Bureau Veritas launches Underwater Radiated Noise notation

Leading international classification society Bureau Veritas has developed a voluntary notation intended to assist shipbuilders and operators reduce underwater noise radiating from ships. The comprehensive set of standards and measuring services is grouped as NR614 Underwater Radiated Noise (URN). It aims to control and limit the environmental impact on marine fauna of all self-propelled ships and provide a standard and a system to assess compliance with specific vessel requirements for underwater radiated noise.

It covers both shallow and deep water conditions, sets out a dedicated comprehensive measurement procedure, explains how to manage measurement uncertainties and sets specific underwater noise level requirements.

Jean-Francois Segretain, technical director, Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore Division, says, “Underwater noise radiating from ships is acoustic pollution, and there is no doubt that it will be the next big area to be tackled by regulators. This notation, backed by careful research with an extensive network of partners, means we can help designers, yards and operators to be ahead of regulation. And it makes commercial sense. Reducing underwater noise directly contributes to reduced noise and vibration levels on board, which improves passenger and crew comfort. There is also a strong link between fuel efficiency and noise. Quieter ships burn less, and we can help make ships quieter and so more efficient.”

One of the main drivers of the notation is to aid European stakeholders in fulfilling the requirements of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. This aims to improve the environmental state of European waters by proposing mitigation solutions to be put in place by 2016, with their efficiency proved by 2020. The BV notation has been issued in parallel with the European research project AQUO, which is focused on underwater noise, and includes the work of 13 partners - shipyards, hydrodynamics research institutes and bio-acoustic experts - from eight countries, and an end user committee has been built to review the project, including BV's notation.

Several new expedition cruise projects have underwater noise reduction in their specifications and other passenger ship operators are discussing BV’s URN notation and its services and technical assistance for implementing noise reduction solutions. Bureau Veritas has signed a collaboration agreement with TSI S.L. a Spanish company that specialises in Dynamic and Acoustical design of quiet ships as well as noise and vibration measurements.

For a copy of NR614 e mail john@merlinco.com

Bureau Veritas is a world leader in conformity assessment and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has 61,000 employees in around 1,330 offices and laboratories located in 140 countries. Bureau Veritas helps its clients to improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility.

www.bureauveritas.com for corporate information www.veristar.com for marine information

For more information:


Philippe Boisson
Bureau Veritas
+33 (0)1 55 24 71 98
philippe.boisson@bureauveritas.com

RINA tackles ocean noise pollution

International classification society RINA has acted to tackle noise pollution of the seas by developing a voluntary notation which will apply to vessels for which efforts have been made to mitigate underwater noise.

Paolo Moretti, Head of the Marine Business Line, RINA Services, says, “Noise is the new pollution. The international community has raised concern that the underwater noise generated by commercial shipping may have negative consequences on marine life, especially marine mammals. RINA is tackling that with a new voluntary notation, DOLPHIN, which gives shipowners a clear option to specify commercial vessels which have implemented solutions to minimize radiated underwater noise.”

IMO has recently published MEPC Circ. 833 “Guidelines For The Reduction Of Underwater Noise From Commercial Shipping To Address Adverse Impacts On Marine Life” which sets out advice on design and operational solutions that may be adopted to reduce underwater radiated noise.

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has developed the (ISO/PAS) 17208-1 – Acoustics – Quantities and procedures for description and measurement of underwater sound from ships – Part 1: General requirements for measurements in deep water and ISO/DIS 16554 – Ship and marine technology – Measurement and reporting of underwater sound radiated from merchant ships – deep-water measurement.

RINA has combined these standards into the DOLPHIN notation, which will be applicable from 1 July 2014. It has been developed in response to demand from clients who operate in sensitive marine areas and who wish to demonstrate that they have acted to mitigate the impact of their vessels.

The notation will only be granted to vessels which comply fully with both sets of regulations. The notation will give requirements on instrumentation, site and procedures to carry out the measurements, and will describe the information and post-processing activities necessary for reporting. Limits both for when the ship is underway and quiet ship operational modes are established.

RINA Services is able to provide sound radiation evaluation services, including underwater sound radiation, and measurements and design recommendations to reduce aerial noise and underwater noise.

Visit RINA at Posidonia Stand No 3.211

RINA Services S.p.A. is the RINA group company active in classification, certification, inspection and testing services. RINA is a multi-national group which delivers verification, certification, conformity assessment, marine classification, environmental enhancement, product testing, site and vendor supervision, training and engineering consultancy across a wide range of industries and services. RINA operates through a network of companies covering Marine, Energy, Infrastructures & Construction, Transport & Logistics, Food & Agriculture, Environment & Sustainability, Finance & Public Institutions and Business Governance. With a turnover of around 280 million Euros in 2012, over 2,500 employees, and 150 offices in 53 countries worldwide, RINA is recognized as an authoritative member of key international organizations and an important contributor to the development of new legislative standards. www.rina.org.

For more information:

Giulia Faravelli

Media Relations Manager RINA

+39 010 5385505

giulia.faravelli@rina.org

Susanna Gorni

Media Relations RINA

+39 010 5385555

susanna.gorni@rina.org