Built by the Götaverken Arendal AB shipyard in 1989, the Swedish Maritime Administration icebreaker Oden is one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear vessels of its type. The Oden is active throughout
Oden [Photo: GF Piping Systems]
Built by the Götaverken Arendal AB shipyard in 1989, the Swedish Maritime Administration icebreaker Oden is one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear vessels of its type. The Oden is active throughout the Baltic Sea during winter. For the rest of the year, it serves as a research platform for Swedish polar expeditions in the Arctic. To ensure that the Oden continues to operate at the highest level, the Swedish Maritime Administration decided to replace the steel pipes of the icebreaker’s jet thrusters with a complete thermoplastic piping solution by Schaffhausen, Switzerland-headquartered GF Piping Systems.
The Oden was designed to be highly maneuverable, with features like a square bow, a specific hull shape, and oversized rudders. The jet thrusters are used to spray high-pressure water onto the ice to reduce friction at the bow, which increases the ship’s energy efficiency. Originally, the jet thrusters relied on a steel piping system to handle the high flow rates
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