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UK Risk Focus - Hatch Covers WEB
UK Risk Focus - Hatch Covers WEB
HATCH COVERS
CONTENTS
Introduction 1
History 2
The International Convention on Load Lines 2
and Weathertightness
Manufacture and design 3
Hatch cover design 3
Hatch covers and tightness 3
Ship movements 4
Key parts: 4-12
Packing rubbers
Bearing pads
Locators
Stoppers
Draining system
Securing mechanism
Compression bars
Operating mechanisms
Hatch panels
Hatch cover maintenance 12
Training issues: 13-14
Occupational safety training
Operational training
Inspection training
We further note that ICLL states The load line shall never be
submerged at any time when the ship puts to sea, during the
voyage or on arrival.
Different plies of tarpaulins used for making hatch The idea behind the above statements is that a ship should
covers weathertight never be overloaded as this would reduce the vessels
freeboard which is crucial for the ships safety.
The ICLL also states that the vessels hatch covers need to
be weathertight. This means that in any sea conditions, water
should not enter the ships hold, as this would add additional
weight to the vessel and could lead to overloading (submerging
of the loadline) which would put the ship in danger. For this
reason, and under the ICLL, it is a prerequisite that the ships
hatch covers are weathertight in order to prevent water entry
into the ships holds.
It is clear that developing packing rubbers that are fit for duty
and retain their flexibility throughout their in-service life is not
easy. Such rubbers also require proper and correct
maintenance in line with manufacturers guidelines.
They also prevent other structural parts like wheels and axles
from taking up the load acting on the panels. Furthermore,
bearing pads contribute to proper alignment/adjustment of
the panels and transfer the load into the deck structure.
Finally, in case of wear, they can relatively easily be repaired
and restored to their original height.
Considerable force is required to bring the panels down to Knowing that there is a relative movement between the hatch
the rubber packing design compression, but on most modern covers and the coaming, bearing pads should also allow for
ships, the weight of the panels alone is sufficient to achieve some movement between the mating halves of the bearing
the required design compression. pad system. To prevent wear and corrosion that would
prevent sliding action between the mating halves, compatible
Whilst the original design will cater for some slight variations steel needs to be used. Bearing pads are available in
in compression (due to waviness of coaming or compression different sizes and materials, and their wear will depend on
bar), the criteria for discarding a packing rubber is, as a rule of their position and loads. This means that not all bearing pads
thumb, generally considered to be equal to 50% of the design will wear down to the same extent simultaneously, and
compression. So if the design compression is 12mm, it is require regular checking/inspection to determine if allowable
recommended to discard the rubber packing when the wear limits have been exceeded and if repairs or replacement
permanent imprint has reached a depth of 6mm. When are necessary. The use of low-friction material is
renewing the rubber packing, it is important to find out what recommended to allow for smooth movement between
caused the permanent set to develop. Whilst several years are panels and coaming, and to avoid the disturbing noise that is
needed to achieve the discard limit as a result of normal wear created by friction between ordinary steel to steel pads.
and tear, improperly maintained and adjusted hatch covers
will generally cause accelerated wear and deep permanent Bearing pads are fine pieces of engineering and replacing
imprint. In the latter case, replacing the rubber packing alone them with non-original spares or non-compatible steel could
will not solve the problem and finding the root cause of the result in serious problems. Far too often bearing pads are
problem is necessary to ensure that repairs will be efficient. replaced or repaired by the ships crew with only one thing in
mind, i.e. restoring the height of the bearing pads, whereby
Whenever packing rubbers need replacing, it is tempting to the correct size and use of appropriate material for the mating
look for alternative (cheaper) products but, when doing so, it surfaces is overlooked. For bearing pad adjustment, it is
is extremely important to ensure that not only the dimensions
are compatible, but also that the alternative product will
meet with the required performance criteria, which may not
always be the case (in many cases, it is true to say that
a cheap packing rubber is not good and a good packing
rubber is not cheap).
Bearing pads
Whilst many people think that bearing pads take up all the
loads that are acting on the hatch covers, it should be borne
in mind that the rubber packing has a compression force that
takes up part of this load as well.
Locators
Locators guide the panel in its correct closing position and Replaceable locator pads
ensure that panels are kept properly positioned during the
voyage. Correct positioning is important to avoid problems Stoppers
with opening systems, wheels, hinges, cross joint drains,
securing mechanisms, etc, and slight wear on the locators in While a vessel is at sea, panels are exposed to a number of
one place might well result in significant loss of compression powerful forces, including loads and accelerations, as well as
or improper positioning at another place. Therefore, locator waves from the ocean, which will try to dislocate them from
wear should also be regularly monitored. their correct sealing positions. With this in mind, it is
The drain system is the last safety barrier to water entry through
the sealing system in a weathertight hatch cover system. If
water enters the hatches it will be collected in the drain
channel and expelled via the drain pipe. Regular inspections
and maintenance of the drain channels and pipes needs to
be conducted to ensure they continue to be effective.
Securing mechanism
Compression bars
Temporary repair
(rubber patch and
jubilee clip) and
shipboard made
systems to contain
hydraulic oil
leakage from
hydraulic piping
and cylinders
Operating mechanisms
Transversally
Inwards 2 x 25mm
Outwards 2 x 15mm
Bad and dangerous practices (sitting/walking on coaming,
putting hand on trackway). Crew should be familiarised Longitudinally
with hatch covers, their operation and safety issues Warping over the ships breadth 40mm
Hogging/sagging 0.6mm/m
This is also recognised by the CSWP (2015 edition) where
Ch. 16 addresses a wide variety of hatch cover related issues Inspection training
in Ch. 16.2.8 where it is stated that All personnel involved
with the handling and/or operation of hatch covers should be Training for inspecting hatch covers in a proper way should
properly instructed in their handling and operation. All stages be considered as well.
of opening or closing hatches should be supervised by a
responsible person. In practice, however, it is often seen that Whilst it is beyond the ship officers duties to examine hatch
no proper familiarisation programme that covers hatch cover covers in the same way as experts or servicing personnel,
work is available on board. providing the ships staff with some useful information on the
role of key parts, such as what to look for, how to make a
In view of the different types of hatch covers (and operating proper inspection prior to going to sea (and making
conditions) involved, a one size fits all hatch cover training is not corresponding entries in the logbook as ultimate proof of due
applicable. It is therefore recommended that the company uses diligence) is not a big effort, and would greatly contribute to
the makers manuals for drafting guidelines about correct hatch ship and cargo safety and reduce claims.
cover operation. Also, and if deemed necessary under specific
circumstances, making a risk assessment should be considered. For superintendents, port captains and surveyors, a more
enhanced training should be considered. Such training
Operational training should not only deal with the obvious mishaps, but should
provide a more profound understanding of hatch cover
Apart from the correct operation of the hatch covers from a problems, inspections and planning for drydock, repairs,
safety point of view, the conditions under which hatch discussing repairs with shipyards, etc. Advanced courses
covers can (or cannot) be safely operated should also be are organised by the IMCS Training Academy (see hatch
known and understood. cover level 2 training course and workshop on
In view of the above, hose tests may not be the ideal testing
method to ensure that the hatch covers sealing system is fit
for service, especially when considering cargo safety, as they
do not provide information on the packing rubber
compression. When it comes to checking sealing systems for
compression, ultrasound testing may provide additional
information and evidence.
Ultrasonic tests
Filling up of interpanel void space with water from a fire Transmitter being placed in the ships hold
hose without a nozzle
Once the hatch covers are closed, the operator scans the
This will allow hydrostatic pressure to build up on top of the sealing areas of the closed hatch covers (cross joints and
packing rubber/compression bar interface, and in case of perimeter rubber/compression bar interface) with the receiver
leakage, water that passes through a leaky area would be unit and will detect ultrasound signals that are passing
collected in the drain channel and evacuated out on deck through the seal with pin point accuracy, which allows for
through the drain valve. (Note: Perimeter joints would still quick and easy detection of leaky areas.
require a water jet for testing). Therefore, water that is seen
leaking out of the drain valve during a hose test is an indication Ultrasound testing is based on the characteristics of a piezo
of problems with the packing rubber/compression bar electrical crystal, which vibrates when subject to an
interface. As a lot of water is generated during hose tests, it electrical current and which, when squeezed, discharges an
may not always be easy to see if water is leaking out of the electrical current, which can easily be measured.
drain, and therefore, it is recommended to put a plastic bag
at the discharge end of the drain valve. This bag will, in case
of leakage, fill up with water and provide evidence that there
is a problem with the hatch covers sealing arrangements.
In order to obtain an idea of the importance of a leak, a Other advantages offered by ultrasound tightness testing are:
reference value is useful. This reference value is found in the
One man operation (observe safety!)
form of an open hatch value (OHV), which is the ultrasound
signal that is measured through an open hatch, i.e. a big No pollution risk
hole. The value measured through the open hatch will be
Not limitated by temperature/weather
quite significant, and is, in fact, the highest value one can find
for a particular hold (the measurements recorded during the Possible during day/night
test will and can normally not be more than the OHV). The
Pinpoint accuracy
fail-pass criteria for an ultrasonic test has been set at 10% of
the OHV and not 0%, which provides an acceptable Quick and easy to use
tolerance for a certain degree of wear on the sealing system.
Holds can be loaded/emptied
The biggest advantage of ultrasound testing is that the test A clear pass/fail criteria can be set resulting in
results give an indication of not only the contact with the enhanced safety
packing rubber, but also the compression of it. If compression
Professional test report can be generated in a few
is good, then we know that the packing rubber has sufficient
seconds
compression force, which means that the rubber packing will
be able to compensate for relative movements and, as such, The test is (or should preferably be) carried out by a
provide a tight seal. The fact that we can find out whether the qualified operator
rubber will perform well at sea whilst the ship is still in port
provides extra safety. Moreover, in hatch cover tightness, However, this is not completely correct as it is impossible to
compression is the governing factor and not contact. say that hatch covers are weathertight on the basis of an
ultrasonic test alone. This is because, with ultrasound testing,
only the sealing arrangement is tested. Whilst this is indeed
an extremely important part of the hatch cover arrangement,
the sealing arrangement alone does not make a hatch cover
weathertight.
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Mechanical mistakes
Ignore abnormal sounds/vibration during operation
No greasing, no greasing plan
On board repairs instead of ashore
Ignoring safety issues (heavy and moving equipment)
Hydraulic mistakes
Cleaning filter instead of changing it
Improper filtering
Close covers without pump
Change pipes without flushing
Valve positions during voyage
Ignore leaks and pollution risk
Ignore high pressure risk
The Author
After leaving the sea in 1988, Walter Vervloesem (FNI)
redirected his career and became a marine surveyor and
consultant. He joined IMCS Belgium in 1995, and became
Chairman of the IMCS Group in 2001. He pioneered the use
of ultrasonic tightness testing back in the late eighties and
early nineties, and is the training instructor for the SDT-IMCS
worldwide training program for operators using ultrasonic
tightness testing equipment for testing the weathertight
integrity of hatch covers. In 2011, he founded the IMCS
Training Academy. Walter is the author of several major
reference works published by the Nautical Institute, such as
The Ship Survey and Audit Companion (2000), Hatch
Covers Inspections (2004), Mooring and Anchoring Ships
(2009) and has contributed to many books and articles for
leading maritime organisations.
IMCS Belgium
Noorderlaan 79 bus 6
2030 Antwerp, Belgium
Tel: +32 3 4582930
Mob: +32 475 46 81 63
e-mail: [email protected]
web: www.imcs-group.com
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