Harvey Gulf has signed a framework agreement with
Metizoft on maintenance and quality assurance of the Inventory of Hazardous
Materials (IHM).
Vessels with IHM documentation must be maintained at
all times and reflect the actual ship sailing, according to the requirements of
IMO Guidelines - Ship Recycling; MEPC 197 (62). More and more, shipping
companies see the need to comply with the more stringent requirements, said
Metizoft’s Chief Marketing Officer Øyvind Sundgot.
"This agreement is one of several benefits of
Harvey Gulf`s focus on Health, safety and environment, which also form the
basis for system solutions to the company’s vessels,” said Corby Autin,
Executive Vice President of QHSSE / HR. “The agreement initially includes 10
vessels in operation, and future newbuildings will be subject to continuous
maintenance and quality assurance of documentation at Metizoft. Through the
agreement with Metizoft, IHM documentation is maintained according to the
current regulations and Metizoft is helping to ensure that we comply with the
requirements at all times."
Metizoft noted that more countries have ratified or
are at least getting closer to ratifying the Hong Kong International Convention
for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, which addresses the
requirements for IHM and makes ship owners responsible for compliance.
"A lot has happened in a short time, and this
future requirement that will include all of the world's seagoing vessels above
500 tons deadweight at an earlier stage than some anticipated,” Sundgot said.
“The European Union formally adopted the requirement on December 30, 2013, with
some adjustments based on IMO - Hong Kong Convention. The new EU Ship Recycling
Regulation means that EU-flagged vessels of 500 GT and over will be required to
carry an Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM). When calling at EU ports,
vessels from non-EU countries will also be required to carry an IHM identifying
all hazardous materials on board. This means that the maintenance and quality
assurance of the documentation is strengthened and it will therefore be very
important for owners to have control of this."
Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) requirements
state that EU-flagged newbuildings are required to have onboard a verified IHM
with a Statement of Compliance at the earliest by December 31, 2015 and at the
latest by December 31, 2018. Existing EU-flagged vessels are required to have
onboard a verified IHM with a Statement of Compliance at the latest by December
31, 2020 (or if the ship is to be recycled, the IHM should be on board from the
date when the European list of ship recycling facilities is published, expected
to be by the end of 2016). Non-EU-flagged vessels calling at EU ports are also
required to have onboard a verified IHM with a Statement of Compliance at the
earliest by December 31, 2020.
A known difference is in the material declarations
(MD) for the EU SRR, which will include two additional hazardous materials.
PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) shall be prohibited. PFOS is chronically
toxic, injurious to reproduction, carcinogenic, toxic to aquatic organisms and
widely distributed in the global environment. In the marine industry, it can be
found in fire-fighting foams of the type AFFF on vessels carrying inflammable
fluids and those with helicopter decks, rubber and plastic materials (i.e.,
cable sheaths, PVC flooring, gaskets and seals) and coatings (i.e., paint).
HBCDD (Brominated Flame Retardant) is to be listed in the IHM. HBCDD is very
persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic to aquatic organisms; it causes long-term
adverse effects on the aquatic environment. It is classified and labelled as
dangerous for the environment. In the marine industry, this can be found in
expanded polystyrene (EPS) used for cryogenic insulation, such as for liquefied
gas tanks (LGT), refrigerated areas, thermal insulation boards (i.e., foam
materials), rubber and plastic materials (i.e., cable sheaths, PVC flooring,
gaskets, seals) and coatings (i.e., paint).
"There are still a lot of shipping companies that
do not know how to handle this, but there is no need to wonder anymore. We have
proven on behalf of several major players in the industry that we can handle
this. We want to meet the requirements on behalf of ship owners," Sundgot
said.
Source: marine link
http://www.marinelink.com/news/outsources-metizoft384521.aspx
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