The marine and cruise industry is moving more and more toward long-term partnerships. Wärtsilä and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. are leading the way by strengthening their long-term cooperation and extending their service agreement to the year 2028. The original agreement, signed in 2013, spanned 10 years. Under the agreement, Wärtsilä is optimising maintenance efficiency through improved Turbocharger maintenance, providing OEM spare parts, workshop services and preferred technical assistance for 46 Royal Caribbean Cruises’ ships.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL) is the second largest cruise company in the world. The company’s key objective is to provide cruise customers with the best holiday experience, therefore the reliability of the equipment installed on board RCL’s vessels is of the utmost importance. The availability of Wärtsilä’s technical support at all times, everywhere in the world, helps ensure optimal operations for RCL’s vessels.

The partnership is to complement the RCL Global Marine in-house expertise with continuous improvement via various technical innovations and direct access to Wärtsilä’s technical expertise with continuous focus on safety and life cycle cost.

This new agreement between RCL and Wärtsilä, signed in June 2018, covers a total of 196 engines installed in 46 cruise ships, the majority of which sail in the Caribbean and Europe. The largest portion of RCL fleet of vessels is equipped with Wärtsilä’s condition monitoring technology, which transmits real-time information about engine condition to a Wärtsilä Expertise Centre for analysis. This allows for predictive maintenance planning and optimisation of operations.

“When it comes to maintenance planning and operations, the marine and cruise industry is moving more and more toward long-term partnerships. This is a natural direction, as it enables a holistic approach to vessel maintenance. A partner that understands the installation and optimises their condition throughout their lifecycle can help Royal Caribbean to enhance their business. Close cooperation is essential in such partnerships,” says Sean Carey, Service Unit Director North America, Wärtsilä Services.