Future-proof operation: 5 questions with Zenoro

Dutch marine generator brand Zenoro has supplied some of the world’s top superyacht shipyards with custom gen-sets for more than a decade. Specialised in the best of the best when it comes to quality, expertise, and innovation, Zenoro announced the launch of an exciting addition to the market earlier this year. The Zenoro Essential Line is the premium brand’s new product line of standard marine generator sets, boasting the quality, low noise levels and seven-star service that Zenoro is known for. Here we talk to Zenoro Business Manager Ivo van den Berg about the Zenoro Essential Line of superyacht-quality marine generator sets and dive into what running a superyacht will look like in the next 10 years.Photo: ZenoroTell us about Zenoro and the launch of the Zenoro Essential Line. 
Zenoro is a brand of NPS Diesel. We’re a Dutch company with headquarters in Ravenstein, in the south of the Netherlands, and facilities strategically located in Antibes, France. I joined the company in 2011. At that time, we started to supply custom gen-sets to premium brands like Heesen, De Vries, CRN and Lürssen - we’ve actually supplied all Heesen yachts with Zenoro generators for more than a decade. With an excellent position in the market for our premium generators, we decided to expand our product line with a new standard generator set that maintains the premium quality of Zenoro custom products. We launched the Zenoro Essential Line at the beginning of this year. The Essential line delivers a price-competitive, top-quality standard generator with high-end components and excellent reliability. It is the new standard for luxury yachts. This product line is specifically suitable for standard series yacht manufacturers who require high quality generators that can be delivered quickly. For us, it’s proving a fantastic opportunity to expand our relationships with bigger volume builders of yachts under 40-metres.Photo: Zenoro What is the importance of a high-quality gen-set on a superyacht? 
Noise and vibration levels are one of the most essential aspects. If the boat is at anchor, all the hotel loads still need to be operational. The generators need to be almost silent, so the owner can feel the luxury of being on a superyacht. A premium quality sound enclosure means the noise level for the owner is a lot less, which is a major benefit of Zenoro products. Use of quality products means fewer potential warranty issues – a headache for both yard and owner. We also made the conscious decision to design a quality control system and cable loom and well-selected sensoring. It’s one of our strong points. Photo: ZenoroIn an increasingly environmentally aware world, what does the future of yacht operation look like? 
If you look at the market now, we can already see that a lot of boats in the future will be hybrid. The Heesen motor yacht Home is a great example where they have a parallel hybrid system onboard. So that means two main engines, two generators and two electric motors on the shaft, allowing the yacht to cruise with zero emissions out to sea from the port in Monaco, for example. Photo: David ChurchillIn the end, I expect that more and more 40+ metre yachts will go full diesel-electric. This means no main engines anymore, just four up to six big generators. I predict this is going to happen in the next five to 10 years. Beyond that, the diesel engine might disappear and you will have four power packs. It could be hydrogen; it could be a kind of a fuel cell. No one knows exactly what that will be yet.

But back to today’s technology: we are still very much in the diesel era. All Zenoro projects >130 kW are supplied with IMO Tier 3 Emissions and an add-on soot filter. Our complete package goes together with a Xeamos exhaust after-treatment system, which eradicates particulates on deck and in the water.Photo: ZenoroHow do you prepare for an evolving yachting landscape?
We will enter this market with bigger generators in the future, so we will supply for example four 665 kW generators for vessels up to 50-metres within Zenoro’s portfolio. Keeping up with innovation is demanding for everyone in the industry – and exciting. Nothing is logical anymore, and there are a lot of different discussions going on. In the past, you received an enquiry, and you proceeded. Now it’s a lot more complex. More and more yachting projects require a lot of R&D at the moment, and it’s clear that the market is changing. If we do everything right, we will be stronger. If not, we will all struggle. But that’s the bigger picture! Photo: ZenoroWhat makes Zenoro stand out from its competitors? 
Knowledge, location and premium quality. It’s not only about the design or the engineering. It’s the complete package. Our site in the Netherlands is at the heart of the yacht building scene, while our Antibes location is ideally situated in one of the world’s greatest yachting hotspots. Everybody can build a great sound enclosure, everybody can build a generator set, and everybody says they do it better than the rest, but I think the main thing that makes Zenoro stand out is our expertise. As a company, we have a lot of knowledge in exhaust after-treatment, engines and complete installations, so we bring an added value to the yard and the project. Our engineers are focused on engines, generators and after-treatment systems. That’s it. Photo: ZenoroZenoro Essential generators are currently available in 44/55 and 70/80 kW at 50 Hz and 65 and 90/99 kW at 60 Hz. The 99 kW/118 kW at 50 Hz and 118 kW at 60 Hz models will be available soon. For more information on Zenoro and the Zenoro Essential Line, get in touch with the team directly at the contact details below.