US Navy recently selected AMSC’s high temperature superconductor (HTS) equipment for its fleet.
The contract is expected after April 28, 2015. Additionally, AMSC has established a relationship with the Navy to develop HTS power cable hardware for ship board power applications.
AMSC’s HTS-based products, or as they call them the “Ship Protection Systems”, such as degaussing systems, reduce the magnetic signature of a ship, which can interfere with undersea mines’ ability to detect and damage the ship. The company has worked with the U.S. Navy to develop and qualify a lighter weight, more power efficient HTS version of this degaussing system.
AMSC has been working jointly with the Navy Metal Working Center of Excellence to optimize manufacturing costs associated with HTS degaussing cables. During the course of this Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) program, the cable making process has been streamlined and is expected to meet the delivery and cost targets associated with full ship production.
The success of an HTS degaussing program has potential for other applications such as ship board power transmission using similar equipment.
Image: US Navy