Leading water-lubricated bearings and seals innovator Thordon Bearings has completed the installation of its award-winning TG100 tailshaft seals on a twin-screw passenger vessel.
The retrofit took place during a scheduled drydocking at a Chilean yard in October 2023 and is the Canadian company’s first TG100 reference aboard a Chilean operated vessel.
The 17.5m(57ft), 40-person capacity aluminum hulled Rio Yelcho, operated by Puerto Chacabuco-based Nautilus S.A was fitted with a pair of 88.9mm(3.5in) diameter TG100 seals, supplied by Thordon’s authorized distributor for Chile, Productos Servicios e Ingeniería Ltda(PSeI Ltda).
The TG100 is a mechanical face seal specifically designed for workboats, ferries and fishing vessels operating in clean or abrasive waters. The TG100, which replaced a competing shaft seal, marks a first reference for the award-winning TG100 seal aboard Chilean vessel, although Thordon, along with PSeI Ltda, has been working with the vessel operator for several years.
Aside from unforeseen expenses associated with unplanned seal maintenance and the challenges in procuring replacement parts due to the absence of a local distributor, the operational profile of the vessel also favoured the adoption of the more robust Thordon sealing solution.
Thordon and PSeI are gearing up for increased market demand from the country’s ferry and workboat sectors as operators look to source more reliable and environmentally sustainable propulsion systems, in line with regulatory requirements.