Cer tificate of Competency - 5

Motor Engineering Knowledge

Manoeuvring Procedures
Preparation prior Arrival
Normally it requires two hour preparation if the vessel has to manoeuvre in diesel oil or one hour
preparation if the vessel is manoeuvring in fuel oil.
For main engines manoeuvring in diesel oil, follow these steps:


Shut off steam to the fuel oil heater to bring down the fuel temperature.



Start the (second) (standby) generator and take on load. (Standby generator should be
tried out and kept ready)



Reduce ME RPM (at least 1rpm/minute) gradually from full RPM to manoeuvring RPM in
a span of one and half hour.



Cylinder lubricator feed should be increased (if not on auto).



In the meantime, when the fuel oil temperature is about 90oC, change over the main
engine consumption from fuel oil to diesel oil.



Start the D.O purifier and keep the service tank full.



Stop the fresh water generator.



Flash the service boiler if provided and keep ready for use.



Start standby steering gear motor.



Before standby, the main engine should have run at least half an hour on diesel for entire
system to be flushed of fuel oil. (Before accepting standby, steering gear should be tested
and main engine should be tried out in both directions)



On receiving standby from the bridge, the main engine is gradually brought to STOP in
the next half hour.



(M.E is now tried out in astern and ahead direction and all the same checks are carried
out as before while departing port.)



(Emergency steering is tested.)



Main sea suction is changed from low to high to prevent mud or silt from being sucked in
shallow waters.



Sal-log sensor should be raised up.

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Cer tificate of Competency - 5

Motor Engineering Knowledge

For a vessel manoeuvring in fuel oil, steps 1, 5, 6 (4 and 8) can be omitted. All other steps are
same.
Starting and reversing
If main engine is stopped for a long time, then
(Before manoeuvring,) the main engine must be blown through to check for any accumulated
water or fuel in the combustion chamber and tested in ahead and astern directions.
For carrying out the checks, permission has to be obtained from the bridge to see that the
propeller and gangway are clear of any obstructions. (Some company procedures, require pilots
on board, before trying out main engine, while alongside.) The indicator cocks are kept open.
After obtaining permission, a small blow through is given only on air in either the ahead or astern
direction. If no moisture or fumes emits from the indicator cocks, then all the indicator cocks are
closed.
a. If the engine is already in the ahead direction which can be confirmed by the position of
fuel cam indicators(or by the position of starting air distributor,) then one ahead movement
is given by bringing telegraph lever to Dead slow ahead position. During starting, the
engine first turns on air. When the required RPM is reached (typically 30 or 50), the air
is cut off (and the fuel is released) and the engine picks up on fuel thereafter. This is
done automatically by the pneumatic control system in remote operation (only by bridge
control), or, by the operator whilst on the (ECR or) local emergency station. After a brief
running, the ME is brought to STOP by the bridge command.
b. Now the engine is tried out in the Astern direction. To do this, the telegraph lever is
brought to dead slow astern position. At this time, it is important to check that both fuel
cams and air distributor have reversed. Then the air and fuel kick is given the same way
as for ahead and engine turns in the astern direction.

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Cer tificate of Competency - 5

Motor Engineering Knowledge

During these trials, check for:


Reversing of all fuel cams.



Reversing of air distributor.



Pressure pulsations from all HP pipes of fuel injectors (HP pipes of exhaust valve
actuator.)



Turbocharger oil flow from the pumps onto the bearings.



Emission of smoke from any exhaust pipe or lagging.



Any abnormal knock or noise from the engine.



Uniform warming of all the fuel pumps.



Local overheating of starting air pipe before each cylinder.



Leaks from fuel high pressure pipes or exhaust v/v hydraulic pipes.



Leaks from air coolers or economizers.



Zero position of the fuel racks in STOP condition of the engine.



Variable Injection Timing (VIT) position.



Shaft revolutions during stop condition.

During manoeuvring:
A good watch keeping ensures trouble free manoeuvring. Temperatures of the cooling water,
fuel and lube oil systems of the main engine vary considerably with the changing speed and
load of the engine, especially during stop conditions. Though the automation on some ships
takes care of this, you as a watch keeping engineer must doubly ensure that all parameters
are maintained normal. On many ships, sea water pumps are started and stopped to maintain
main engine system temperatures. Should there be a failure of automation from bridge or engine
control room, you must be able to change over controls to the emergency control stand. The
change over procedures is posted at relevant locations onboard and regular drills ensure that
the emergency control is operational.

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Cer tificate of Competency - 5

Motor Engineering Knowledge

Parameters that require continuous monitoring during manoeuvring are:

1. Main engine jacket cooling water temperature
2. Main engine lube oil temperature and pressure.
3. Control air pressure.
4. All Cylinder exhaust temperatures.
5. Turbocharger inlet/outlet exhaust temperatures
6. Fuel oil temperature and pressure.
7. Fuel service tank levels
8. Main engine bearing temperatures
At port:
After manoeuvring, when the ship is alongside, the bridge gives finished with engine (FWE).
(Or main engine on short notice) The controls are handed over to the engine control room IF
originally under bridge control. Follow these procedures to shut down the plant.
Open the indicator cocks. Inform bridge and blow through the engines. If water or oil sprays out
from any of the indicator cocks, repair work needs to be carried out on the affected unit. (main
engine is to be blown through. So that the exhaust gases remaining inside, some of the cylinders
are blown out. This is done to avoid corrosion of cylinder head and liner, due to the presence of
exhaust gas, which are acidic in nature.)


Stop the main engine auxiliary blowers. This will reduce the load on the generators.



Keep the jacket water pump running and maintain water temperature around 75oC. This
keeps the engine warm.



Keep the lube oil purifiers running to maintain sump oil temperature around 35oC. This
prevents pumps from getting overloaded during start up or cold weather conditions.



Turning gear to engage and engine to be turned and cylinder lubricator manually pumped,
during this time.



Stop the piston cooling and camshaft lube oil pumps (after making sure that there is no
more heat transfer taking place i.e. inlet and outlet temperatures are same)



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If manoeuvring was on heavy oil, then keep the fuel supply(not required) and booster
pumps running to keep the fuel (in the system) pumps warm (by keeping the FO heaters
operational). If manoeuvring was on diesel oil, the fuel pumps can be stopped.

Cer tificate of Competency - 5

Motor Engineering Knowledge



Open the turbocharger and scavenge drains. Check for water leaks. If found leaking,
repair work needs to be carried out.



Main air auto start valve to be shut and drains opened.



Main sea water pump can be stopped if not required at port, or sea water valves of the
lube oil and jacket water coolers can be shut off. This is to prevent contamination of
system oil or jacket water by sea water if there is a tube leak (in case of tubular cooler).



Switch off one main air compressor.



Shut the Main air start valve on the reservoir and drain the main air line. This is a
precautionary measure to prevent the main engine from turning on air if someone
accidentally operates the telegraph lever.



If the load on the bus bar is considerably reduced, one generator can be taken off load
and stopped i.e. if not required at port. Since combustion is (improper) affected at low
loads, it is not a good practice to run generator on low load for a long time.

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