Engineering students contribute to Washington Ferries electrification project

Growing up on Bainbridge Island, Patrick Ledoux and his family crossed the Puget Sound countless times aboard vessels operated by Washington State Ferries.

A few years from now, a device built by Ledoux and his Washington State University classmates will be instrumental to charging hybrid-electric ferries each time they pull into Seattle's Colman Dock.

"It'll be great to know we played a part in such a significant project," Ledoux said, referring to the planned $6 billion project to electrify Washington state's ferry fleet.

The WSU-designed device, a charge management system, was conceived and constructed by five senior WSU students as part of their capstone engineering class. The team included four mechanical engineers, Ledoux, John Geiser, TJ Stroschein, Joe Mueller, and one material science and engineering student, Michael Paul Buntain.

As part of the capstone class, teams of soon-to-be WSU graduates work with private companies and government agencies on projects with real-world applications. Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Kenworth, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratories were among the organizations that commissioned engineering students this past semester. Student teams presented their final projects to clients on April 30.

Building a modern ferry fleet

Washington Ferries asked the WSU student team to design a system that'll effectively act as the brain regulating the charging of ferries at Colman Dock.

As a hybrid electric-diesel ferry approaches the dock, the charge management system will communicate with a charging arm that connects with arriving vessels. Once stopped the arm connects to the ferry and begins to charge the batteries while vehicles and passengers transfer between the boat and dry land.

During the 17-minute charging process, the WSU student-designed system will ensure the flow of electricity remains stable while performing vital safety monitoring. As the ship readies to depart, the system will halt the flow of electricity and tell the arm to disconnect.

"The system as envisioned will be able to run a hybrid ferry on electric power all day long, with the charging process taking place each time docking occurs," Ali Khurshid, a project engineer on Washington Ferries' electrification project who coordinated with the student group.

The system as envisioned will be able to run a hybrid ferry on electric power all day long, with the charging process taking place each time docking occurs.

He continued, "This charge monitoring system was designed for the Seattle Terminal, and the plan is to replicate that system to eventually electrify all of our terminals."

The project is just a part of Washington State Ferries' electrification initiative. The $6 billion initiative to modernize the largest fleet of its kind in the country is expected to continue through 2040. Enhancements to Colman Dock in Seattle are anticipated to continue through the middle of 2029, and it's during that work that the WSU student-designed device will be installed.

The team used industry-standard equipment provided by Siemens, as well as the expertise and consulting of Alicia Lomas, a manufacturing and control engineer.

Preparing for work

Engineering students participating in the capstone class obtain invaluable experience on the verge of becoming working professionals, said Emily Larsen, an assistant professor with the WSU School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering.

"Capstone is a unique opportunity for students to work on something that is real, with real implications for the customer who they are working with. They have needs and responsibilities that need to be met on time. You can't just take a C and be done."

Engineering students need to be able to grasp the scope of the work, seek out professional expertise and insights, and solicit feedback from their clients throughout the semester. Teams often also visit worksites to see first-hand the kinds of environments that they'll soon be working in as WSU graduates.

For the team working with Washington Ferries, that included a trip to Seattle to tour the Wenatchee, the first converted hybrid-diesel vessel in the fleet. There, the team was able to speak with a ship engineer in the bowels of the boat as well as the ship's captain who will rely on data provided by the charge management system.

"This team has taken this project and given me a product that I think is better than what I had in mind," Khurshid said. "They are motivated and energetic, channeling that into reviewing different scenarios and working on a system that's time consuming and difficult to test."

Capstone projects also give students the chance to make connections with industry representatives that can prove pivotal to landing a job post-graduation.

"The companies and organizations we work with are getting a 4-month interview with prospective employees," Larsen said. "They're developing experience and making connections that'll really matter."