The Centre for Environment Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) in the UK is an internationally renowned scientific research and advisory centre working in fisheries management, environmental protection and aquaculture. For its research vessel Endeavour, CEFAS needed a low-noise solution as this is crucial for vessels engaged in fisheries research. The noise reduction target was a design challenge that approached the limits of technical feasibility.

Wärtsilä solution
Wärtsilä supplied the vessel with a diesel-electric propulsion and power plant based on three Wärtsilä 6L20 diesel generating sets, together with a 3.5 m diameter five-bladed fixed pitch propeller, the shaftline and a Coastguard AC anti-pollution stern seal. Wärtsilä and the shipyard also worked very closely together as partners to optimize generating set and propeller design, aiming to meet the very challenging vibration and underwater noise targets set by the owners.