Environmental Protection Engineering (EPE), a leading company in designing and production of various types of marine equipment and systems, is keen to keep attracting, developing and retaining competent professionals, who are aligned with the company’s values and principles. During Posidonia 2024, Ioannis Korovesis, Commercial Director, and Dionysios Konidaris, Head of IHM Department at EPE talked to Robban Assafina about EPE’s plan to further expand its decarbonisation portfolio in the near future.

In your view, what impact will the challenges of digitalisation and decarbonisation have on the industry, and what are EPE’s top priorities in these areas? 

Ioannis Korovesis: The challenges of digitalisation and decarbonisation go hand in hand and will have a significant impact on the shipping industry. With the recent implementation of regulations such as the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) and the International Maritime Organization’s Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), ship owners are having to pay special attention to reducing their emissions.

Reporting emissions in line with the EU ETS and CII requires data collection, which is also key to identifying areas for improvement using efficiency-enhancing tools.

EPE has been active in the field of decarbonisation for around two years, and our priority for the years ahead is to establish new partnerships and expand our product portfolio with new additions to help the shipping community meet the challenges of the green transition.

To this end, we recently launched a package of decarbonisation solutions to facilitate data acquisition and boost ship performance in line with the CII and other environmental regulations.

For example, AMIO Coriolis Flow Meters can help to improve CII ratings by providing accurate fuel consumption data, and Datum’s Shaft Power Meter Systems offer real-time and ongoing power monitoring data on propulsion shafts, thrusters, and diesel generators. Meanwhile, Metis Ship Connect enables automated data acquisition as a service, with continuous data flow and a high degree of data quality and reliability. By providing insight into onboard machinery and equipment, EPE supports accurate decision-making for more efficient operations.

Meanwhile, NaviPULSE variable-frequency drive (VFD) upgrade directly enhances energy efficiency by optimizing the performance of electric motors. Ultrasonic Antifouling from HASYTEC uses ‘Dynamic Biofilm Protection Intelligent®’ (DBPI®) technology to prevent marine growth and biofouling on all liquid-carrying surfaces, thereby reducing fuel consumption and helping to improve CII ratings. Finally, LED Lighting upgrades are designed according to relevant standards and class rules to provide highly efficient lighting with less energy consumption.

Together, our decarbonisation solutions represent an attractive and cost-effective package for reducing a vessel’s environmental impact and improving its CII rating. However, since decarbonisation is a long-term, ever-evolving challenge, we plan to further expand our decarbonisation portfolio in the near future.

How does the EPE IHM platform perform and what are the key benefits for owners/suppliers?

Dionysios Konidaris: EPE’s Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) platform, HAZDASH, is an intelligent cloud-based platform managed by highly skilled hazmat experts that allows ship owners and suppliers to exchange information securely to ensure a vessel’s IHM is kept fully up to date.

The IHM process begins with the ship owner or manager providing purchase order (PO) data for EPE to review and identify relevant POs that fall within the scope of IHM maintenance. EPE’s hazmat experts then request the Material Declarations (MD) and Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity (SDoC) pertaining to the POs identified, which the supplier either uploads to HAZDASH or generates within the platform.

Next, EPE experts review the documents provided. If any hazardous materials are identified, a notification is sent to the vessel, and the IHM and log are automatically updated. All information is available anywhere, at any time, ready for auditing by recognised organisations or Port State Control.

HAZDASH is a cost-effective platform that streamlines the IHM maintenance process for both shipowners and suppliers. It can be connected to a vessel’s enterprise resource planning system to instantly notify users of new orders and creates an online library of all incoming MDs and SDoCs with the relevant PO information.

For suppliers, HAZDASH removes the burden of uploading documentation for each individual order and, thanks to relevancy checks carried out by the system’s smart filter function, prevents unnecessary requests being issued. Suppliers can easily browse IHM document requests and create a product catalogue to ensure the documents are readily available to all stakeholders.

Furthermore, suppliers can generate all the documentation for a vessel’s order at the click of a button by using the HAZDASH agent – a smart feature that automatically generates and collates the required IHM documentation from the supplier’s HAZDASH catalogue.

What is your key message to industry stakeholders to collaborate with EPE on IHM?

Dionysios Konidaris: In addition to the EU Ship Recycling Regulation (SRR), which came into effect on 31 December 2020, ship owners will have to comply with the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships (HKC) when it enters into force on 26 June 2025.

HAZDASH streamlines the IHM process to offer a quick, simple, and cost-effective path to compliance with both the EU SRR and the HKC, with users further benefiting from EPE’s extensive experience and track record. Having contributed to the protection of the marine environment for over 45 years, we have also performed numerous IHM surveys on board vessels since 2006.

Crucially, EPE is approved as an IHM Service Supplier by five major classification societies – DNV, Lloyd’s Register, American Bureau of Shipping, Korean Register, and Bureau Veritas – and recognised as an IHM Expert Company by the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Liberian Registry. 

As a member of ARCA (Asbestos Removal Contractors Association), EPE is also licensed to remove and manage asbestos wastes. 

EPE is also a member of International Ship Recycling Association (ISRA), while its highly experienced surveyors are approved as HazMat Experts by IACS-members Classifications Societies and hold certificates from Lloyd’s Maritime Academy and the British Occupational Hygiene Society for Ship Recycling and surveying asbestos, respectively.

Furthermore, EPE is certified according to the ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001:2018, and SA 8000:2014 international standards for the identification, sampling, reporting, and preparation of IHM. 

Nevertheless, it is important to point out that IHM is only one component of the EU SRR and HKC. As their names suggest, both regulations cover ship recycling more broadly. Here, too, EPE offers a range of services, meaning we are able to monitor the vessel recycling process to ensure safety and compliance throughout.

In summary, choosing EPE as your IHM partner is choosing a cost-effective, reliable solution that saves significant time and effort in complying with hazmat and ship-recycling regulations.

How important is the Middle East region for EPE?

Ioannis Korovesis: More and more shipping companies are moving their operations to the Dubai maritime cluster, attracted as they are by the favourable tax regime and fast-improving infrastructure. EPE has a close and long-standing relationship with the United Arab Emirates and will invest further time and resources into the country and wider Middle East region as its importance on the world stage continues to grow.

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	Issue 91 of Robban Assafina (May/ June 2024)