Cargo Business Newswire

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Thursday, January 12, 2012

Foss patent protects its hybrid tugboat technology

West Coast-based tug and barge company Foss Maritime Company, Aspin Kemp & Associates and their technology partner XeroPoint Energy, announced they received U.S. patent protection for their hybrid propulsion and energy management system.

Foss built the first-ever hybrid tugboat, Carolyn Dorothy, and converted a second such vessel, the Campbell Foss, to a hybrid at its shipyard in Rainier, Oregon.

Foss said in a statement that both tugs utilize the AKA energy management system to provide the company’s trademarked Green Assists to shipping line customers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Foss and its partners claim the hybrid propulsion and energy management system “significantly reduces emissions, fuel consumption and equipment maintenance for marine vessels.”

"Diesel engines are designed to optimally perform at or near their full load design point," said Paul Jamer, vice president of corporate development at AKA.

"However, many marine vessels operate under variable load requirements. Our system provides operators with the flexibility of a diesel electric system and the simplicity of a conventional system, without the cost or footprint of a traditional full diesel electric installation," Jamer said.