Wärtsilä Welcomes Cadets of SUNY Maritime Training Ship

Wärtsilä welcomed cadets from the State University of New York (SUNY) Maritime College to its Trieste factory during the school's summer sea term Italian port stop in June. The students use the summer sea term to gain practical experience on board the SUNY Maritime training ship, the Empire State VI.

Upon arrival in Trieste, the Wärtsilä Italy management team welcomed the group of close to 600, which in addition to the cadets, included the crew, faculty from SUNY Maritime College, as well as its president, Rear Adm. Michael Alfultis. This visit marked a return to Trieste for SUNY Maritime as the group was also hosted by Wärtsilä in 2013.

An extensive agenda was coordinated by Wärtsilä and the SUNY Maritime leadership with the aim of offering the cadets the opportunity to learn first-hand how Wärtsilä manages its production facility. Technical presentations highlighted key topics of interest for the students, including dual-fuel technologies, Wärtsilä Fuel Gas Handling solutions, Wärtsilä's LNGPac(TM) systems, and Wärtsilä technical support team activities.

Rear Adm. Alfultis joined the 100 students for a guided tour of the Wärtsilä manufacturing facility, which offered the group an up-close view of the various stages involved in assembling a Wärtsilä engine. The majority of the engineering cadets on the tour had earlier completed a medium speed diesel engine course, and had experience in performing maintenance work on a diesel engine. This was in part made possible by the donation of a Wärtsilä 26 engine to the university in 2011 for their shore side laboratory in New York City.

"Over the years, Wärtsilä has been a generous and committed partner in giving SUNY Maritime students the hands-on training and applied learning opportunities that they will need as they enter the maritime industry," said Rear Adm. Alfultis. "Our cadets always enjoy Trieste and the chance to visit Wärtsilä, and I was delighted to experience it with them."

"Wärtsilä is committed to supporting the future well-being of the maritime industry through encouraging and helping to educate its future leaders. This visit of the SUNY Maritime cadets has, therefore, been a pleasure for us to arrange. We wish the students every success in their future careers," says Aaron Bresnahan, Managing Director, Wärtsilä North America, Inc.

In appreciation of the factory tour, Rear Adm. Alfultis hosted the Wärtsilä Italy management team and others from the local office on a visit aboard the Empire State VI, which included a tour of the ship. The training ship is a 565-foot, steam-powered vessel that serves as a floating laboratory during the school year when not in use for the summer sea term.

The Empire State VI will return to the SUNY Maritime College campus in early August for the start of the new academic year. For the cadets, visiting the Wärtsilä factory in Trieste provided an insight into the skills needed for their future studies and careers in the marine industry.