New Logistics Concept for Maintaining Drives in the Dry Dock

To make maintenance work in the dock as quick, smooth and reliable as possible, Siemens has developed a unique logistics concept based on a modular container solution. It involves customizing a standard sea freight container and equipping it for repair and maintenance work. By using standardized modules, Siemens is able to achieve highly efficient import/export handling processes at any time of the day or night. The concept helps Siemens to shorten maintenance times by up to 15 percent, creates improved access and reduces risks during maintenance work. Siemens will be presenting the service container in the open air area in front of Hall B6 at this year’s SMM in Hamburg, from September 6 to 9.

The new logistics concept boosts flexibility to respond adequately to any service requirements. The container does not just hold standard tools or lifting gear, but also air conditioning and heating devices and a special lighting system, which allows work to be carried out anytime, anywhere. Apart from the drives themselves, special tools are available to check all pertaining electrical and mechanical components, such as inverters, energy distribution systems, automation systems and controls.

This type of container was first used in the dock during the inspection of a ferry owned by a renowned shipping company. Siemens service staff was able to overhaul or exchange wear-and-tear parts of the Siship eSipod drives within a minimal amount of time, while also checking the remaining electrical and mechanical components. Two teams worked in two-shift-operation. This, together with the new logistics concept, made it possible to reduce maintenance times by two days, compared with a previous service carried out on the sister ship by Siemens staff. “Over the last three years, we have identified improvement potential when working on similar maintenance assignments, for instance with respect to the shipyard’s own tools, logistics and our team’s competences,” explains Ernst-Christoph Krackhardt, Head of Customer Service at Siemens Marine. “We developed these and other aspects, bringing them together to form a novel logistics concept.”

Based on this positive experience, Siemens is planning to deploy another service container to serve as a mobile ship service workshop in the Pacific area. From there, it can be transported to shipyards throughout the Asian/Australian region for both scheduled maintenance and damage repair within a short amount of time.

Siemens will be showcasing its wide portfolio of electrical products, systems, solutions and services for the entire life cycle of maritime applications at SMM 2016 in Hall B6, Booth 318. This includes the Siemens PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) software, the pod drive solution Siship eSipod and the Siship EcoMain system platform. The service container will be shown in the open air area in front of Hall B6. In Hall A3, Booth 325, Siemens will also be presenting customized gear units for maritime applications.