By the time a car engine has long since been on the scrap heap, our large-bore diesel engines, with 8,000 operating hours per year, are just getting started. Because our products are so long-lasting and are used for 30 years or more on ships and in power plants, retrofits play a major role in the after-sales business of MAN Diesel & Turbo. Retrofits take the form of packages that are specially coordinated for our diesel engines. They also make state-of-the-art technologies available for engines that have already been in operation for years. By doing this, we create advantages for our customers and secure their investment in our products. Retrofits have grown in importance especially over the last few years because of the higher price of fuel and lubricant combined with stricter environmental legislation resulting among other things in higher fees for waiting times in ports in case of non-compliance. The fact that our customers wish to fulfil their responsibility towards the environment is also playing an ever more important role in awarding orders. We take this wish seriously and are developing customer-specific retrofit packages that also make older engines fit for the future. However, installation of new technology for customers must always be economically viable and the investment must pay off within a reasonable time.

For retrofits for large-bore diesel engines, our developers use various components that boost the efficiency of the propulsion systems while at the same time lowering emissions. Low-emission slide valves, for instance, are also available as retrofits for older engines, enabling them to comply with current emissions thresholds. For dual-fuel engines, retrofit packages offer the option of using different fuels such as heavy oil, bio-fuel or natural gas. One key point is also the reduced consumption of expensive lubricant – with the Alpha Lubricator, we have launched a top product for two-stroke engines onto the market and already installed 600 of them as retrofits. With turbocharger retrofits, we increase the efficiency of the charging process, which has a positive impact on the engine’s operating values.

Exhaust gas after-treatment systems, e.g. for reducing NOx emissions, offer considerable potential for the environment are also available. To this end, we offer the installation of SCR catalytic converters [LINK] which, due to the limited space available on board many ships, requires careful engineering. Our specialists are working assiduously on propeller retrofits, too. Modern propeller blades save fuel by five to ten percent thanks to their new design. This reduces emissions accordingly and extends the propulsion system’s service life.

All retrofit projects contribute towards sustainability, since these technology “upgrades” add further years to the extremely long lifespan of our diesel engines and ensure their reliability for years to come. By doing all this, we are able to create advantages for our customers and make our contribution to propagating the use of environmentally friendly technologies.