Image credit: Flickr

---

MT-FAST, a fuel-saving device jointly developed by MTI Co. Ltd. and Tsuneishi Holdings Corporation, is said to have been installed on over 500 vessels.

How it works

MT-FAST is a multi-blade device that can be attached to a ship's hull to improve the propeller's propulsion efficiency.

A ship moves forward when the engine rotates the propeller, which sucks in the water in front of it and propels that water backwards, creating the force that pushes the vessel forward. However, when converting the rotational power into propulsive power, a swirling flow that reduces propulsion efficiency is generated.

MT-FAST is attached to a ship's hull just forward of the propeller and is designed to improve the flow of water around the propeller by reducing the swirling flow generated behind the propeller, thus improving propulsion efficiency and reducing fuel consumption. It is said to provide bunker savings of around four percent.

Installation

MT-FAST can be fitted to new vessels and retroactively fitted to existing vessels. Since 2008, it has been installed on ships built at Tsuneishi shipyards and NYK-operated bulk carriers and containerships. It is estimated to have saved around 447,000 tonnes of fuel, and reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by about 1,341,000 tonnes.

Calculating its effectivenes on an actual ship

NYK verified the bunker-saving properties of MT-FAST at sea using the company's Ship Information Management System, or SIMS, which enables the remote distribution and management of onboard applications from land offices.

In order to calculate fuel-savings, two vessels, one is equipped with MT-FAST and another without, sailed the same route in parallel in the same meteorological and oceanic conditions, and fuel savings of 4.8 percent were confirmed.