Wartsila hosts SUNY Maritime cadets at Italian engine plant

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(TRIESTE, Italy) — Wartsila welcomed cadets from the State University of New York (SUNY) Maritime College to its Trieste factory during the school's summer sea term Italian port stop in June. The students use the summer sea term to gain practical experience on board the SUNY Maritime training ship, Empire State VI.

Upon arrival in Trieste, the Wartsila Italy management team welcomed the group of close to 600, which in addition to the cadets, included the crew, faculty from SUNY Maritime College, as well as its president, Rear Adm. Michael Alfultis. This visit marked a return to Trieste for SUNY Maritime as the group was also hosted by Wartsila in 2013.

An extensive agenda was coordinated by Wartsila and the SUNY Maritime leadership with the aim of offering the cadets the opportunity to learn firsthand how Wartsila manages its production facility. Technical presentations highlighted key topics of interest for the students, including dual-fuel technologies, Wartsila fuel gas handling solutions, Wartsila's LNGPac systems, and Wartsila technical support team activities.

Alfultis joined the 100 students for a guided tour of the Wartsila manufacturing facility, which offered the group an up-close view of the various stages involved in assembling a Wartsila engine. The majority of the engineering cadets on the tour had earlier completed a medium-speed diesel engine course, and had experience in performing maintenance work on a diesel engine. This was in part made possible by the donation of a Wartsila 26 engine to the university in 2011 for their shore-side laboratory in New York City.

"Over the years, Wartsila has been a generous and committed partner in giving SUNY Maritime students the hands-on training and applied learning opportunities that they will need as they enter the maritime industry," said Alfultis. "Our cadets always enjoy Trieste and the chance to visit Wartsila, and I was delighted to experience it with them."

"Wartsila is committed to supporting the future well-being of the maritime industry through encouraging and helping to educate its future leaders. This visit of the SUNY Maritime cadets has, therefore, been a pleasure for us to arrange. We wish the students every success in their future careers," said Aaron Bresnahan, managing director, Wartsila North America Inc.

In appreciation of the factory tour, Alfultis hosted the Wartsila Italy management team and others from the local office on a visit aboard Empire State VI, which included a tour of the ship. The training ship is a 565-foot, steam-powered vessel that serves as a floating laboratory during the school year when not in use for the summer sea term.

Empire State VI will return to the SUNY Maritime College campus in early August for the start of the new academic year. For the cadets, visiting the Wartsila factory in Trieste provided an insight into the skills needed for their future studies and careers in the marine industry.

By Professional Mariner Staff