BV Classed Fleet Passes 10,000 Vessels, France

BV Classed Fleet Passes 10,000 vessels

The classed fleet of international classification society Bureau Veritas has grown to 10,055 vessels totalling 93.4m gt.

In addition, 1,790 inland water vessels are classed with BV. The growth is attributed to strong deliveries of newbuildings and also to a significant inflow of vessels in service attracted by BV’s range of services.

Bernard Anne, managing director, Marine Division, Bureau Veritas, says, “Today we class a very significant share of the world fleet and, importantly, a significant share of the vessels in every sector. That gives us very wide experience and the ability to deliver services in every field for every ship type. That means we can provide the most practical services for shipowners and yards, based on real and extensive experience with ships in service of every type.”

Bureau Veritas is the second largest classification society in the world by number of vessels classified and has around 20 per cent of the world newbuilding order book by vessel numbers. Its fleet is made up of 38.1 per cent bulk carriers, 18.7 per cent tankers, 12.8 per cent containerships, 7.9 per cent cargo ships, 7.4 per cent gas carriers, 4.5 per cent passenger vessels, 2.6 per cent offshore units and 8 per cent other ships.

Significant new services launched by Bureau Veritas in the recent past include a suite of environmental tools and a simplified online certification system.

Energy Efficiency Services

BV’s energy efficiency services include voluntary conformity assessment, technical assistance, consultancy and training. BV can deliver Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) file preparation, verification and attestation, Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) preparation, validation, SEEMP notation, SEEMP monitoring and review, and ISO 50000 auditing and certification. Consultancy also provides Energy Efficiency Operation Index (EEOI) calculation with energy performance indicators calculation and voyage consumption / emission simulation and reporting. Retrofitting of energy-saving devices efficiency assessment is facilitated by the calculation potential of BV’s relationship with HydrOcean. Together they provide high-level CFD calculation and modelling of design changes to a vessel’s hull form or propeller to model the best energy-saving compromise for newbuildings or retrofitting.

Energy Efficiency Performance prediction analysis can be carried out using BV’s new software tool SEECAT (Ship Energy Efficiency Calculation and Analysis Tool) which provides a full model of a ship’s energy flows and allows yards and owners to model and test the effect of different design and equipment and operational changes.

Earlier this year Bureau Veritas issued its first attestation of compliance with EEDI to the ultramax geared bulk carrier JS Amazon, the lead ship in a new generation of CROWN63 vessels developed by China’s Sinopacific Shipbuilding Group with bulk carrier expert Setaf-Saget.

The 63,300 dwt vessel is designed for the carriage of bulk cargoes, including coal, iron ore, grain and cement, as well as a range of dangerous cargoes. Its GHG (Green House Gas) performance when measured in accordance with IMO’s Energy Efficiency Design Index is twenty per cent better than the requirement under MARPOL Annex VI and already reaches the Phase II requirement set for the years 2020/2024. Its deadweight was achieved as a result of an advanced design fully compliant with the Common Structural Rules. The vessel can carry 5.2 per cent more cargo than other bulk carriers of comparable size.

Simplified ship certification system

Bureau Veritas has put in place a completely new IT-based certification and ship status system. It is aimed at reducing the workload of shipowners and operators and simplifying access to ship information and status. The ship’s classification certificate has grown from one simple page into a document with many pages and annexes built up of both printed and handwritten entries. BV’s new certification system once more makes the ship’s Certificate of Classification a simple one-page document. Everything else is online in a standardised and easy-to-access format. That cuts down the chances of error and confusion and enables BV to add new services to make life more efficient for shipowners and operators.

The new Bureau Veritas Certificate of Classification contains only the key identity of the ship and notation information. It is printed on recycled paper embossed with a logo to prevent fraudulent copies. All the other information which was once attached as annexes is now updated electronically and can be accessed by owners and by charterers and port authorities if given authorisation by the owner.

Authorised users can go to www.veristar.com and print off what they need on Ship Status. It can be tailored to be as detailed or a simple as required. The new Ship Status is made up of a number of sections (ship particulars, owner/manager information, cargo and ballast capacities, class and statutory status, planned inspection items, one-year survey planner, continuous and/or PMS lists, regulatory information, BV contacts) and the shipowner may decide to print each of these sections separately according to the information needed. The Class and Statutory Status section contains all certificates (which are what most authorities and charterers need), surveys, audits, recommendations, non-conformities and memoranda. The owner can print this section in its entirety or only the to-do list, and in that case the owner may choose items due in 1, 2 or 3 months.

This system avoids confusion as there are no more handwritten updates or recommendations on certificates. At the same time BV has enhanced the way owners and operators can see the ship status, which will help with planning maintenance and surveys. There is a graphical presentation of all surveys, audits, recommendations, non-conformities and planned maintenance and continuous survey items due in the next 12 months.

Bureau Veritas in Germany

BV’s marine presence in Germany has grown to 75 staff in 6 offices, which includes a dedicated plan approval centre. Today BV classes 300 seagoing vessels totalling 3.0m gt, as well as 180 inland water vessels, for German owners. Over 50 newbuildings classed with Bureau Veritas were delivered to German owners in 2011 and in the first half of 2012. (There is a list of examples at the end of this press release, and photos are available). Among them were bulk carriers for König & Cie, Conti/BBG, United Seven and Nordic, chemical tankers for John T. Essberger, container vessels for Reederei Schepers, Nordic, Brise, Wessels and a multipurpose vessel for Marship.

BV has five newbuilding contracts with German shipyards (Meyer Werft, Ferus Smit and Ostsee Ausrüstungsgesellschaft). The LNG carrier building at Meyer Werft is the first LNG carrier built in Germany in 35 years. It has a capacity of 15,600 cu m and is the first newbuilding with a direct-driven dual-fuel engine using LNG as fuel. The vessel will be delivered to the owner Anthony Veder in December 2012.

Bureau Veritas has several co-operation schemes with marine equipment manufacturers and design offices in Germany, including:

  • The development of a design for a 1,000 teu gas-fuelled container feeder ship, jointly with German owner Vega Reederei and designer Marine Service GmbH. It uses standard LNG tank containers as a fuel source. That solves the bunker challenge and makes the vessel very flexible in service.
  • The development of a power barge with LNG-powered engines able to supply cruise vessels entering the port of Hamburg with electrical power while alongside. The development was carried out with Becker Marine Systems. Bureau Veritas developed the safety concept.
  • The design of LNG-powered environment-friendly ferries for the German North Sea Islands in co-operation with shipowner Schramm, Ingenieurbüro Schlüter and Becker Marine Systems. BV is responsible for the safety concept.
  •  Hoppe Bordmesstechnik and Bureau Veritas have tested a fatigue monitoring system on board CMA CGM Magellan. The Hoppe system has been compared with traditional measurements by using strain gauges. In combination with information from a 3-D Structure model, such as VeriSTAR, the captain and crew have real-time indication of when the vessel is operating in a critical mode, and can change course or speed to modify that.
  • Bureau Veritas is a world leader in conformity assessment and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has 58,000 employees in 940 offices and 340 laboratories located in 140 countries. Bureau Veritas helps its clients to improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility.

[mappress]
LNG World News Staff, September 07, 2012