Marine fuel management

Marine fuel management

Marine fuel management (MFM) is a multi-level approach to measuring, monitoring, and reporting fuel usage on a boat or ship, with the goals of reducing fuel usage, increasing operational efficiency, and improving fleet management oversight. MFM has grown in importance due to the rising costs of marine fuel[1] and increased governmental pressures to reduce the pollution generated by the world's fleet.[2][3][4]

Effective MFM requires that you know:

  • How much fuel is used
  • How the fuel was used
  • What things impact fuel usage
  • And by how much

Manual methods of measuring fuel usage, i.e. fuel tank dipping or sounding, typically do not tell how much fuel was used:

  • Traveling versus idling while in port or on station
  • By a specific engine (port versus starboard, for example)
  • Performing one job versus another
  • By crew A versus crew B on similar voyages

Without a clear understanding of how fuel is being used, there is no operational baseline from which to compare any kind of fuel conservation tool or activity. Without a baseline, there is no way to determine if conservation strategies are actually working.

MFM allows a fleet owner to track actual fuel consumption and relate fuel consumption to the work performed by the vessel. It supports the analysis of the effectiveness of operating strategies and helps develop a clearer understanding of how well a vessel uses its fuel.

Contents

MFM Main Functional Areas

  • Operational Performance
  • Engineering and Maintenance Management
  • Management Oversight

Operational Performance

Operational performance includes those functional areas that impact the actual performance of a vessel or fleet. It includes fuel monitoring, inventory control, accounting, and engine throttle management.

Fuel Monitoring

Many marine vessels do not provide a way for captain and crew to measure and monitor fuel usage while underway. An optimum system onboard would include the ability to instantaneously monitor fuel burn rates from the wheelhouse. Individual engine and generator burn rates would be included, as well as fuel tank levels. This proactive monitoring would allow the crew to make decisions that positively impact fuel burn rates and efficiency.

Inventory Control

Fuel tanks need to have sensors installed that continuously monitor levels as fuel is taken onboard and burned by engines and generators. Periodically measuring tank levels using traditional manual methods is not accurate enough or timely, given the volumes of fuel that a marine engine can consume. Meters should be installed on transfer lines where fuel is taken onboard or off-loaded.

Accounting

In some parts of the world, fuel theft is an ongoing concern. Consequently, the accurate measurement of fuel taken on board coupled with the fuel actually consumed by engines and generators, is an important part of MFM. Meters should be installed in all fuel transfer lines so accurate fueling data can be captured. This data can then be compared with burn rates to determine whether fuel is being transferred off the vessel secretively.

Beyond fuel theft, many governmental jurisdictions require that all fuel spill incidents be recorded and reported to the local authorities. For example, the Marine Department of the Government of Hong Kong has specific guidelines for responding to accidental marine fuel spills[5] which reflect international requirements as promulgated by MARPOL, the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships.

Additionally, accounting for fuel usage at various points along a voyage provides the ability to tie fuel burn and its associated costs to shipping or container rates. For example, understanding how a vessel burns fuel on certain parts of a voyage, allows the more accurate bidding of container rates so profit margins stay healthy. Consequently, varying shipping rates based on documented fuel usage rates can allow a shipper to bid more aggressively.

A modern marine fuel management system would help in monitoring fuel usage, fuel transfers, bunkering events and could be configured to sound an audible alarm when refilling fuel tanks might lead to a spill.

Throttle Management

Vessel operators have the most control over fuel usage by the way they use the engine(s) throttle. Wind, current, hull condition, load, and propulsion system health can all impact fuel burn both positively or negatively. Some operators choose to lower engine speed, and hence vessel speed, in an attempt to save fuel. However, engine RPM and vessel speed alone are not indicative of total fuel consumption, so arbitrarily lowering engine speed does not guarantee fuel savings. One must do the workflow calculations on how the propulsion system is operating under existing changing conditions and then tie that to fuel consumption. Simply lowering engine RPM does not guarantee an optimum vessel speed setting based on conditions. Some modern fuel management systems are designed to perform these calculations while underway and make recommendations to the vessel master.

Engineering and Maintenance Management

As with any capital asset, manufacturers typically include the standard maintenance practices and procedures needed to keep the asset functioning properly and within design specifications. In many cases, scheduled maintenance routines are based on laboratory or design parameters and do not necessarily represent the optimum. MFM supports proper maintenance on marine engines and generators by using the actual fuel burned or hours operated as the basis for performing maintenance routines. This condition-based maintenance program more accurately reflects the operating environment of the engine, but more importantly, reduces or eliminates unnecessary maintenance work.

Management Oversight

Management functions within MFM include:

  • Vessel performance analysis and overall fleet performance
  • Crew analysis with emphasis on applying lessons learned as best practice across the fleet
  • Key Performance Indicator (KPI) gathering across the fleet to include fuel burned per mile or per ton; throttle settings at various points on a voyage; engine RPMs and exhaust gas analysis; and vessel performance against hull conditions.
  • Fuel management from purchasing to transfers to usage
  • Chartered vessel fuel performance and adherence to contractual obligations

See also

References

  1. ^ Bunkerworld
  2. ^ International Maritime Organization Adopts Program to Control Air Emissions from Oceangoing Vessels [1]
  3. ^ Clean Ports USA
  4. ^ UN-backed Efforts to Reduce Pollution
  5. ^ List of National Operational Contact Points

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Marine energy management — is the application of systematic methods to measure, register and analyze the energy usage of ocean going vessels in specific. The goal of marine energy management is to maximize the (electrical or mechanical) energy generated from the minimum… …   Wikipedia

  • Fuel efficiency — is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the efficiency of a process that converts chemical potential energy contained in a carrier fuel into kinetic energy or work. Overall fuel efficiency may vary per device, which in turn may vary per… …   Wikipedia

  • Management — in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leading or… …   Wikipedia

  • Marine electronics — refers to electronics devices designed and classed for use in the marine environment where even small drops of salt water will destroy electronics devices. Therefore the majority of these types of devices are either water resistant or waterproof …   Wikipedia

  • Fuel oil — An oil tanker taking on bunker fuel. Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the… …   Wikipedia

  • Fuel — For other uses, see Fuel (disambiguation). Wood was one of the first fuels used by humans and is still the primary energy source in much of the world.[citation needed] Fuel is any material that stores …   Wikipedia

  • Marine automobile engine — Volkswagen Marine 3.0 litre V6 TDI 265 6 marine engine. This is a marine modified version of Volkswagen Groups 3.0 V6 24v TDI CR automobile engine. Marine automobile engines are types of automobile petrol or diesel engines that have been… …   Wikipedia

  • Marine safety (USCG) — Marine safety is one of the eleven missions of the United States Coast Guard. Coast Guard personnel inspect commercial vessels, respond to pollution, investigate marine casualties and merchant mariners, manage waterways, and license merchant… …   Wikipedia

  • Fuel pump — should not be confused with fuel dispenser, a device that dispenses fuel into an automobile. A high pressure fuel pump on a Yanmar 2GM20 marine diesel engine. A fuel pump is a frequently (but not always) essential component on a car or other… …   Wikipedia

  • Design management — is the business side of design. Design managers need to speak the language of the business and the language of design …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”