CIMAC plot problems

Almost 80% of failures in Sulzer engines are of hot components, while the equivalent figure for MAN B&W is over 45%. These figures come from an analysis of the database set up by the CIMAC Users Working Group and were shown at the recent Motor Ship Propulsion Conference.

Details are held of 826 engines, around 350 of which are low-speed ? roughly 225 MAN B&W, 50 Sulzer and 60 Mitsubishi. Problems occurred on around two-thirds of MAN B&W engines and on the MC range about 20% of these concerned cracked liners. Poor liner condition accounted for 14%, while 11% was down to main bearing failure.

While the sample is too small to be statistically representative, around half of the Sulzer engines had encountered problems. Of those almost 80% involved the hot components, and around 14% were with the running gear.

In Mitsubishi engines (also a small sample) the injection system caused most problems (about 23%), followed by running gear at just under 20%, with hot components down to around 17%.