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For years, the management of biofouling through Marine Growth Prevention Systems (MGPS) was considered a relatively benign but immobile task, a system turned on, checked once in a while and repaired only when excessive growth could be visually observed or operational performance decreased. However, this is rapidly shifting as maritime industry embraces digital technologies. Shipowners and technical managers are increasingly recognizing MGPS as more than just standalone system, but rather an arena full of rich data just waiting to be optimized.
1. From Manual Sampling to Continuous Electrochemical Monitoring
Currently, monitoring of MGPS involves manual process, the ship's crew collect water samples from various points, measure residual chlorine levels using hand-held kit, and jot down results in notebook. The drawbacks to this method include need for considerable human effort and inherent gaps in information that occur especially at night or during harsh sea conditions.
MGPS for SME's means that controller can no longer be configured for constant time-based system or constant current setting. The system actually responds to actual current demand, output is automatically varied by unit. Lower salinity or cold water conditions result in increased output, if the ship travels into warmer, bio-active water, dose is ramped up accordingly, resulting in guaranteed antifouling without under-treating water; over-chlorinating also extends anode life and prevents the unnecessary release of chemicals. A controlled, safe, efficient system with fully logged and auditable history.
2. Predictive Analytics for Electrode Lifespan and Replacement Planning
A major digital advancement in MGPS management is a step towards truly accurate predictions of electrode wear than counting operating hours. The intelligent MGPS controllers manufactured by SME record the current density and monitor variations in anode voltage and the accumulated charge passing through them. This information is processed together with historical performance curves and real-time seawater conditions to provide an accurate remaining service life estimation accurate to within a few weeks.
The prediction functionality allows us to change the logistics of spare part supply entirely. Rather than carrying large spare anodes on each voyage just in case, our fleet manager could make arrangement for the timely delivery, that would come to port while the vessel is at a planned scheduled port call or for a scheduled dry-docking. For an international company with more than a dozen ships that's how we can limit the costs of carrying inventory or avoiding costly emergency air freight. As soon as the system signals an impending end-of-life, a notification is sent to the vessel's asset management platform, automatically creating a Purchase requisition which links in turn to the SME supply chain. And SME with over 1,000 vessels delivered per annum uses all this information to plan its own production.
3. Remote Fleet-Wide Performance Dashboards and Benchmarking
This is where digital transformation really shines, when individual ship data is centralized for the whole fleet. With its new optional cloud based reporting platforms, SME captures the MGPS operational parameters from each ship within a fleet that have the technology, and provides a single reporting interface for onshore technical superintendents to view on one page, along with ship location and status. Average chlorine residual, anode consumption, frequency of alarms and system up time for each vessel are visible.
That same level of fleet-wide transparency makes for an incredible array of benchmarking opportunities. If one ship is clearly using more anode material than her sister ships sailing similar trade routes, the superintendent can research if this disparity is a function of the sensor being out of calibration, differences in seawater conditions, or a more deep-seated electrical issue. On the flip side, an extremely low chlorine reading may be an indicator of a fouled sea chest or sensor and can signal the need for corrective action before it becomes a bigger problem. Over time, these dashboards are used to create a wealth of operational data that owners can use to define their operational benchmarks, assess how changing trading patterns are affecting their MGPS wear and decide whether system upgrades or retrofits are warranted. For those international partners operating both in mainland China and around the world, SME’s technical support team applies the same underlying operational data to provide remote diagnostics, proactively identifying potential problems before the crew is even aware.
4. Integration with Hull Performance and Fuel Efficiency Systems
The final aim of digital MGPS is to integrate biofouling monitoring with actual performance, instead of just treating biofouling in its own right. The formation of marine growth on sea chests, pipes, and intake gratings leads to increased hull resistance and decreased cooling capacity, requiring main engines and auxiliary generators to operate more effectively to compensate. Linking your MGPS system with the ship's shaft power meter, speed log and fuel flow meters allows owners to determine the actual benefit from chlorination in terms of reducing resistance.
If the automation system observes a slow upward trend in a particular grade of fuel oil consumption over a period of three months but there’s no upward deviation in the MGPS chlorine levels then we need to look for the cause of the increased consumption elsewhere; the underlying issue could be the corrosion and degradation of the hull coating, or maybe a Fouled rudder for example. However, if the system sees an instantaneous drop in MGPS performance accompanied by a rise in fuel consumption then the sea chest is highly suspect. This means that MGPS is no longer just an environmental nice-to-have, but a proactive part of the vessel’s energy efficiency management system. To support the automation process, SME provides our MGPS systems with open communication protocol and extensive interface documentation so that it can integrate fully within your ship’s’ digital environment rather than be an autonomous unit. Combined with our ICCP, SED and PHE solutions, we equip ship owners with the data and functionality needed to defend their asset not blindly but intelligently.