Case Study: Song Long Engineering Service Co. Ltd. improves bulk lightering operations with Cummins vessel engines

Bulk Shipping and Lightering

Song Long Engineering Service Co. Ltd., a Ho Chi Minh City-based marine engineering and vessel supplier, needed a reliable propulsion solution for a new series of shallow-draft lightering ships operating on the crowded Saigon River and nearby waterways. Their challenge was to move bulk cargo such as coal and cement efficiently through shallow inland waters, low bridges, and heavy river traffic while keeping the vessels safe and practical for short-haul cargo transport.

Cummins supplied the vessels with KTA19-M3 marine engines rated at 600 HP, paired with 6:1 reduction gears, giving the 60-by-12-meter ships the power needed to carry 1,520-ton loads. The Cummins solution proved well matched to the operating conditions: the engine power was more than adequate for the slow-speed river routes, the double-hull design helped maintain a limited air draft on empty return voyages, and the vessels became an important part of developing river shipping in the region.

Song Long Engineering Service Co. Ltd