The Innovators
Volvo Penta offers a look at their hybrid propulsion system and a culture capable of changing boating.
Few innovations have changed boating in recent years quite like IPS propulsion. The efficiency and maneuverability of pods, especially when paired with a joystick has made a video game of docking and helped to usher in a new, younger wave of boaters and allowed others to grow into larger vessels than their skills previously allowed. It’s cliché to say but IPS has been a true game changer.
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It’s important to remember that IPS was not universally accepted out of the gate, in fact it was quite the opposite. The Inboard Propulsion System was met with widespread skepticism. Would the pods be hard to work on or service? Could forward-facing props even work and what kind of catastrophe would you incur if you ran aground and sheered one off? The hole in your boat would no doubt end in catastrophe.
In short, the industry held its breath thinking that Volvo Penta was, well, crazy. The thing with boaters is that word gets out quickly if something works well and spreads like wildfire if it doesn’t. In the ensuing years as IPS made docking heroes of everyone, the system took off.
Almost 20 years after Volvo Penta launched IPS, I found myself on the very proving grounds where the builder has been experimenting with systems for nearly 60 years, their test center in Krossholmen, Sweden not far from Gothenburg. Volvo Penta Marine President Johan Inden joked with me that somewhere out there was a graveyard of sterndrives, parts and pods.
“Actually, the first crash tests for the IPS were done out here as well. They built a concrete platform and hit it at 25 knots to make sure that they broke the way they were supposed to,” said Inden. “I was not driving it; I did not watch it, but I can imagine that was a pretty intense moment.”
A Hybrid Future
I was invited to test what promised to be another game changer, their first fully integrated hybrid-electric propulsion system. Built in partnership with Groupe Beneteau, the system was installed aboard a Jeanneau NC37. The goal of the “soft launch” was, the builder said, to gather feedback from members of the press along with their key dealers as they moved towards serial production.
There, among an unforgivably rocky archipelago, the twin 60 kW/82 hp electric motors paired with 320-hp D4s and Aquamatic sterndrives slid the NC37 silently from its slip and towards the channel. My first observation of this system—besides its exceptional quietness—was that joystick maneuvering seems even more responsive than the builder’s IPS joystick thanks to the near instantaneous torque electric propulsion offers.
The only aspect of the hybrid system not produced in-house by Volvo Penta (yet, at least) is the MB battery bank with 8 lithium-ion subpacks —weighing 1,322 pounds—that lend the boat 67 kWh of capacity. That capacity lends the NC37 test boat a 3 hour, or 15 NM, range at 5 knots and a top speed of 10 knots.
After navigating a slow zone, simply pushing on the throttles in hybrid mode and bringing the engines to 1,500 rpm automatically engages the boat’s diesel power and 37 knots of speed. Pulling back on the throttles and the motors shift back to silent cruising at 1,200 rpm.
Among the other features the hybrid system offers is DPS (Dynamic Positioning) in electric mode. Not that you would likely be fishing too hard in an NC37 but the idea of holding position silently while jigging, or quietly waiting for a bridge opening has appeal.
There is also the option for what the company calls “electric boost.” In that mode, propulsion is delivered from both diesel and electric power to get you up to speed more quickly. It worked as advertised helping the 37 reach planning speed a few seconds faster than diesel alone but I’m not sure I’d use it all that often when cruising.
The calling card of this hybrid system might be its trio of charging options. You have the option to charge with shore power, while underway (up to 80-percent of the battery’s capacity) or for the most time-efficient charging you can charge from the boat’s diesels while stationary in a slip or on the hook; with this option operators should be able to restore a full charge from nearly empty within the hour and then power all the boat’s systems, including the AC, for days at a time.
The company has yet to release pricing for this system or when it will be available to consumers, but you can expect to see their hybrid powered NC37 on the boat show circuit this fall in the United States as both Volvo Penta and Groupe Beneteau look to bring this product to market.
Joystick Driving
While hybrid propulsion was unequivocally the star of this test event, it overshadowed another impressive advancement from the manufacturer, that of “Joystick Driving.” I’ve been the beneficiary of joystick docking on various IPS-powered boats over the years and I was of the mindset that it really couldn’t get much better. Therein lies the genius of Volvo Penta in creating a culture of innovation where-in good is never good enough.
Settling into the helm of a Prestige, the company captain engaged docking assist, which ensured, with the help of the joystick, that I wouldn’t inadvertently kiss the bulkhead beside me. I maneuvered the boat into open water with the traditional joystick functionality. Touching a new button in the top right-hand corner of the joystick, placed in the armrest of the helm seat, engaged joystick driving, which allowed me to shift from neutral into gear and then throttle up and turn by either leaning the joystick to port or starboard. You could also make course corrections via the autopilot by turning a couple degrees with a simple twist of the wrist. I was never very good at video games but in a matter of minutes I got the feel for joystick driving and the boat felt as if it was an extension of my hand.
Pulling back on the joystick reduces speed until you land back in neutral and then continuing to pull it back you shift into reverse. A smart safety feature here is when you release the joystick when in reverse, it defaults back into neutral.
I believe this level of joystick functionality will continue to usher new boaters into our sport while also being intuitive enough for more seasoned salts to pick it up quickly. On our test boat, the wheel and throttles had largely become redundant if not unnecessary. What could this joystick mean for the future of helms if you don’t need a wheel and throttles? It’s kind of crazy to think about a wheelless boat but believe it or not I’ve already seen a Fountaine Pajot 67 with a lower helm that had just a joystick and a pair of MFDs.
Culture of Innovation
In-between test sessions I found Johan Inden casting a watchful eye over everything. We chatted awhile about my experience testing the hybrid system and joystick driving—the company seemed to genuinely be looking for feedback—before I was able to flip the interview back to him. “So, what’s next?” I asked.
Inden smiled. “We’re always trying to think 20 years ahead. In January at CES we shared what we call our ‘boating for everyone’ vision where we outline everything from how we think people will go boating to how we solve charging,” said Inden.
One of the visions they shared was for a floating island/village where boaters could dock, charge their boats, walk around the perimeter and even get a meal at the restaurant.
“It got a fantastic reaction,” said Inden. “We got calls from builders asking when we plan to build it because they wanted to be the contractor, it was fantastic. And boaters were saying, couldn’t you build the first test island just out here in the archipelago so we could start playing with it? Restaurants owners called and said, ‘I wanna run the restaurant,’ so you saw an idea triggering ideas.”
While some of the other ideas for the future feel far-fetched —like a manta ray-shaped power generator that swims up to your boat and uses underwater currents to power your boat —but from these ideas smaller, more actionable innovations are born.
At Volvo Penta’s factory in Vara, Sweden employees–from the cleaners to the chief executives are encouraged to spend an hour a week reflecting on how their jobs can be done better, more efficiently or more safely. There is also a monthly competition where employees can earn prizes for submitting innovative ideas. One recent winner of the competition had the idea to place QR codes around the facility that allowed employees to quickly file their ideas while still fresh in their minds. It’s this culture of constant improvement, permeated through every level of the company, that gives Volvo Penta the backbone to push things like hydrogen propulsion, boats without steering wheels and bringing hybrid power to the masses.
Standing on the docks of Krossholm and taking in the surrounding archipelago and the hybrid NC37 I tested hours earlier, I wondered what the boating world would think of their hybrid system. Would see it was a major step towards the future? Would they see the value in being able to power their boat on the hook without a generator? Or would they take one look at the boat’s range at speed and scoff? When it comes to hybrid tech, I’m going to let you come to your own conclusion but I will say that most of the impactful innovators were once called the same thing: Crazy.
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