Every shipowner should stay aware of pitfalls at the tendering stage and ask for reliable, high-quality equipment that has low operating costs throughout their vessel’s life cycle.
Typically, a ship has an auxiliary boiler for heating. The boiler is in use when waste heat from main engine is not sufficient for heating the cargo and crew quarters. This is critical piece of equipment: If heating doesn’t work, the vessel won’t leave port. One of the key components in auxiliary boilers is the burner. At the tendering stage, it is recommended to consider what kind of a burner do you want in your vessel.
“Ships are huge projects. In a way, it is understandable that at the tendering stage, you don’t pay attention to a single minute component that represents only a tiny fraction of the overall cost, but it’s still a worthwhile thing to do,” says Oilon’s Sales Manager Jani Kurikka.
A minimal saving at the tendering stage may result in surprisingly high expenses throughout the vessel’s life cycle. Correspondingly, a small additional investment can pay itself back many times over in the form of operational reliability and lower servicing and spare part costs.
“When you consider that a cargo ship can cost tens of millions of euros and a burner some tens of thousands, the cost of the burner is in any case marginal at the tendering stage. Operating costs are a different story. At worst, a failed burner can cause massive one-off costs,” Kurikka says.
Spare parts and servicing everywhere in the world
As cargo ships operate across all the oceans of the world, it is simply sensible to get a burner that has spare parts easily available at a reasonable price and that can be serviced anywhere.
“We recognize that ease of use, maintenance, and servicing as well as operational reliability are the kinds of things that chief engineers value,” Kurikka says.
At the tendering stage, a burner that seems reasonably priced may turn out to be difficult to use and maintain. Some burners can require more frequent cleaning and maintenance than, for example, Oilon’s pressure-atomized and medium-atomized burners. Additionally, Oilon uses parts that are generally available on the market, ensuring good availability of spare parts and competitive pricing.
“If a ship has equipment that can be serviced only using brand-specific spare parts, you can be looking up to even ten times the price compared to the standard stuff. Additionally, availability of such parts can be a challenge, as the ship can be anywhere when you finally need the part. The same goes with servicing,” Kurikka says.
Missing components, however cheap, can cause massive costs
It is the shipowner’s or ship operator’s benefit to be well informed when placing an order for a vessel. In the worst-case scenario, a misguided choice of equipment can become a nightmare. A missing component that costs some tens of euros can delay the ship’s departure or prevent it altogether.
“For example, the ignition electrode is a wearing part that needs to be replaced from time to time. If you don’t have the part at hand when the time comes, the burner won’t work and the ship won’t move. Sounds crazy that not having a 30-euro spare part at hand can stop a 30-million-euro ship from leaving port, but that’s how it is. The demurrage fees alone can easily amount to tens of thousands of euros per day,” Kurikka says.
“Often, the customer buys only a minimal spare part kit with their burner even when some of the parts are so cheap that sending the parts over can often be more costly than the parts themselves. The parts used by Oilon are readily available, and customers can buy them from elsewhere as well,” Kurikka says.
Oilon’s customers can buy spare parts from anywhere, but they can also be ordered directly from Oilon.
“We can supply all the spare parts our customers need from one place at such a reasonable and competitive price that it’s simply not worth the effort to hunt around for cheaper prices. In our opinion, this is long-standing customer service at its best,” Kurikka says.
Service availability is essential
Oilon’s design strategy considers serviceability, ease of use, and operational reliability as top priorities. As Oilon’s systems utilize mainly standard components, Oilon equipment can be serviced by any professional around the world regardless of where the vessel happens to be at the time. This increases operational reliability and is a definite benefit for the customer.
“Of course, we are happy to service Oilon equipment ourselves. We provide maintenance and servicing through both our own units and our network of resellers in around 50 countries across the globe,” Kurikka says.