Hellenic Technical Committee: New Measures for Ballast Water Management

Athens, 3 March 2008 – Shipyards need to produce a record number of ballast tank coatings from next year. The annual Hellenic Technical Committee of Germanischer Lloyd focused on the practical implications of the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Performance Standard for Protective Coatings, adopted in December last year.

The new standard for coatings of ballast water tanks affects ships of all types with a gross tonnage of 500 t and over. The standard also applies to double side-skin spaces in bulk carriers exceeding 150 m in length. GL has developed its own Guidelines for Corrosion Protection and Coating Systems. Compliance with these can increase a coating's service life to more than 15 years. This is the time period from initial application during which the coating system is expected to remain in 'good' condition as defined by IMO Resolution A.744(18).

GL’s experience has shown that corrosion protection measures carried out according to a typical shipyard specification will only last a limited number of years. After that the cost of complaints and repairs can be significantly higher than any initial savings. “If the ballast tank coating is in good condition, the interval is five years. For owners and operators it pays to take a long-term view”, said Dimitris Sariklis, GL Piraeus.

The check of compliance with the coating specification, carrying out the survey, documentation and approval are implemented by GL surveyors. This ensures an objective evaluation of the quality of the coating application and saves the shipyard, contractor or insurance company the effort and expense of commissioning a third party inspector.

Evaluation of the coating condition will be implemented in the survey programme so that on demand the class notation can be maintained. Consultancy will be offered in case maintenance and repairs are necessary and relevant steps will be carried out under the supervision of a GL surveyor who guarantees observance of the proper procedures as well as high quality workmanship.

Other topics discussed by the 50 members and guests at GL’s Hellenic Technical Committee Meeting were high tensile steel welding and future developments of European shipping.

Germanischer Lloyd press release