Sales in India and Turkey

Under the MARPOL Convention, since 1st January, 2005, all newly built oil tankers of 150 gt and above must have an oil discharge monitoring and control system on board, including an approved oil content meter, with starting interlock and automatic overboard valve control. However, while having the required equipment is now a necessity, shipowners are increasingly finding that demonstrating that the system truly operates in compliance with discharge limits to Port State Control (PSC) is a different matter. RTE’s Smart ODME incorporates a ‘simulation operating mode’, specifically designed for this purpose, the company claimed. “While this equipment is demanded by law, it is not used daily, or even weekly,” said RTE sales manager Graham North . “When PSC wants a demonstration that oil discharge monitoring equipment is working, it places an extra burden on crew, outside their routine tasks. Often, operating manuals will have been misplaced. “The Smart ODME’s simulation mode allows crew to demonstrate all equipment parameters without actually discharging. Oil concentration, pressure, and flow rate can be checked to calculate the discharge rate, documenting the fact that the valve will open within the required limit of 30 litres per nautical mile, and close once this limit is reached. A record is created each time the simulation mode is used”. In addition, North said that shipbuilders and owners had been attracted to the equipment as it incorporates a valve pump cell unit that can be used in hazardous zones. Comparable systems require the pump, motor and measuring cell to be installed on separate sides of the relevant bulkhead. The measuring cell itself contains all calibration data and can be easily changed at the time of each IOPP five-year survey. As for the new orders, in India, four Smart ODME shipsets have been specified for chemical and oil product tankers under construction at ABG Shipyard and Modest Infrastructure, ordered through local RTE representative - Advanced Materials and Tribology. Elsewhere, the Turkish Besiktas and Selay Shipyards have specified a number of Smart ODME shipsets, in initial orders for RTE in Turkey, in this case through distributor Delmar Marine. Potentially even more significant, after two years in search of the right partner in Japan, RTE has reached a formal marketing agreement with marine equipment trading house - LGE Japan - supported by a service agreement with MEC Co. The Smart ODME is available in a fully electric version for newbuildings, or in a pneumatic version for retrofitting to ships operating under older regulations.