Gearboxes create a stir at boat show
Strong interest in PRM StepDrive gearboxes at the recent London International Boat Show has led to the appointment of two new sales agents and a crop of new installations.
Strong interest in PRM StepDrive gearboxes at the recent London International Boat Show has led to the appointment of two new sales agents and a crop of new installations for these novel, two-speed automatic marine transmissions.
The appointment of Azzopardi Marine Services in Malta marks the first availability of production StepDrive units outside the UK.
In parallel, Marine and General Boat Yard of Guernsey not only becomes Newage's first sales and installation dealership in the Channel Islands, but has already secured an order to fit StepDrive units to a Sealine F33 fly bridge motor boat powered by two Volvo Penta KAD 32 engines.
"Retrofitting the new gearboxes will make all-round improvements to the vessel's performance", says Newage's Marine Sales Manager, Jamie Pratt.
"The units incorporate a reduction ratio of around 25% in addition to their direct drive, which increases propeller efficiency and acceleration, enabling boats to get on to the plane significantly faster than before".
"StepDrives deliver particularly noticeable improvement at low revs, before the effects of the engine supercharger or turbo kick in", he continues.
"In most applications, boat acceleration will be increased by at least 25%".
"Furthermore, the gearboxes provide benefits of reduced creep speed, emissions and noise when manoeuvring in busy marines or restricted waterways".
"They also feature extremely smooth gearchanges and engagement of drive, to ensure a long and trouble free service life".
StepDrive units are self-contained gearboxes that can be retrofitted to Volvo Duoprop 290 drive legs.
They are installed entirely within the centre section of the Duoprop unit and are ideal for use with turbocharged engines such as Volvo Penta AD31 and 41 series; as well as supercharged units up to the KAD44.
In operation, the two-speed gearboxes automatically change from low to high ratio at a predetermined engine speed.
This is optimised during installation to the individual boat and engine combination.
When the boat decelerates again, low gear is engaged as the engine speed falls below 1500rev/min.
"Further StepDrive enquiries from the London Boat Show include units for applications in several Scandinavian countries", continues Pratt.
"I am therefore confident that our participation at next month's Stockholm Boat Show will build on this success and lead to the appointment of further dealers to meet demand in this important sales region".
Not what you're looking for? Search the site.
Articles by product category
- Consultancy and Services (903)
- Machine Building (4,517)
-
Engineering Design Software (6,179)
- Engineering Design Software (12)
- 2D CAD software (200)
- 3D CAD software (1,157)
- FEA and structural analysis software (369)
- Fluid, thermal, noise, vibration software (334)
- Simulation, modelling, validation software (914)
- Rendering, visualisation, styling software (196)
- Materials design and moulding design software (151)
- Process, instrumentation, automation software (258)
- Electrical design software (164)
- Publishing and documentation software (229)
- Maths, charting, statistics, QA software (317)
- Data, document management software (310)
- CAM, CNC, production management software (568)
- File conversion software, data capture (351)
- PLM and collaboration software (649)
-
Drives, Motors and Controls (3,361)
- Drives, Motors and Controls (1)
- Precision Motors and Gears (411)
- Industrial Drives/Controls (1,276)
- Linear Drives and Motors (114)
- Industrial Motors (497)
- Stepper and Servo Drives, Motors, Controls (1,060)
- Small Mechanical Components, Joining, Tools (1,975)
-
Control and Instrumentation (5,028)
- Plantwide control (1,324)
- Plant- and Machine-Wide Communications (1,174)
- Smaller-Sized PLCs (387)
- CNC and Motion Controllers (184)
- Mid-range and Large PLCs (201)
- Power Supplies, Uninterruptible Power (562)
- HMIs/Operator Interfaces (294)
- Logic Controllers, Timers and Relays (96)
- Cabling, Conduit, Signal Conditioning (806)
-
Monitoring, Measurement and Quality (5,459)
- Monitoring, Measurement and Quality (1)
- Data acquisition Software and Communications (494)
- Data Acquisition Hardware and PC I/O Boards (472)
- Electrical and Electronic Testing, PAT Equipment (630)
- Form/co-ordinate, optical, vision instruments (703)
- Gauges, Indicators and Instruments (440)
- Data loggers (422)
- Materials testing equipment (421)
- Telecomms/network test equipment, software etc (154)
- Testing and Calibration Services and Information (500)
- Testing, analysing and monitoring equipment (1,222)
-
Electrical and Electronic Equipment Design (4,160)
- Batteries, chargers and circuit protection (555)
- Connectors, Terminals, Busbars, Slip Rings (679)
- Enclosures and Equipment Cooling Fans (709)
- Knobs, Handles and Enclosure Hardware (420)
- PCs and Embedded Systems (798)
- Electrical and Electronic Subassemblies (369)
- Electrical and Electronic Components (630)
-
Materials and Processing (2,963)
- Materials and Processing (5)
- Materials and components (2,215)
- Rapid Prototyping (458)
- Materials processing and testing (285)
-
Engineering Industry News, Resources (6,093)
- Engineering Industry News, Resources (4)
- Engineering Business News, Views (388)
- Engineering Exhibitions, Events (562)
- Engineering Conferences (425)
- Engineering Seminars (400)
- Engineering Industry Developments, Awards (633)
- Engineering Guides, Newsletters (349)
- Engineering Recruitment, Employment (219)
- Engineering Training Courses (433)
- Engineering Education, Resources, Standards (838)
- Engineering Industry Reports, Surveys (597)
- Electronic Resources for Engineers (278)
- Health and Safety Legislation (402)
- Health and Safety Strategy, Risk Assessment (113)
- Health and Safety Consultancy, Software (175)
- Health and Safety Events, Training, News (277)
-
Powertrain Design (3,598)
- Powertrain Design (2)
- Bearings (939)
- Chains and belts (326)
- Gears, brakes, couplings and engines (1,441)
- Hydraulic Components (471)
- Lubricants (418)
-
Capital Equipment (3,387)
- Capital Equipment (1)
- Manufacturing Machinery and Plant Equipment (468)
- Production line blowers and fans (62)
- Compressors and Air Treatment (510)
- Electronics Manufacturing, Tools, Instruments (192)
- Electrical hardware (131)
- Machinery and Production Equipment (1,093)
- Robotics, Handling and Storage (930)
-
Sensors (7,080)
- Sensors (8)
- Accelerometers and Vibration Sensors (427)
- Loadcells, Force Sensors, Torque Sensors (699)
- Pressure sensors (621)
- Flowmeters and Flow Sensors (618)
- Level Sensors and Leak Detectors (527)
- Linear Position Sensors (399)
- Rotary Position, Tilt and Angular Sensors (546)
- Proximity Sensors (700)
- Gas, Chemical, Radiation, Magnetic Sensors (284)
- Humidity and Environmental Sensors (152)
- Temperature sensors (612)
- Vision and Colour Sensors (1,384)
- Barcode Sensors (103)
- Valves, Pumps, Process Hardware (3,623)
