Digital Valve Management Can Save on Drydocking Costs

Published Oct 24, 2024 12:19 PM by Ben Scheffer

W&O Supply, the global leader in marine valve supply, outlines how using digital technology hand-in-hand with technical expertise can help vessel owners and their MRO contractors to run dry-dock operations more efficiently and effectively.

Across the shipping industry, the adoption of digital technology is helping owners and operators to optimize their operations and reduce costs. Technological innovation is also benefiting vessel management, as the development of more streamlined systems places access to data on asset health and condition in the hands of vessel managers, allowing them to make better decisions about procurement and supply chain management, for essential vessel fittings.

W&O uses Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to support the digitalization of valve management and provide easy access to data about valves on a vessel. By making it easier to access information about valves, RFID tags enable maintenance teams to accurately identify and order valves that need replacing ahead of dry-dock projects and ensure smooth maintenance operations. With accurate information available via RFID tags, vessel managers can also adopt a time-based preventative maintenance approach to valve replacement, eliminating risky run-to-fail approaches that have been common across the industry in the past.

Every vessel is required to dry dock at least once every five years, but poor planning when it comes to replacement valves can lead to more work and costs overruns. Speed is a crucial factor, with operators and owners wanting to get in and out of dry-dock as quickly as possible to minimize operational losses, so when it comes to the simple replacement of onboard valves, planning needs to be spot on. Unfortunately, many owners and operators have very little information about the valves on their ships, often the only available list of valves is from when the vessel was first commissioned.

Pre-dry dock ship checks, conducted by a team of expert valve technicians, provide an up-to-date inventory of valves for vessel owners and their contractors, who can then order the necessary valves ahead of the dry dock, avoiding ordering errors that can arise if valves are ordered while the vessel is in dry dock.

During pre-dry dock ship-checks, W&O’s technicians will apply RFID tags to all the valves they assess, providing a clear digital inventory of the valves on board. Over time, these tags create a documented history of the valve conditions on a given vessel. RFID tags contain data on valve size, brand, and materials; information on the actuator, testing certificates, shipping and installation dates, and inspection history; as well as images taken during its service lifetime. Data is available to the technical surveyor and the vessel representatives through a smartphone app, ensuring consistency, accuracy and ease of management.

Proper management of the assessment and procurement of replacement valves, pipes, and fittings for a vessel ahead of dry docking eliminates administrative headaches and delivers time and cost savings throughout the process.

By embracing tech innovations such as RFID and taking advantage of the digital insights they provide, shipowners and operators can save time and money when the vessel is in dry-dock and during operations. Digitizing valve data using RFID tagging allows owners to track valve conditions over time and incorporate the information into their digital platforms, integrating information into resource planning software.

Ship owners, their MRO contractors and their parts suppliers need to be able to make the right decisions at the right time. Reducing errors by working with technical experts can smooth the process of valve identification and ordering, and it can eliminate headaches to make a real commercial difference to owners. As it stands, vessel owners and operators are overpaying for assets and losing money by failing to properly prepare for valve replacement work scheduled during dry dock.

As one of the world’s largest valve suppliers dedicated to the maritime industry, W&O has the experience, technical expertise, and technological capabilities to help ship owners make the right decisions about valve replacements and ensure timely delivery of the right products at a competitive price, across global operations.

Ben Scheffer is W&O's Sales Director. To learn more about how W&O uses RFID tags and our digital valve management service please contact [email protected], tel: +1 800.962.9696, or visit wosupply.com/services/digital-valve-management.

The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.