Why Mauritius wanted a single engine for its new Steber-built research vessel

Uniquely, the almost 30-tonne, 18-metre vessel – the largest that Taree-based commercial boat yard Steber has produced in its 72-year history – was fitted with only a single 500hp Yanmar 6HYM-WET inboard shaft drive engine to power it.

This is the second fishing training and research vessel that Steber has built for the island nation.

Steber’s brief for building the Investigator II was to ensure the Investigator II easy to operate.

“We had to keep the vessel simple to meet the needs of its deployment – no digital panels for operating systems where possible and simple labels on switches, valves and other equipment,” Steber International managing director Alan Steber said.

“This was one of the philosophies behind powering her with a single Yanmar too – a relatively simple, large displacement, reliable and easy to service engine.”

Yanmar’s 6HY engine is a 13.733-litre in-line twin-turbocharged six-cylinder with a single exhaust outlet, weighing 1385kg and available with rated outputs of 500-700hp.

Despite its lower 500hp rating, the Yanmar engine was still able to push the Investigator II to a top speed of 13.7 knots during trials. Combined with a 8500-litre fuel tank, the vessel has an expected 1000 nautical mile-plus range.

“They are a good reliable engine and the client was keen to have the Yanmar because of their serviceability, support and reputation,” Steber said.

“It was also the client’s choice to have a single-engined vessel, and frankly, one good, reliable engine will last a lifetime”.

Investigator II was run from Taree to Sydney in December, where the 6HYM-WET was serviced with an oil change and final checks.

The boat was then cradle-shipped to Mauritius as a turnkey vessel ready for work.