Stone Marine reports that sales of their EcoSeal, which was launched several years ago, have been growing steadily as its many environmentally friendly and operational advantages become widely known and proved in service.
The EcoSeal, which is a main shaft seal, is now being joined by two additional seals designed specifically for the thruster and azipod markets, the EcoSeal T and EcoSeal TS. The new seals have the same benefits as the original EcoSeal and will be of great interest to vessel owners having new ships built, or for those fitting replacement units to existing craft.
The EcoSeal TS is a split version of the EcoSeal T which makes for an easy retro-fitting solution when replacing the more common lip type seals in use today. The T and TS can be fitted into very tight spaces and retro-fitting can be carried out utilising the old seals liners which is a significant cost saver.
Principal among the environmental advantages of fitting EcoSeals is the double barrier design of the units making it virtually impossible for any oil pollution to take place; plus the seals are fully compatible with Bio-Oils in areas of the world where these are a legal requirement.
All EcoSeals are designed to provide a long and trouble free service life with considerable attention having been paid to these requirements in both the original design and the materials used in their manufacture. Capable of operating at depths of up to 50 meters, high temperatures and at high speeds, the design compensates for any thermal expansion, hydraulic pumping or axial movement of the shaft to which they are fitted.
With a design that allows EcoSeals to be fitted to a wide diversity of ship types, from shallow draft dredgers and coastal vessels, to very deep draft heavy lift ships and semi-submersibles the EcoSeal range now provides a state of the art sealing solution to a large number of ship owners.