Technical Question About The Engines

Chief Engineer Frank de Vries

Howard Bardsley III sent us an e-mail asking why Eurodam has four 12-cylinder and two 8-cylinder engines. Blog Board member and Chief Engineer Frank de Vries gave us such an interesting answer, we thought we’d share it with Howard and everybody else:

The reason that we have four 12-cylinder engines and two 8-cylinder engines is that this configuration gives us more flexibility in regards to the amount of power that we want to generate. Depending on the speed of the ship we need more or less power.

A diesel engine has the optimum efficiency when it runs around 85 percent load. Therefore, we always try to run the engines at that particular load while we are underway.

Having 12- and 8-cylinder engines gives us the possibility to make different combinations, e.g., (2 x 12 + 1 x 8), or (3 x 12 + 1 x 8), or (2 x 12 + 2 x 8), etc. This way, we can always run our engines at 85 percent load and the steps to increase or decrease are not as big as if we only had 12-cylinder engines.

The power output of the engines is 1,000 kilowatt per cylinder, so the total would be 64,000 kilowatts, or 64 megawatts, which equals approximately 85,000 horsepower. That is the maximum load, however, we normally run at 85 percent of that.

The Azipods have a power of 17.6 megawatts each, so a total of 35.2 megawatts, which equals almost 47,000 horsepower.

Meet the Electricians

Left to right: Iain Searle, second electrician; Andrew Merriott, second electrician; Victor Torino, electrical technician, and Wilfredo Peralta, electrical technician.

Blog Board member Ed van Weijen sent us this photo of his team engraving televisions and DVD players intended for the crew cabins.

The First to Greet Eurodam at Rotterdam

When Eurodam sails into Rotterdam, Piet Sinke will be one of the first persons who “meet” the ship. Piet lives at the Berghaven, the small port of Hook of Holland right at the mouth of the river Nieuwe Waterweg. If possible, Piet will board either a pilot tender or the lifeboat stationed at the Berghaven, just opposite the front door of his nice home.

Piet Sinke stands in front of his house at the Berghaven in Hook of Holland.

Piet is founder and editor of a dedicated maritime newsletter. His “Daily Collection of Maritime Press Clippings” is, as the name explains, a compilation of daily maritime news collected on the Internet with contributions of many correspondents who send over a hundred photographs a day to Hook of Holland by e-mail. Daily, over 4,200 copies of the news clippings are send all over the world.

Before running his own “newspaper” Piet worked as salvage master for the famous Dutch salvage company Smit. For instance, he was involved in the salvage of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk.

Knowing Piet, he will make a special edition about Eurodam. He is already looking forward to it.

“I love to see the new ship,” he said. “I hope to have a chance to look around.’’

Piet is a little bit worried about Sunday, June 29, the day that Eurodam will sail into Rotterdam for the first time. Normally, cruise ships enter the port of Rotterdam very early in the morning, when most people are still sleeping. This time, however, Eurodam will enter the port at about 8 a.m. Although eight o’clock is still early for a Sunday morning, a huge crowd is expected at the most western place of the Netherlands.

“I hope that it will not be that crowded that I cannot leave my own house,” said Piet.

His worries are not imaginary. A couple of years ago, when Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 arrived for the first time in Rotterdam, it was chaos in Hook of Holland, both in the morning and the evening when the ship left the port. Hook of Holland is only a small town, which can by reached by car over a single route. When thousands of people come to “the Hook,” a traffic jam occurs.

Piet Sinke says Holland America Line can expect crowds like this to line shore when Eurodam enters and leaves the Port of Rotterdam.

Afterward it was estimated that the visit of QM2 attracted more than 750,000 people, all the way from Hook of Holland to the city center and the other way around when the ship left port.

You have been warned!

The Atrium: A Virtual Tour

We just received this virtual video of Eurodam’s atrium. It’s a far cry from some of the earlier views we’ve seen of this central area of the ship just last February. It was only last month that we posted a photo of the chandelier being installed.

The Neptune Lounge

Blog Board member Ed van Weijen has been busy snapping photos around the ship for Eurodamnews.

Here’s the latest image of the Neptune Lounge. It’s come a long way since the first peek we posted back in October when the room was just metal and wires.

Located on Rotterdam Deck, the Neptune Lounge is a private lounge reserved for the use of deluxe verandah suite or penthouse verandah suite guests where they can relax, socialize and enjoy the personalized service of a concierge.

Views Around the Ship

Blog Board member Ed van Weijen snapped these photos of various areas on board. The ship is looking good.

The reception desk always sees a lot of guest traffic.

The slots are in the casino and ready for action.

Here’s a view of the show lounge taken from the stage. It looks like they’ve started installing the seating. Click here to see older photos of the show lounge.

Guests will be able to see their formal portraits on display in the photo gallery.

Will It Be Tivoli Gardens or Hermitage Museum?

The shore excursion desk looks like it’s nearly ready to take bookings. Remember what it looked like when we posted this photo back in December, and the first look in October? What a difference! Thanks to Blog Board member Ed van Weijen for taking the time to send us this recent image.

Cranes Give Eurodam a Lift

We have new exterior photos of Eurodam taken just yesterday by Blog Board member Chief Officer Andre van Schoonhoven. Coincidentally, the photos illustrate something Captain Jeroen van Donselaar described in his latest “Captain’s Log” post:

The ship is berthed portside alongside the fitting-out quay and there are three massive cranes almost constantly putting loads of materials on board and taking garbage off. Two of these cranes can reach the highest decks. An additional crane is positioned near the stern to service the temporary loading platforms that are attached to certain rear-facing balconies.

These are the two cranes that can reach the highest decks.

Here is the aft crane and the temporary loading platforms.

We hope these photos will satisfy avid reader Ben’s recent request for some new exterior shots of the ship.

Also, be on the lookout for an update of the header photo …

Captain’s Log: First Impressions of Eurodam

Capt. Jeroen van Donselaar

This is the end of my first week at the Fincantieri Yard in Marghera. Time has gone fast and I have learned a lot about the Eurodam.

I have met all of the Holland America Line officers that are part of the newbuilding team as well as several inspectors of CCS, which is Carnival Corporate Shipbuilding, the organization that does the actual quality control and acceptance of areas delivered. And not to forget, of course, the Fincantieri top brass.

There is a very friendly atmosphere here and everyone has gone out of their way to make the “commandante” feel welcome.

I am happy to report that the Eurodam will be absolutely stunning both on the inside and on the outside! I had seen some computer generated artist’s impressions and designs before, but one has to see the real thing in order to fully appreciate the architects’ vision. In particular, the darker woods and laminates that have been used in the guest staterooms are gorgeous.

The feel of the ship is very spacious, and with the redesigned layouts of main public areas on decks 2 and 3, the natural “flow” has been improved. The views from the Tamarind and Canaletto restaurants as well as from the Crow’s Nest — which is higher up than on Vista — are amazing.

The ship at this time is in various stages of completion. Some areas, such as the Main Dining Room, are as good as finished, others such as the Northern Lights Disco, are not so advanced. But these are relatively small public spaces and Fincantieri and the subcontractors should be able to complete these well on time.

The ship is berthed portside alongside the fitting-out quay and there are three massive cranes almost constantly putting loads of materials on board and taking garbage off. Two of these cranes can reach the highest decks. An additional crane is positioned near the stern to service the temporary loading platforms that are attached to certain rear-facing balconies.

There are hundreds of yard workers on board and there is activity in many areas. Some areas that have been finished are now protected with plastic and plywood, so it is difficult to see what the end product will look like.

A whole army with vacuum cleaners, buckets and mops is also on board to clean up some building dust, so to speak!

There are a number of Hotel Department crew at the yard as well, and they have made a start with loading owner’s supplies into some of the lockers and storerooms that have been delivered and accepted already.

The wheelhouse, or bridge, as we prefer to call it, is nearly completed too. There is some ceiling paneling left to be installed as well as some trim around the windows. Similar to the staterooms, a darker wood has been used for the back wall and the cabinets, which is very pleasing to the eye. The consoles have the usual green color and most of the navigational equipment is situated in the same locations as it is on the Vista ships.

For the most part the same manufacturers as on the Vista ships have been used for equipment such as the radars, GPS, speed logs and depth-sounders. Even the controls for the Azipods and the bow thrusters look reassuringly familiar!

From the centerline and the bridge wings the views and lines of sight are the same as on Vista, the exception is the “bubble” on Deck 4 forward, the additional accommodation which houses the gym for the officers and crew as well as the officer’s lounge and additional storage spaces. Although the Eurodam is higher than the Vista, this is not so apparent from the bridge.

Gift Shops Nearly Ready for Business

Blog Board member Ed van Weijen sent us this updated image of the gift shops. Back in January we gave an rundown on the redesigned shopping promenade. It won’t be long before they begin stocking the displays with name-brand merchandise.