NEW TUG FOR BLUFF

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19438, 26 October 1925, Page 8

NEW TUG FOR BLUFF

DRIVEN BY SEMI-DIESEL ENGINES. FIRST OF TYPE IN SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. When tho Bluff Harbour Board recently ordered a new tug and passenger vessel from Messrs Vickers, Limited, they opened up a new era in tug design and operation in New Zealand. Tho vessel has many points of interest to engineers and also to the general public. The vessel is designed to serve as a tug and passenger boat, with accommodation for 450 passengers, and will maintain a service between Bluff and Stewart Island, one of the beauty spots of this Dominion, which has hitherto been neglected by the tourist on account of the discomfort of travel across Foveaux Strait. The dimensions of this vesel are 135 feet between perpendiculars. 30 feet beam and 20 £eet moulded depth. The main engines are the well known “Vickers-Petter” type, developing 1200 s.h.p. on twin screws, giving a sea speed of 12 knots. These engines embody the latest design in serui-Diesel plant, realising a very high efficiency, while still retaining their simplicity of design, robustness of construction and low capital and maintenance costs. Each engine will have six cylinders equipped with electric starting appliances. The engines can be started from “cold” in about one minute, and tho vesel can put to sea within a very few minutes, a desirable feature for tug or pilot work. The engines can be reversed from full ahead to full astern in less time than steam engines of the same power. While this will be the first vessel of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, it cannot be looked upon as an experiment. as Messrs Vickers-Petters have already had considerable experience in fitting" tugs with their semi-Dicsel engines in the Old Country, and two of these tugs were supplied to the Egyptian port authorities after passing through exhaustive tests over a year ago-