Wärtsilä Corporation, Trade press release, 30 November 2016 at 10 am EET The new Wärtsilä Enviroguard SLR water lubricated seal provides cost-effective reliability for small workboats. The new seal is the result of over a year's worth of research and product development with Wärtsilä's key stakeholders, including customers, boat yards and engineers. The seal will be launched at the International Workboat Show in New Orleans, starting on the 30th November 2016. The new Wärtsilä Enviroguard SLR seal is tough and robust, and designed to withstand large shaft movements without affecting the performance of the equipment. Developed to tolerate aggressive waters that may be heavy with silt or sand, the seal's water lubrication also ensures that there is no risk of polluting the marine environment. The new SLR seal offers increased reliability to smaller workboats, fishing boats, motorized barges and super yachts. The Wärtsilä Enviroguard SLR will be available 'off-the-shelf', designed with nine standard sizes that suit any shaft size between 75 and 306 mm. "In addition to availability, the new design offers other major benefits to workboat owners," says Simon Kill, Inland Water Ways and Coastal Sales Manager, for Wärtsilä Seals and Bearings. "It was critical in the development process that we understood the needs of the customers in order to design a product that meets their requirements and withstands their operating environments. We wanted to provide workboats with a pollution-free seal that is cost-effective as well as easy to install and service, and we have backed all this up with a 5 year warranty." Lightweight composite provides economical endurance The Wärtsilä Enviroguard SLR seal's primary material is marine-grade composite, which is lightweight, corrosion-free and economical. The design allows the seal to operate in aggressive waters without the need for a dedicated flush, applying only a vent which is built into the design. The seal, which requires no maintenance for up to 5 years, can also be equipped with an optional inflatable emergency seal for increased safety. The new seal expands Wärtsilä's Enviroguard water lubricated seal offering, which provides customers with a variety of environmentally friendly, high-quality sealing solutions. Caption: The new tough and robust Wärtsilä Enviroguard SLR seal is readily available and easy to install, with simple maintenance.