Finnpilot's new pilot boat broke records
Finnpilot and his partners developed a fast pilot boat that can drive on the West Coast almost all year round. In addition, it runs safer, more ecologically and with less fuel than its old counterparts.
Last winter, cargo ships coming to Uusikaupunki were met with an amazing sight. Local cutter operators transported pilots at high speed in pilot boats, which are usually only used in summer. Now there was a couple of centimeters of ice. Aluminum-framed pilots usually have no business going to sea in winter, because they cannot survive ice and cold.
However, Uusikaupunki's fast L248 was an exception. It was the result of Finnpilot's and partners' development work: the Watercat 160 Pilot, named as a mid-season boat.
Usually, we fight against the winter with cutter boats, steel men of the seas with steel hulls. Their disadvantage is slowness. Pilots go over 20 knots per hour, Cutters 10. However, cargo ships have to be in a hurry. Finland's foreign trade should move, and pilots should be brought onto cargo ships promptly. In them, the pilots move to the bridge and help the big ships safely to and from the port.
The L248 also underwent one other change compared to its predecessor. A new Scania DI16 079M engine was replaced in the engine room. It surprised even an experienced pilot boat driver with one of its features.
Low consumption
"Scania's 750-horsepower V8 has extremely low consumption, about 4.9 liters per nautical mile," says Finnpilot's responsible cutter operator Olli Huutera .
Huutera is not easily surprised at sea, because he got his first boat at the age of nine. Huutera has operated pilot boats for about 20 years and transported pilots to at least a couple of thousand ships.
Olli Huutera, who drove pilot boats for 20 years, was surprised by Scania's new engine, which reduced fuel consumption to a record low.
In addition, the cutter operator is responsible for boat maintenance and repairs. In the old pilot, it meant almost weekly bowing in the cramped engine room.
"Boats have to work, because if the engine goes out, we can get caught under a bigger vessel. A pilot boarding or leaving a foreign ship at sea may be disembarked if he fails to approach the ship or stay on its side."
After getting a new Scania as the engine for the mid-season boat, Huutera no longer had to crouch in the engine room. During the first six months, only one pump nozzle change was needed.
"My grandfather founded a transport company in 1941 and as a little boy I sat for many kilometers on top of a Scania engine when I was on truck trips. Now there's a Scania engine underneath again," Huutera smiles.
There is new technology inside the reinforced frame
Marine Alutech Oy Ab manufactured a frame for the L248 to protect the propeller, ice reinforcement and a more durable rudder at the Teijo shipyard. Water cooling was abandoned. There is a lot of new technology inside the aluminum frame, and in addition, the windows, railings and deck of the mid-season pilot can be heated.
"It is necessary in the winter, because ten centimeters of ice can form on the deck. In any case, a huge amount of attention has been paid to safety in recent years."
Cutter operator Roope Lautala is satisfied with the work ergonomics of the new vessel.
And how did the "pilot-pilot" survive its first winter?
"We were able to drive the pilot intended as a mid-season boat all winter except for two weeks. This runs on five centimeters of ice."
Huutera was hoping to get a mid-season boat himself, because he remembers having used one. They haven't been produced for a long time, but with the mild winters, at least Finnpilot's L248 seemed to claim its place. Fuel and nature have been saved and pilots can get to cargo ships faster. This is important for the pilotage company, which is halving its carbon footprint by 2030.
The next boats in the series are scheduled to be completed this year, and Finnpilot has an order option for three more boats as well.
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