Ultrasonic Safety & Survey Equipments

Monday 17 March 2014

Intense Testing Ensures the Ship Remains Leak Free

The increasing numbers of transport ships all over the world mean one thing, global trade is increasing incredulously. The demand of goods to be transported from one country to another is the reason why the transport industry or more specifically the shipping transport industry exists. But due to some problems (topping the list the leaks in hatch covers and other parts) the shipping transport industry is under heavy criticism. Business people who are regular customers of these companies need assurance that their goods would not be damaged during the voyages. Although the goods are insured and they get paid for the damages, this may be a good compensation for the cash registers but is never a good thing with the company’s reputation of those business people.

The first step to ensure that customer’s goods are not destroyed through leaks during the shipment process is the intense hatch cover maintenance and watertight integrity testing. Unless the crew knows about the location of the leaks and the type of repairs which would be necessary to apply for stopping them, no corrective action can be taken and the leaks would grow consistently. As leaks continue to emerge and the holes continue to grow bigger, the condition of the ship’s body and the hatch covers starts deteriorating. As the holes continue to grow bigger, larger amounts of water start entering the cargo holds and more damage starts taking place inside.

Leaking water entering the ship not only creates trouble in the cargo holds but it starts spreading to the other components. As the ship has a net of wires running all over to provide power supply to the moving components such as the hatch covers and to the lights, water on the inside can get deeper into the cables. Presence of water in the cable ducts can easily spark a short circuit. It can even trip the breakers in the main switch board or can ruin some machinery or even worse, spark a small flame which can soon go out of control and create a huge fire.

To ensure that the cables are in no danger of any electric problem, the need for cable transit areas watertight testing is also compulsory. Not only is it harmed by water, it can also be harmed by the humidity in the air which never dies out in the oceans and seas. As the cables are completely protected from water and the humidity in the air, there is no chance of any mishap happening due to it. Some ships have been destroyed during their journey when their electric circuit caught fire and spread it all over. Those shipping companies not only had to end up paying a lot of claims for the goods destroyed onboard, they also had to bear a huge loss by repairing the ship or buying a new one.

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