Emma Mærsk

"Emma Mærsk" is a container ship owned by the A. P. Moller-Maersk Group. When she was launched, "Emma Mærsk" was the largest container ship ever built, and as of 2008 the longest ship in use. [The largest ship ever built was the supertanker "Knock Nevis", but now she serves as a floating storage and offloading unit (FSO).] Officially, "Emma Mærsk" is able to carry around TEU|11,000|first=yes according to the Maersk company's method of calculating capacity, [cite press release | url = http://media.maersk.com/en/PressReleases/2006/namegiving+L203.htm | title = Namegiving of newbuilding L 203 | date = 2006-12-08 | publisher = Odense Steel Shipyard] which is about 1,400 more containers than any other ship is capable of carrying.Harvard reference | Surname=Koepf| Given=Pam | Title=Overachievers We Love | Journal=Popular Science | Volume=269 | Issue=6 | Year=2006 | Page=24]

Capacity

By normal calculations, "Emma Mærsk's" cargo capacity is significantly greater than the listed capacity — between TEU|13,500|first=yes [cite web | url = http://www.portofrotterdam.com/en/news/newsservice/12092006_10.jsp | title = Big, bigger, biggest | date = 2006-09-12 | author = Alexander Bakker | publisher = port of Rotterdam] and TEU|15,200. [ [http://www1.axsliner.com/WWW/research_files/EMMA_MAERSK_capa_estimate.pdf Emma Maersk (PDF)] ] The difference between the official and estimated numbers is because Maersk calculates the capacity of a container ship by weight (in this case, 14 tons/container) that can be carried on a vessel. For the "Emma Mærsk", this is 11,000 containers. [Cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/suffolk/6117080.stm | title = Giant Christmas goods ship docks | publisher = BBC News | date = 2006-11-05] Other companies calculate the capacity of a container ship according to the maximum number of containers that can be put on the ship, independent of the weight of the containers. This number is always greater than the number calculated by the Maersk method.

History

in Denmark. In June 2006, during construction, welding work caused a fire within her superstructure. [Cite web | title = Emma Maersk Fire | publisher = gCaptain | url = http://gcaptain.com/maritime/blog/emma-maersk-from-shipyard-fire-to-world-records/] It spread rapidly through the accommodation section and bridge.

"Emma Mærsk" was named in a ceremony on 12 August 2006. The ship is named after Emma Mærsk, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller's late wife. The ship set sail on her maiden voyage on 8 September 2006 at 02:00 hours from Aarhus, calling at Gothenburg, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, Algeciras, the Suez Canal, and arrived in Singapore on 1 October 2006 at 20:05 hours.

"Emma Mærsk" departed Singapore the next day, headed for Yantian in Shenzhen. She sailed on to Kobe, Nagoya, arrived at Yokohama on 10 October 2006, and returned via Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Tanjung Pelepas, the Suez Canal, Felixstowe, Rotterdam, Bremerhaven, Gothenburg and finally to Aarhus, with arrival at that port 11 November 2006 at 16:00 hours. [Cite web | title = Sailing schedule | publisher = Maersk Line | url = http://sailingschedules2.maerskline.com/MaerskSailingSchedulesCustomerWeb/CustomerWebServlet?ssaction=com.saf.ss.cust.action.search.SearchSchedulesByVesselAction&liveworking=LIVE&pageAction=search&isWildcardSearch=true&searchVessel=EMMA+MAERSK&searchVoyageNumber=&searchFromDate=01-Mar-2005&searchToDate=14-Jan-2010 ]

She appeared in headlines prior to Christmas 2006, when she was dubbed SS Santa because she was bound for the United Kingdom from China loaded with Christmas goods. The return journey after Christmas 2006 saw her return to southern China, loaded with UK waste destined for recycling in China. [Cite web | title = China must say no to imported waste | author = Gaoming Jiang | date = 2007-02-08 | publisher = Chinadialogue | url = http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/756-China-must-say-no-to-imported-waste]

Her appearance in the news prompted China's State Environmental Protection Administration to promise to "closely watch the progress of investigation into the dumping of garbage in south China by Britain". It added that no official approval had been given to any company in the area to import waste. [Cite press release | title = SEPA Warns of Crackdown on Foreign Waste Imports | publisher = Chinese State Environmental Protection Administration | date = 2007-01-25 | url = http://english.sepa.gov.cn/zwxx/xwfb/200701/t20070125_100228.htmDead link|date=October 2008]

Sailing schedules

"Emma Maersk"'s regular round trip involves Ningbo, Xiamen, Hong Kong (westbound), Yantian (westbound), Tanjung Pelepas (westbound), Algeciras (westbound), Rotterdam, Bremerhaven, Algeciras (eastbound), Tanjung Pelepas (eastbound), Yantian (eastbound), Hong Kong (eastbound) and Ningbo.

Engine and the environment

The "Emma Mærsk" is powered by a Wärtsilä-Sulzer 14RTFLEX96-C engine, currently the world's largest single diesel unit, weighing 2,300 tons and capable of 109,000 horsepower (82 MW). [Cite web | title = Inside The Engine Room Of The Emma Maersk | publisher = gCaptain | url = http://gcaptain.com/maritime/blog/emma-maersk-engine/ ] The ship has several features to protect the environment. This includes recycling the exhaust, mixed with fresh air, back into the engine for reuse. This not only increases efficiency by as much as 12% but also reduces engine emissions. Instead of biocides, used by much of the industry to keep barnacles off of the hull, a special silicone-based paint is used. This increases the ship's efficiency by reducing drag while also protecting the ocean from biocides that may leak. The silicone paint covering the part of the hull below the waterline is credited for lowering the water drag enough to save 1200 tons of fuel per year.

Notes

References

* [http://www.maersk.com/NR/rdonlyres/53C3A206-24BD-4290-9FE9-417971C4A710/0/EmmaMærskL203FactSheetUK.pdf Mærsk fact sheet]

External links

* [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=odense&ie=UTF8&t=k&om=0&ll=55.469696,10.532198&spn=0.003479,0.016823&z=16&iwloc=addr A satellite image of the Emma Maersk or one of her sister ships from Google Maps]

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