I chatted recently with Wayne Goldman, VP-Sales for Glacier Bay, one of the preeminent companies in the growing diesel-electric propulsion market for recreational boats. We talked about current projects, boats soon to come down the ways and had a look ahead to some new technology headed in our direction.

Glacier Bay’s diesel-electric products are based on the company’s proprietary OSSA Powerlite technology, which uses an integrated approach to applying diesel-electric solutions. As an example, a typical Glacier Bay installation will include not only the variable-speed generator, but the central buss controllers, power management software and interface, and the high-efficiency drive motors.

Installations to date have involved sail and power catamarans, where some of the diesel-electric’s advantages instantly shine. Goldman says the cat designers are jumping on the bandwagon because they start out the design process with a requirement for two propulsion engines and a generator. In most cases, they can reduce that to just two generators, sometimes even one. In addition to saving weight, Goldman said, the designers can move the generators to locations where they better suit the weight and balance equation.

More recently, high-end systems are being installed in full-displacement, long-range trawler-style boats, with several generators and high-power propulsion units. Goldman says Glacier Bay is adding new customers at a rate of almost one per week, as more and more customers look toward the advantages of a diesel-electric setup. Sea trials are commencing presently with a 72’ trawler, being built in Canada. This boat has five Glacier Bay 200kW generators and two big 800HP propulsion motors. This truly is an electric boat. The generators provide HVDC power for bow and stern thrusters, stabilizers, as well as air conditioning, refrigeration, water heating and the cooktop.

Goldman says one great advantage of diesel-electric is that it can adapt to continuously developing technology. For example, in the DSe Hybrid being built by Island Pilot, the Glacier Bay systems manage electricity from solar panels, battery banks and the diesel generators. If new, more efficient solar panels are developed, it’s a plug-and-play upgrade. If new biofuels are developed for the diesels, the petroleum requirements are even further reduced.

I asked Goldman about future applications of the high-efficiency generators and propulsion units. He said Glacier Bay will adapt the systems to pod-type propulsion in the next year, and the year after will take the next step to full azimuthing pod drives, which means that within 2-3 years, the recreational boating industry will have access to the same propulsion in use on the largest ships in the world.