DeJong & Lebet has designed a great variety of different propulsion systems for different vessels. The modern vessel today is normally propelled by a diesel power plant, which drives a shaft and propeller. While this is the main system that we design here are some other systems that we have successfully engineered for vessels.

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Paddlewheel Drives - We have engineered paddlewheels powered by both electric motors and hydraulic motors. Up to 400 Hp each wheel.

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Cycloidal Drives - We engineered some of the first cycloidal tugboats ever made. The largest tug has 4000 HP, and is still assisting tugs in the Panama Canal. These drives work like an eggbeater and allow the vessel to travel in any direction almost instantly.

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Pump Jets - We have designed vessels for very shallow draft applications, that use pump jets, which suck up the water at low velocity into a large cone, then run it thru a pump and expel it at a higher velocity thru a turnable nozzle. The largest vessel that we have designed this way carries 1600 passengers in five to six feet of water.

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Z-Drives. These drives are a twist on the  standard diesel / shaft propulsion, allowing you to turn the propeller in a wide arc of direction. They look and work similar to a large outboard motor. The Ft. Morgan, a car / passenger vessel has two of these units in opposite comers of her hull.

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Waterjrets. These new types of propulsion force water thru the blades of a turbine like a jet engine. One of our latest vessel being built in 2000, is 165 ft long, has three waterjrets with a total of 6000 HP, and is designed to go as fast as 25 knots when finished.