Hydrex in Underwater Propeller Fix
Hydrex performed propeller croppings on two vessels berthed in Algeciras, close to the Spanish Hydrex office.
The first operation was carried out on a 174-meter LPG tanker, the second one on a 230-meter bulk carrier.
Both ships had suffered torn off pieces, severe cracks and bents on all four propeller blades. An on-site repair solution was needed to restore the propeller’s balance with minimal loss of efficiency. Cropping the blades was the only option. A team was mobilized from the Hydrex office in Algeciras, in both cases, to restore the damaged blades to as close to their original condition as possible and rebalance the propeller.
The same procedure was followed on the LPG tanker as well as the bulk carrier. After the equipment arrived at the vessel’s location the team started the underwater operation with a detailed inspection of the propeller. They then used the information acquired during the inspection to calculate and determine the correct measurements needed to crop the propeller blades. Once the proposal was approved by the class, the divers cropped the blades. When the cropping was complete, the blades were polished to make sure that any remaining loss of efficiency would be minimal.
