Retractable

Bow Foils

01

Our story

STATE OF THE ART BOW FOIL TECHNOLOGY

Wavefoil is developing retractable bow foils that provide significant fuel savings, reduced motions and a more comfortable experience at sea.​ Combining a smart retraction mechanism with the use of light but strong composite materials, Wavefoil is bringing wave propulsion to the market.

02

Principle

Exploiting the potential of wave energy

It has been known for over 150 years that vessels with wings – or foils – in the bow can be partly or solely propelled by wave energy. The foils generate lift when the vessel is moving up and down in waves, and the lift typically has a forward thrust component larger than the drag.

Put simply, wave power is directly converted into propulsive power.

A vessel in waves experiences additional resistance compared to calm-water operation. For wave lengths similar to the hull length, this additional resistance will be amplified due to resonance, implying large heave and pitch motions. Wavefoil’s retractable bow foils dampen these motions so that the additional resistance decreases.

So how much fuel can you save? That depends on the ship, its speed, the foil size and location and the wave conditions. For a 100 m long ship operating in a wave-rich area, with constant brake power equivalent to a calm-water speed of 14 knots, research shows that an average fuel saving on the order of 20% can be achieved. Lower brake power gives higher percentage fuel saving.

Fuel savings are not the only benefit of bow foils. Increased comfort, reduced vibrations, less spray, increased operability and the ability to maintain higher speeds in waves for a given power are some other perspectives.

03

The team

Eirik Bøckmann

CEO
PhD Marine Technology, NTNU
eirik@wavefoil.com
Eirik holds a Master's degree and a PhD degree in Marine Technology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). His PhD thesis, titled Wave Propulsion of Ships, studies the effect of bow foils by means of simulations and towing tank tests. After obtaining his PhD, Eirik continued to explore the benefits of bow foils as a Postdoctoral Researcher at NTNU.

Erlend Vastveit

Product Developer
MSc Mechanical Engineering, NTNU
erlend@wavefoil.com
Erlend holds a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Bachelor's degree in Social Economics from NTNU. He begins working as a product developer in Wavefoil from august 2018. Erlend comes to Wavefoil after two years as a project manager in Ekornes. He also has relevant experience from subsea engineering and as Head of Suspension for the student formula car NTNU Revolve.

Audun Yrke

CTO
MSc Marine Technology, NTNU
audun@wavefoil.com
Audun submitted his Master's thesis in Marine Technology at NTNU in 2017 and subsequently started working as CTO of Wavefoil AS. He is the inventor of Wavefoil's retractable foil mechanism and has been involved in developing retractable bow foils since the fall of 2015. Audun is responsible for the technical development in Wavefoil.

Sven Kolstø

CFO
MSc Industrial Economy and Technology Management, NTNU
sven@wavefoil.com
Sven holds a Master's degree in Industrial Economics and Technology Management from NTNU and has diverse experience within both early stage technology companies and politics. He is co-founder of OptoScale, which develops a tool for precise bioscale measurements. Sven is a partner in CoFounder and has been engaged as Wavefoil's CFO, where he is responsible for the economy and business development.

04

Contact

Visitor address

Wavefoil AS
c/o CoFounder TechHub
Havnegata 7
7010 Trondheim
Norway

Postal address /
Invoice address

Wavefoil AS
Postboks 1284 Torgard
7462 Trondheim
Norway

Org nr 917 810 508

News

Wavefoil featured in Maritimt Magasin

October 26, 2018

Wavefoil is featured in the October issue of Maritimt Magasin. Check the paper edition for the full story.

Wavefoil wins DNB NXT's Pitching contest in Trondheim

August 30, 2018

Wavefoil won DNB NXT’s pitching contest in Trondheim yesterday and will be traveling to Oslo to compete in the semi-final on September 27, during Oslo Innovation Week.

Successful crowdfunding campaign

August 27, 2018

Our crowdfunding campaign at Folkeinvest was a great success! In a record time of 6 hours after the campaign opened for stock purchase, all new stocks available were sold. 

Wavefoil featured in Gemini

August 23, 2018

Wavefoil is featured in Gemini today. The article includes some exciting news regarding new model tests with our foil module.

Wavefoil featured in Finansavisen

August 16, 2018

Wavefoil is featured in Finansavisen today. Check the paper edition for the full story.

Wavefoil featured in Dagens Næringsliv

June 7, 2018

Wavefoil is mentioned as one of 20 maritime startups worth following in the coming years in Dagens Næringsliv.