Kingsbury, Inc. Receives Order for DDG-1000 Main Propulsion Bearings
PHILADELPHIA, PA, August 31, 2006 - Kingsbury, Inc. is proud to report that the company has received an order to design and manufacture the main propulsion bearings for the first DDG-1000 ships. The order includes an option for five additional ship sets. The assemblies will be provided to the two main contractors on the project, Bath Iron Works (BIW) and Ingalls Shipyard (Northrup Grumman).
The scope of supply includes a fabricated steel housing that encloses the fluid film thrust bearing and a single journal bearing, plus a lubrication system for the thrust bearing. The bearing design is expected to take approximately 8 - 12 months to complete and is wholly integrated into the ship's design process. Extensive engineering and computer modeling will be required to comply with the Navy's shock requirements for this platform. The design also includes new features and modifications learned from experience on the previous DDG projects to improve maintenance intervals and costs.
According to the official U.S. Navy web site, "The lead ship and class [of the DDG-1000] are named in honor of former Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Elmo R. "Bud" Zumwalt Jr. Developed under the DD(X) destroyer program, ZUMWALT is the lead ship of a class of next-generation multi-mission surface combatants tailored for land attack and littoral dominance with capabilities that defeat current and projected threats and improve battle force defense."
Headquartered in Philadelphia, Kingsbury designs and manufactures a wide variety of standard and custom thrust and journal bearings for rotating equipment applications, including gas and steam turbines, compressors, gearboxes, pumps, air preheaters and ship propulsion systems. Kingsbury operates two ISO 9001/2000 certified manufacturing plants and a Research & Development facility, plus a dedicated Repair and Service Division in the United States. The company provides bearings to a global customer base both directly and through a network of international agents and representatives. Kingsbury supplied the first tilting-pad, fluid-film bearings for hydroelectric applications in 1912. The very first bearing, installed by Dr. Kingsbury in the Holtwood hydroelectric station, is still in operation with all its original parts. Today, the company maintains its position as the industry leader through continuing research and development, engineering integrity, and world-class customer service.
For more information about Kingsbury,
contact
William R Strecker,
VP,
Sales & Marketing,
Kingsbury, Inc.,
10385 Drummond Road,
Philadelphia, PA 19154, USA.
o Tel. +1-215-824-4000
o Fax: +1-215-824-4999
o E-mail: mfm@kingsbury.com.
o Website: www.kingsbury.com
Press contact:
Alan Gladish
Praxis Communications, Inc.
215-947-2080 x13
