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DK Group, a leading marine innovation company, has announced the appointment of Noah Silberschmidt as joint managing director, alongside Katia Kardash.

Silberschmidt forms part of a new senior management team that aims to leading the company through its next phase of development. This phase includes the commercial adoption of its pioneering ACS Retrofit technology and generating further institutional investment to support DK Group’s growth objectives.

Silberschmidt has over seventeen years of extensive investment banking experience specialising in structured finance; fundraising; new revenue generation and structured asset and liability solutions with international financial institutions and institutional investors. A former Managing Director in the Fixed Income division of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, based in London, Silberschmidt has held various senior roles at Citigroup (now Citibank), CDC (now Natixis) and First Chicago (now J.P. Morgan).

Kardash commented of Silberschmidt’s appointment: "We are entering a new era for DK Group with an experienced and dynamic senior management team that allows us to capitalise on the significant opportunity for our Air Cavity System. Our retrofit product is the first of its kind within the industry. We are optimisitic that we will maintain and benefit from our leadership position in air lubrication technologies.

"Noah’s appointment ensures that DK Group has a highly experienced executive and non-executive team of technologists, naval architects, financiers and marketers. All of our executives possess an unrivalled knowledge of the shipping industry and established networks that will serve to support the company as it grows."

Silberschmidt said: "Ship owners and operators now realise that in addition to their corporate social responsibility obligations; reducing CO2 and other related emissions and increasing efficiencies, our technology will increase their levels of profitability. As fuel prices continue to rise in conjunction with the transition to cleaner fuels, DK Group’s ACS Retrofit product provides an effective technological as well as financial solution. I look forward to seizing the opportunities associated with this pioneering innovation."

DK Group's patented Air Cavity System (ACS) technology injects air into specially designed hulls, which is said to reduce the frictional resistance of the hull surface against the water. A layer of air is generated between the hull and the water, allowing the vessel to effectively 'glide' through the water, thus reducing hydrodynamic resistance.

According to DK Group, ACS is able to reduce CO2 emissions and associated fuel costs by 10 percent and can be installed on existing and newbuild vessels for many classes of vessels in the ocean-going commercial fleet, including tanker vessels, containerships, bulk carriers, general cargo ships and LNG/LPG vessels.