CHESAPEAKE, Va., April 14, 2008 – Volvo Penta opened a new facility coined “Boat Engine Integration Center” to media and boat builders today. The Boat Engine Integration Center (BEIC) is the latest step in Volvo Penta’s pursuit to assist independent boat builders’ integration and optimization of Volvo Penta propulsion systems, with a keen eye towards the front-end engineering of process and quality into participating builders’ boats.
“It’s a new approach to business” says Kent Lundgren, Volvo Penta vice president of the Marine Diesel Business Unit. “Rather than selling and shipping our customers engines in a box then hoping for a good outcome; this facility and approach allows us to work with boat builders and their engineers as early as the concept phase.” Lundgren went on to say “By applying science and technology to the application of propulsion and other boat systems, we have the opportunity to create a new level of quality and performance; alleviating the service and warranty burden on our dealers and delighting end customers with a new level of performance, reliability and quality.”
Volvo Penta engineers provide comprehensive engine room design and layout services, including everything from propulsion and auxiliary machinery to fuel, saltwater, and freshwater plumbing and electrical systems. The result for the boat builder is a high integrity engine room design documented for aftermarket service, and increased accessibility creating a more user-friendly environment to properly maintain vessel systems. Ed Szilagyi Sr., BEIC general manger, pointed out that the operation employs personnel with skill sets not typically found in an engine company. “The Boat Engine Integration Center is staffed with experts from the boat building side of the business. We have expertise in fiberglass fabrication, plug and mold making. System electrical design capability and metal fabrication skills typically found in NASCAR garages”
Boat Engine Integration Center – Extraordinary Results with Volvo Penta IPS
With the launch of the industry’s first Pod Propulsion system just four years ago, Volvo Penta IPS, President Clint Moore identified the necessity of the Boat Engine Integration Center.
Moore stated “Volvo Penta IPS is a superior approach to marine propulsion, but without the boatbuilding community embracing its design and performance attributes a great opportunity for a better boating experience might have been missed.”
Moore went on to say “Volvo Penta believed that to change an industry, it had an obligation to collaboratively assist boat builders in the design and integration process. The end result has been extraordinary: large boats and yachts with 15 % faster acceleration, fuel economy 30% better, elimination of smoke and fumes, whisper quiet and the creation of a new generation of confident big boat operators, thanks to Volvo Penta IPS Joystick.”
“None of this would have been possible without 95 visionary boat builders changing the way they interact with their engine supplier by cooperatively designing craft that capitalized on Volvo Penta IPS attributes,” he added.
Volvo Penta’s Boat Engine Integration Center can handle yachts up to 120’ in its Portsmouth facility located at Ocean Marine LLC.
For additional information, please call Susan Lee at Volvo Penta of the Americas. Phone: 757-436-5173; E-mail: susan.lee@volvo.com