Fairbanks Morse engines to power Navy’s seventh Expeditionary Sea Base ship.

Fairbanks Morse, an EnPro Industries company (NYSE: NPO), reports that it has been awarded a contract for four main propulsion diesel engines (MPDE) for the U.S. Navy's Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) 7. This is the seventh ship in the Navy's Expeditionary Transfer Dock (ESD)/Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program.

FM MAN 6L48/60 Common Rail (CR) engine (Picture source: Fairbanks Morse)

The engines will be built by Fairbanks Morse at its Beloit, Wisc., manufacturing facility.

“This award brings the total to 12 engines with common rail fuel technology delivered to the US Navy for the ESB program by Fairbanks Morse, which demonstrates their confidence in the reliability of our engines,” said Fairbanks Morse President, Deepak Navnith.

The four FM MAN 6L48/60 Common Rail (CR) engines are each rated at 6,480 kW and will deliver a total of 25,920 kW of installed power. The common rail system technology will deliver improved specific fuel consumption at all operating points, resulting in significant fuel savings over the operational lifetime of the ship. The CR system uses a common high-pressure fuel header, electronic governing systems, high-pressure pumps, electronically controlled fuel delivery, and a new control system to deliver a precise amount of fuel throughout all engine operations.

The ESBs are configured with a 52,000 square-foot flight deck, fuel and equipment storage, repair spaces, magazines, mission planning spaces and accommodations for up to 250 personnel. The ships are capable of supporting multiple missions including Air Mine Counter Measures (AMCM), counter-piracy operations, maritime security operations, humanitarian aid and disaster relief missions, and US Marine Corps crisis response. They will also support
MH-53 and MH-60 helicopters and will be upgraded to support MV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft.

The US Navy has turned to Fairbanks Morse for over 70 years to provide quality diesel engines for marine propulsion and ship service systems. Today, Fairbanks Morse engines are installed on approximately 80 per cent of US Navy ships that have a medium speed power application.

“The CR technology provides fuel savings, improved engine performance and less engine maintenance, all of which will help the ESB ships spend more time at sea,” said Navnith.