Updated USCG type approval with 2 hours hold time and IECEX coverage

On July 1st, 2019 DESMI Ocean Guard’s CompactClean Ballast Water Management System (BWMS) received amended US Coast Guard (USCG) type approval certificate with just 2 hours minimum hold time restriction, as well as approval of installation in hazardous areas. Minimum hold time is the shortest allowable time that ballast water must be kept in the ballast tanks between the ballast uptake and discharge operations.

The reduction of the minimum required hold time to just 2 hours in all salinities and water temperatures sets a new standard for non-chemical based BWMS under the US rules, and remarkably, this is achieved without changing anything in the BWMS or how it operates.

Rasmus Folsø, CEO of DESMI Ocean Guard A/S explains: “The performance of the CompactClean BWMS is so superior that, unlike other UV based BWMS, we have not had to reduce the flowrate in the system to achieve the shortest minimum required hold time in the industry of just 2 hours. Likewise, the 2 hours hold time is achieved without introducing any new limitations on the UV intensity applied in the UV reactor. It is exactly the same BWMS operated in exactly the same way as previously, with just one operation mode used globally. This significantly simplifies the operation as there is no need for knowing the de-ballast location and the expected hold time of the ballast water at the time of ballast water uptake, in order to determine if the BWMS should be operated in IMO or US mode depending on the discharge location, or in longer or shorter hold time mode. In fact, we have just managed to considerably simplify the ballast water operations of ships in global trade!”

Furthermore, the amended USCG type approval certificate now covers all the ATEX and IECEX certified versions of CompactClean BWMS, enabling us to install these in hazardous areas on board oil, gas and chemical tankers flying both US and non-US flags.

 “With the so far unmatched versatility of the CompactClean BWMS, enabling installation on board any ship type and allowing treatment and discharge of all kinds of ballast water anywhere in the world, the CompactClean BWMS is leading the way. Add to this the smallest footprint in the industry, simplicity, user friendliness, ease of installation and credible long-term global support and service from a company with close to two centuries of history, and you have the explanation why CompactClean is being selected by more and more customers,” explains Rasmus Folsø.

The CompactClean BWMS comes in 14 different flowrate sizes, with the smallest having a maximum flowrate of 35 m³/h, and the largest having a maximum flowrate of 3000 m³/h. The largest UV unit boasts an impressive 1500 m³/h max capacity, and by combining two of these in parallel, the 3000 m³/h flowrate is achieved.

DESMI Ocean Guard A/S develops and markets ballast water management systems for the removal of living organisms from ships' ballast water. DESMI Ocean Guard is wholly owned by DESMI A/S, and its head office is located in Nørresundby, Denmark. DESMI A/S has more than 180 years of history and today the DESMI Group portfolio includes pumps, oil spill response solutions, pumping solutions for defence applications, energy saving systems, automation, contracting activities, and ballast water management systems.