOW in ocean race, to compare the x-bow and conventional bow design. The video is from the North Sea where there are severel x-bows operating today and it’s quite common with 30 meters/100 feet waves during winter season. Have some collegues working on x-bows and they like them a lot. The seaworthiness is very good.
AS LONG AS WE’RE WASTING BILLIONS IN AFGHANASTAN THE COAST GUARD WILL PLAY SECOND FIDDLE TO THE ARMY AND MARINES…