X-BOW^®: Principal characteristics
- A novel hull shape, with a redistributed foreship volume and substantially reduced flare
- A raised foreship, which normally incorporates accommodation
- Patented by ULSTEIN - Patent No. 135279 (WO/2006/096066)

X-BOW® versus conventional bow
The X-BOW® is a backward-sloping bow that starts at the extreme front of the vessel. This allows for the sharpest possible bow shape. Result: A continuous and sharp bow shape, which smoothly divides both waves and calm water. Increased volume above and up front allows the vessel to efficiently respond to large waves.

A conventional bow has a forward-sloping bow shape that starts at the extreme front of the vessel and drops down and back. The actual start of the bow at the waterline is moved back, and the bow shape at the start of the waterline is less sharp. Result: A bow that pushes the waves down and forward - this absorption of energy slows the vessel.
 


Introducing a new bow
At the beginning of the new millennium, ULSTEIN started a design innovation project challenging traditional solutions and conventions. Drawing on decades of ship design experience, a new bow concept slowly emerged on paper. By introducing a larger and smoother volume distribution in the foreship, which allows for submersion, combined with a sharper bow shape, the typical challenges of conventional bow shapes were solved. Preliminary sketches of a vessel with the new, backward-sloping bow were presented in a company magazine.

Vision possible
Bourbon Offshore Norway believed in the new bow concept and worked closely with ULSTEIN on the development of the first vessel design with the X-BOW® hull line design - an anchor handling tug supply vessel (AHTS) of the AX104 type - launched in 2005. The first vessel of this type, Bourbon Orca, was delivered in 2006 and received a number of awards, including the Norwegian Design Council’s design award, the Engineering Feat of the Year, and Offshore Support Journal’s and Skipsrevyen’s “Ship of the Year” Awards. Other vessel designs with the X-BOW® hull line design have since received similar distinctions.

Contacts for design and package solutions:
Offshore vessels
Heavy Offshore vessels

Films featuring X-BOW® vessels can be viewed and downloaded from: www.ulsteinlab.com