Page 144 - Peterson 85 Years and Going Strong

Top to bottom: One of the first Cat Propulsion azimuth thruster systems went into the Dr. Hank Kaplan tug in 2016; Inside vessel; Exterior
BLAZING THE TRAIL FOR CAT PROPULSION
In 2013, Caterpillar purchased Swedish-based Berg Propulsion and rebranded the product line as Cat Propulsion. Today, they manufacture propel- lers and propeller shafts, azimuth thrusters, tunnel thrusters, marine clutches, and propulsion control systems. In 2016, Wiemann sold Harley Marine the very first Cat Propulsion azimuth thrusters sold for Cat globally. They went into two new tugs being built—the Rich Padden and the Dr. Hank Kaplan. The package also included two Tier 3, Cat 3516 engines. Peterson completed the Cat thruster installation on the new tugs in 2018, and the ves- sels have been operating successfully on the West Coast. “We learned a lot from those first two in- stallations,” says Carpenter, a 2008 graduate of the California Maritime Academy in Vallejo, CA. “We passed along a lot of recommendations to the Cat Propulsion factory in Singapore. Since then, most of them have been integrated into a new version of the thrusters. Peterson can now supply complete integrated packages for vessels, including main en- gines, propulsion systems, and gen-sets. It’s a game changer that has vastly expanded our marine sales and product support opportunity.”
GREEN DIESEL ELECTRIC RESEARCH VESSELS
Back in early 2017, Wiemann teamed up with Cat engineers for their first Tier 4 C32 engine, which was going into a scientific research vessel being built by the National Science Foundation. At that time, that engine hadn’t even been released yet, but they still wanted a quote.“These were variable speed generators with Siemen’s Blue Drive package, so it was a pretty complicated job,” explains Wiemann. “They were building a research vessel for Oregon State University (OSU), with the possibility of two more. No matter where they’re built—either the Gulf Coast or the West Coast—Siemens will buy the Cat package through Peterson.”
142 | PETERSON: 85 YEARS AND GOING STRONG