In the same week, Maricuda has joined forces with Gosport based company STS Defence on a number of high value projects aimed at the marine market. STS Defence are a long established, innovative Engineering and Manufacturing Services provider with over 40 years experience in the Defence & Security, Aerospace and Marine markets.
Maricuda has identified a gap in the market for a particular electronics based product and by using the special skills provided by STS, this particular product can be developed and brought to market. More product information will be released when the programme has been fully defined and final market assessment is complete.

Come and see Maricuda at Seawork International 2012 on Stand SB77, 22nd, 23rd and 24th May, in the Canary Islands Fruit Terminal, 103-104 Herbert Walker Avenue, ABP Southampton Docks, Hampshire, SO15 1HJ

See www.seawork.com and register for free entry.

Maricuda has recently developed significant fuel saving projects which will contribute greatly to reducing the use of fuel by shipping worldwide.

The first of these is specifically aimed at ocean-going cargo ships / freighters such as tankers, LPG and bulk carriers etc. and is suitable for new build or retro-fit applications.

The main difference between the Maricuda system and others already in the marketplace is the control method and foul weather compatibility, which makes other designs an obstacle to progress as opposed to a benefit.

The fuel saving from our system varies according to the type/spec of ship and the weather/sea conditions but is in the order of 26%.

The second of these systems may also be retro-fitted and is very simple to implement. It eliminates the resistance to ships progress through the water caused by boundary layer friction (viscous shear). The shearing force in a dynamic fluid system is denoted as skin friction, and is one of  the main drag forces acting on a body moving through a fluid. Other significant drag forces are form drag and interference drag which when combined become parasitic drag which is the total resistance of the body due to movement though the air and/or water. By eliminating the skin friction of the hull we can save around 16% of the ships fuel burden for every trip under all conditions, not just fair wind.

The Brazilian shipbuilding industry is currently undergoing a rapid expansion and Maricuda Commercial Director Martin Spooner will take a small team and deliver these significant ‘green energy’ projects to this lucrative market over the coming weeks.

In addition to the above, Maricuda have invented a new ‘Ships Lifeboat Launch Mechanism’ which can be retro-fitted to the world’s ocean going liners and cruise ships as well as new build vessels. This system allows lifeboats to be launched simultaneously from both sides of the ship even when heeled up to 45 degrees. The new Maricuda system also allows easy access to the lifeboats by all passengers, not just the young and fit or able-bodied. A large number of passengers on cruise liners are elderly and possibly not in the best physical condition but this would not necessarily prevent them from boarding a lifeboat providing the Maricuda new design was fitted.

As an industry, cruising has a safety record generally regarded as excellent. Over the past two decades, an estimated 90 million passengers have enjoyed a cruise without major incident with the overwhelming majority of deaths on cruise ships being from natural causes or suicides. That is not to say that improvements cannot still be made.

Ship design and passenger safety are very emotive topics and have been the subject of numerous papers, design studies, reports and official investigations over the years, usually provoked by a major incident such as the recent Costa Concordia. However despite the opinions, professional and otherwise, the primary design criteria applicable to the operation of lifeboats is that they should be easy to access and easy to launch, even when the vessel is heeling at 45 degrees.

This demands an intuitive system that is fail-safe and totally foolproof that can be operated by elderly passengers if necessary under the most difficult circumstances, in darkness, in bad weather and in poor visibility.

This is the criteria to which Maricuda has subjected its design process, the result of which will be offered to the maritime industry  and leading cruise ship operators over the coming weeks.

Note: The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) is an international maritime safety treaty that specifies minimum standards for the construction, equipment and operation of ships. In addition to SOLAS, the International Life-Saving Appliance Code (LSA) requires certain emergency equipment to be carried on each lifeboat and life-raft used on international voyages. Modern lifeboats today must also carry an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) and either a radar reflector or Search and Rescue Transponder (SART) to further ensure the safety of cruise passengers.

David Aitken MSc

Maricuda MD and Naval Architect

We are off to a flying start in 2012. The company strategy to expand into the Japanese market has already resulted in no less than four capital projects being offered for possible adoption in Japan.

Further to the presentation of tsunami escape structures to consultants and government departments in Tokyo in September 2011, we are now seeking to make contact with shipyards who possess solid commercial acumen in order that they might benefit from the latest fuel saving technology developed by Maricuda.

These energy saving projects are aimed directly at fuel efficient propulsion and how economic power conversion can be most effectively achieved by large ocean going cargo ships such as tankers, bulk carriers and container vessels.

Maricuda has designed these systems primarily for new build vessels but they can equally be retro-fitted to existing vessels by tailoring the design cases to suit the particular vessel while at sea and completing the structural modifications once in dry dock as part of a pre-planned maintenance programme.

Possible the most significant project in terms of immediate impact on daily life is our tidal energy generator, capable of producing 7MW of usable power from a 1.5knot tidal flow. At these rates approximately 142 units would generate electrical power equivalent to a single nuclear reactor.

The tidal generator has recently been successfully modeled to demonstrate the operating principles at the core of the design and is now locked into the patenting process.

So why trade with Japan, why not our own country, why not Europe which is on our doorstep while Japan is almost 6000 miles away.

Look at the facts. From 1963 to 1980 the percentage of world production of dry cargo and tankers produced by Japanese yards went from 36% to 47%. In the same period the equivalent figures for UK product went from 17.5% to 3.3%. If you are a marine innovation company with ship related technology, where are you most likely to sell it?

Japan is geographically situated in a high tsunami risk area and also has the means to manufacture tsunami resistant structures. It would be totally illogical to offer a large structural shelter to a country that wasn’t at risk or didn’t have the engineering resources to manufacture the structures.

Finally our tidal energy generator design is capable of providing a near constant supply of cheap, clean electricity. With earthquakes and tsunamis representing a daily threat to the integrity of nuclear installations, tidal energy is the only serious alternative in a seismically active area.

Thus the answer to ‘why trade with Japan’ is plain and simple. Maricuda sells technology. We generate new ideas which we then sell to the highest bidder. Japan currently has a need for our products; add to the above a willingness to do business and embrace new ideas and the choice becomes much less difficult to make.

David Aitken MSc

Managing Director

Maricuda

First the Atlantic Challenge. With the UK economy on its knees, the funding for this project is currently being sought from a number of foreign sources. The new technology, which will enable this boat to make the fastest Atlantic crossing ever is too important for Maricuda to ignore, thus the hunt for a sponsor goes on. However, Maricuda is about much more than just an attempt to win the Blue Riband of the Atlantic.

In the last few weeks Maricuda has taken on two new directors so we are now four. Go to www.maricuda.co.uk/maricuda/maricuda-directors to see who’s who. When I first formed Maricuda in 2009 I thought that we would just be making a range of unique manual bilge pumps and a folding anchor. The reality is, we now have over thirty products in various stages of completion and in the coming months we will be selling these products in a variety of different ways in order to create our revenue.

Production Director Mark Cox will be manufacturing the Aquarion MP-160 in its now improved form along with the Stowaway folding anchor and the Triton anchor, which has recently undergone extra development to meet the demands of the rapidly expanding RHIB market. These products will be quickly followed by a smaller version of the Aquarion to be more compatible with the needs of the leisure boat market. There is also a brand new pump currently approaching the end of its development phase which will employ the same operating characteristics as the Aquarion but will fill the space for a highly reliable manual bilge pump which is light and compact to fit smaller craft. There are also a number of Maricuda designed products sat on the shelf waiting to be manufactured externally under the Maricuda brand.

Commercial Director Martin Spooner is presently sourcing specialist companies within the marine industry who would benefit from adopting our designs either to supplement their present range or to introduce a completely new direction to their business. Martin’s extensive business acumen is invaluable in this difficult and demanding role as no two businesses are completely alike and every deal is custom made to suit individual requirements. Ultimately Maricuda will benefit from the sale of these designs by receiving royalty payments of the products manufactured under licence.

Apart from all of the above, Maricuda has a growing number of capital projects in its portfolio. These include the tsunami escape structure which subsequent to a recent visit to Tokyo, is currently being assessed by a leading engineering company in Japan for possible adoption in high risk areas; a revolutionary tidal power generator which size for size is several times more efficient than its closest rival and a deep mine escape system which would have enabled the Chilean miners to have been sitting in their local within an hour of the incident. There are several other products in this group but probably the most relevant to the present global economic nightmare are those relating to the efficiency of ocean going cargo ships. Maricuda has two significant designs, which will have a direct effect on the economy of world trade by making international sea transport more cost-effective.

The reason that we haven’t broadcast our ongoing development work is because we have to maintain client and product confidentiality in order to protect our ideas before taking them to market. Products that Maricuda are currently involved with are notoriously slow to evolve and have to be carefully managed until profits are returned. So the answer is, we have been busy, we are still busy and we are getting busier. Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year to all our friends and supporters.

David Aitken MSc

Managing Director of Maricuda .

Maricuda Ltd is a new marine design and technology company based in Dorset and Hampshire with a naval architect-designed portfolio of marine concepts ready to launch and recently showcased at the International Seawork Exhibition in Southampton.

If you could avoid airports and power across the ocean to New York from Southampton in near total safety in under two days, would you use this service? Maricuda has the technology to do just that and is constructing an 80m ocean-going trimaran, The Atlantic Challenger, powered by twin gas-turbines to secure the Hales Trophy, the Blue Riband of the Atlantic for the UK.

David Aitken, Managing Director of Maricuda has assembled a team of highly skilled engineers to ensure this mathematically proven concept craft is built to an exceptional standard of competence, safety and design. To complement

the team Devonport Yachts of Falmouth has been selected to build the Atlantic Challenger with the assistance of international companies such as General Electric, Furuno, Wartsila and Renk.

When proven, this technology has global implications. Air- freight would become Ocean- freight, International borders could be hastily protected, distant oilfields and wind farms could be rapidly serviced, rescue services be swiftly deployed, passenger ferry services would excel and private superyachts would offer high speed safety as well as luxury.

Finally, the hovercraft is an amazingly versatile form of transport, which is much underrated. Maricuda has now developed the original concept into a truly remarkable craft with more advanced features than was originally thought possible thus ensuring that the next generation hovercraft will have wide civil and military appeal well into the future.

Ever eager to share knowledge, Brunel University has been invited to consider issues that Maricuda is working on such as the effects of stress reversals in marine grade aluminium due to cyclic loading, an assessment of vibration reduction on the human body by comparative monitoring and how the design of high speed craft is limited by cavitation.

Maricuda marine technology is innovative, has a strong vision, is local, has an array of exciting engineering projects and offers entrepreneurial investment opportunities.

For further information visit www.maricuda.co.uk and to read more excellent business articles visit www.bizmag.co.uk