CalMac Fits Fuel Monitoring Systems on 10 Ferries

Scottish islands ferry operator Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) has contracted marine diesel power generation specialist Royston Limited to fit fuel monitoring systems on ten of its largest vessels.

In a competitive tender, Royston successfully proposed the installation of its new second generation Enginei fuel management system for the work. The tender is linked to CalMac’s aim to save fuel and reduce emissions in ships over 2,500 GRT by installing specialist fuel monitoring instrumentation to determine the most efficient operating parameters for individual vessels.

The Enginei system uses Coriolis flowmeters and sensors to accurately monitor the fuel being consumed by each of a vessel’s engines, which is tracked against GPS data, voyage details and operational mode. The real time data is collected, processed and relayed to bridge and engine room-mounted touchscreen monitors to enable the ship’s master to adjust vessel speed and take whatever other actions are needed to reduce fuel consumption.

In addition, remote data access is provided for onshore teams through a secure online portal, with bespoke software and special reporting options enabling a comprehensive picture of fuel and vessel performance to be maintained.

The installation of the Enginei systems on the selected CalMac ferries began this summer. Eight of the 10 vessels concerned have had the system installed and the remaining two will be achieved during their routine annual maintenance period.

The work has been carried out at different Scottish, Hebridean and Western Isles ports in keeping with the ferries’ operational schedules.

“Our commitment to the taxpayer and the environment has come together with Project Ecoship,” said CalMac’s technical director Peter Breslin.

“The fuel monitoring systems have only recently been installed on our vessels and the project is in a bedding-in phase. But both early data and anecdotal feedback from the ships is encouraging and we expect to see significant benefits in due course both to our carbon footprint and our bottom line.”