Among the many benefits of the Volvo Penta IPS is also that of saving money. In particular regarding the zeroing of a very common problem – damage to propellers. This is what has been demonstrated through an analysis of the Amer Yachts database.

The Sanremo shipyard has been installing multiple Volvo Penta IPS systems on its vessels since 2014, and, considering the number of boats manufactured and that are currently circulating, accumulating thousands of sailing hours, there has never been any damage to propellers, placed in front of the POD.

The flow of the water, therefore, protects the counter-rotating propellers from submerged objects, which could cause damage to the propeller tip. This particular characteristic therefore avoids one of the most common types of damage occurring during navigation.

According to Amer Yachts, this consideration, supported by objective data, also deserves to be reflected on insurance cover, which provides for damages due to submerged objects, and which, in the case of IPS, become more rare. In short, boats with an IPS system have a lower probability (at the moment zero, in the case of Amer yachts) of damage to the propeller.

This is the latest discovery through the analysis of the Amer Yachts database, which can also be added to the long list of benefits of the Volvo Penta IPS, like manoeuvrability, reduction in fuel consumption and system integration.

If one considers the practical annulment of one of the most common types of damage, it is easy to see the financial savings in towage costs, and summer interventions, which are difficult in absence of a replacement propeller, and have ruined the holiday of a number of boaters, or created problems for charters.

Giuseppe Orrù