Going Big for Sustainability

Orkot Marine Bearings, developed and manufactured by Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, contribute to the build of one of the world’s most efficient and largest containerships, the Maersk Triple E class family, built by Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding.

Orkot TXMM and TLMM bearings were developed to meet the requirements of ever changing markets. The synthetic composite bearing materials incorporate solid lubricants to provide exceptional wear resistance, virtually no swell in water and great dimensional stability, the manufacturer said. The bearings have been chosen by Maersk for its Triple E class family of containerships.

Meeting the challenge of large rudder sealing Barry Davies, General Manager of the Trelleborg Sealing Solutions facility in Rotherham, England, where the bearings are manufactured, said, “We embrace the design principles of Maersk and took on the challenge to deliver the bearings that are fundamental to the success of these ships. The larger the ship, the bigger the size of the rudder and the more demanding it is to develop a bearing to optimize performance. Orkot bearings are proven in thousands of ships to give maintenance free operation over many years.”

Orkot TXMM and TLMM bearings operate with water or grease lubrication, but can also be operated dry, tolerating edge loading and misalignment, even under high loads.

The sustainable Triple E containership
The “Triple E” name is derived from the class’s three design principles: “Economy of scale, Energy efficient and Environmentally improved”. At 400 meters / 1,312 feet long, the ships are able to carry 2,500 more containers than the E class ships they replaced.

The class uses a strategy known as slow steaming, which is expected to lower fuel consumption by 37 percent and carbon dioxide emissions per container by 50 percent. The Triple E design helped Maersk win a “Sustainable Ship Operator of the Year” award in July 2011.