JOHN’S ENGINE ROOM TOUR –

I submitted a request up the line for a tour of Zuiderdam’s Engineering spaces. Two days later, I received a printed card inviting me to a private tour conducted by the ship's Chief Engineer. Four other people were on the tour.

Captain Bart Rodenrijs, Chief Engineer, trained at Marine Engineering Technical College in Amsterdam. He has been at sea for 44 years, 39 of which have been with Holland America, HAL.

Captain Rodenrijs met us at the midship’s atrium on Deck 1. Then, he personally conducted a thorough, almost three-hour tour through the entire Engineering Space. It covered more compartments and details than I anticipated. The Engineering Department has a total of 90 staff. An interesting note: The Engineering Department falls under the management and direction of the parent company of HAL in the Netherlands. In contrast, the Hotel and Food operations fall under the HAL division in Seattle, WA.

Aware of the noise level in a ship’s engine room, I did not wear my hearing aid. Even with the noise level, I still heard and understood 99% of his talk. Regretfully, I did not take my camera. On another cruise ship, I recently asked about photography in critical spaces and was told I was not allowed to take photos. Two others on the tour had cameras and emailed their pictures, so I thank Ricky and Margot for their gracious sharing.

CONTROL ROOM,

The Engineering Control Room was brightly lit, spotlessly clean, and full of computer screens and diagrams of every possible system, machine, switch, valve safety alarm light, and/or gauge. An Engineering Officer at a control console greeted us with a smile and a wave, but he quickly returned to his duties of monitoring the systems. Chief Engineer Rodenrijs explained that every system, down to the most minor components, is monitored with alarms displayed on the wall behind the console in the middle of the room.

Diesel Engines,

As shown on the computer display on the wall, there are five Diesel engines, each with 16 cylinders. Each cylinder develops 1,000 hp. Each of these engines is as large as a “small house.” These engine turn generators generating electricity totaling 11,000 volts, which is stepped down as needed to 2,000, 240, and 120 volts. Monitoring systems on each cylinder display the temperature and efficiency of the 16 cylinders in the five Diesel engines. When standing next to the Diesel engines, the noise and vibration are nothing short of exhilarating. It reminded me of standing on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier when jets were launching using full afterburners. You feel it down to your core. Sheer Power!

Jet Engine,

As seen in the picture below, the “backup up” Jet Turbine Engine is housed in a separate compartment with fireproof doors. Unlike the brightly painted green Diesel engines, the Jet Turbine is all polished stainless steel. It looks like a jet engine and is not unlike what you find under the wing of any military or civilian aircraft engine if the engine cover is removed. The difference is that instead of hot gas from an aircraft exhaust powering the aircraft, the Zuiderdam’s jet engines turn a shaft to generate electricity like the Diesel engines. Chief Engineer Rodenrijs explained that, though very powerful, the jet turbine burns a great deal of fuel, is costly to run, and is used only for backup or emergency use.

AZIPODS,

Unlike ships of “old,” the Zuiderdam and many other modern ships are powered by two AZIPODS. They are basically large electric outboard motors, like those mounted on a small recreational boat. The motor for the AZIPODS is submerged in a housing under the ship and can rotate 360 degrees to drive forward and steer the ship in turns. It can drive the ship in reverse by rotating half a circle or moving the vessel sideways with a quarter turn to Port or Starboard. A sign on the AZIPODS indicated 2,000 Volts, “That is a huge electric motor!”

Bow Thrusters,

Zuiderdam has three Bow thrusters for lateral maneuvering, especially when mooring to a pier. The thrusters have 3,400 Bhp and reduce the need for tugboats.

Stabilizers,

Two stabilizers, aircraft-wing-like structures, fold inside the hull below the waterline on Zuiderdam's port and starboard sides when not in use. They provide greater stability when needed due to weather conditions. They tilt through automatic controls based on wave action. The hydraulic cylinders that extend the stabilizers are massive.

Fuel,

The Zuiderdam burns a cheaper fuel than Diesel, or Diesel if needed. They are used interchangeably according to availability. Our tanks were full when we left Fort Lauderdale, holding approximately 800,000 gallons of combined fuel. Then, with a smirk, the Chief Engineer reported that when we reached Sydney, we were almost empty. From how he smiled, I am satisfied he was telegraphing the thought that he had a safety reserve of fuel. One of the days in Sydney, there was an oil barge alongside most of the day. I also remember that we received some fuel from a barge in one of the South American ports—perhaps part of his safety margin of fuel.

Service and Maintenance,

Like the Engine control room, every space in the Engineering Department was spotlessly clean, with no tools or items left adrift. Spare parts, pipes, and metal parts are neatly and securely tucked away in every space and void available. Some of the spaces we visited were tight quarters, and the clearance between various pieces of equipment was minimal, with only room for those of a smaller frame body. In one space, two new compressors were partway through installation. The person in Blue Coveralls was about five feet tall, yet she was using a wrench as long as my forearm. Two new compressors were partway through installation during our tour. Cutting and welding were involved in facilitating the footprint of the latest equipment. The two new compressors were shipped overseas to Zuiderdam. The ship repairs, rebuilds, and manufactures new parts in its machine shop to keep the ship on schedule.

The morale I witnessed proves that the department's management knows how to do the job and treat the crew well. Happy crew! The mission is accomplished. We visited the machine shop with two large engine lathes, a drill press, and a large power hacksaw. The day before was Valentine's Day, and the Engineering Department hosted a party for ship’s company after hours in the machine shop. Some of the decorations were being dismantled as we toured the space. They had a Disc jockey with music, refreshments, and games. The crew members are on contracts for 3, 4, and 6 months and work every day, with a few hours off in port as their job allows. HAL makes every effort to keep these crew members as happy and content as possible. I believe they succeed.

The uniforms I notice in the engineering spaces and on the ship, help identify crews’ positions. The Chief Engineer wears a white shirt with Four Gold Stripes on his shoulder boards, and next are Engineering Officers in white coveralls, formal college-level training for that level. Next are Blue, who are assistants, and the Red and Gray coveralls, who are wipers and general maintenance and repair.

Ship’s Boiler,

The ship’s boiler makes all its fresh water for the ship when we’re at sea. It also heats the fuel and provides heat for cabins if the ship is not in the tropics, as we are on this cruise. They pull a vacuum on the water so it will boil at 100 degrees F, saving energy. The distilled water does not taste like the water we are accustomed to drinking, so minerals are added along with the same amount of chlorine that city water departments add to their water from ground sources.

Centrifuges,

The lube oil and fuel go through centrifuges to clean before use.

Bioreactor,

Black water from the ship’s toilets passes through a bioreactor, where tiny organisms break down the solids to a fraction of their original volume. The water is further treated and filtered until it meets the drinking water standards, but this clean water is returned to the sea. The remaining solids are burned in the ship’s boiler.

The Gray water is also treated and filtered, tested and returned to the sea. In many ports worldwide, inspectors come aboard and test these waters to ensure the ship meets the required standards.

Garbage Room,

This operation was interesting and quite labor-intensive. All garbage is sorted by hand. Food garbage from the kitchen and dining rooms, including bones that are ground, are processed similarly to Black Water. Wet food is processed until there is nothing but a solid that is burned or water that is returned to clean standards and discharged to the sea. Dry garbage is dumped on a large table and sorted by hand. Aluminum cans and plastic are compacted and sold as recycling in port. The money going toward crew entertainment. Paper and other dry items are divided between half a dozen barrels. No material is dumped into the sea. In addition to normal trash dumped on the table. I saw a saltshaker and a sugar dispenser. I trust that they will not retrace their steps to the dining room since these items have already made the journey to the garbage room!

Exhaust Scrubbers,

To clean the exhaust gases, fresh seawater is sprayed down into the exhaust fumes going up the stack, reducing unnecessary pollutants in the air. The scrubber water is filtered and then returned to the sea.

Our tour included other spaces:

Dry storage,

The dry storage spaces were near the engineering Department. These spaces hold rice, flour, cooking oil, and other items that do not require cold storage. Rows and rows of storage lockers were packed full. For whatever reason, items that come aboard on wooden pallets are moved to aluminum pallets before they go into ship storage spaces.

Bakery,

As a bonus, we looked inside the bakery. A large oven occupies a major space in the footprint. A six-foot-tall rolling shelf filled with wonderful-smelling bread and pastries enclosed in plastic wrap, was ready to move to the dining room.

My Opinion:

My closing thought about the Engineering spaces and the Zuiderdam in general is that the world would be a better place if companies, cities, states, and countries were managed as efficiently.