Moving from antifouling products to antifouling services

Jotun’s Hull Skating Solutions (HSS), is described as a break-through in proactive cleaning, ‘offering shipowners an always clean hull in the most challenging operations’.

The offering consists of high performance antifouling, proactive condition monitoring, inspection and proactive cleaning, high end technical service, and performance and service level guarantees. HSS is claimed by Jotun to be the first solution of its kind within the maritime industry. It provides individual proactive condition monitoring services tailored for each vessel, using a proprietary algorithm and big data to accurately predict fouling development and cleaning schedules.

With a comprehensive range of guarantees and service level agreements available, HSS solves the problem of biofouling once and for all, helping shipowners steer a more profitable and sustainable path into the future. If all ships in challenging operations converted to HSS, this would result in a CO2 emissions reduction of at least 40 million tons per year.

A primary component of Jotun Hull Skating Solutions is the ground-breaking, onboard Jotun HullSkater, the first robotic technology that has been purposely designed for proactive cleaning. In combination with the premium SeaQuantum Skate antifouling and a set of services, the Jotun Hull Skating Solutions will help ship operators combat early stages of fouling, significantly reduce fuel costs, CO2 emissions and the spread of invasive species.

THE HULLSKATER
The HullSkater removes individual bacteria and biofilm before macro-fouling takes hold. This not only delivers peak performance, and unlimited idle days for shipowners, but minimizes the need for reactive cleaning, cutting costs, environmental risk and optimizing fleet flexibility. The HullSkater stays on the hull by the force of its magnetic wheels, each equipped with electric motors for propulsion and steering. The vehicle has several cameras and sensors, supporting the operator with data for navigation and documenting fouling on the ship hull. The specially designed motorized brush keeps the hull free from fouling without causing erosion or damage to the hull coating. The vehicle is connected to the operator’s control centre through an umbilical and can be operated remotely for vessels anywhere in the world with 4G coverage. Inspection and proactive cleaning of a hull will normally take around 2 to 8 hours depending on size and condition.

PROACTIVE PREVENTION
“Bio-fouling is a big challenge for the shipping industry,” comments Geir Axel Oftedahl, Business Development Director in Jotun. “It increases frictional resistance leading to speed loss and greater fuel consumption, while at the same time increasing the risk of the transfer of aquatic invasive species. It is a burden to the industry, and our planet, and demands decisive action.”

“That was our starting point in the conception of HSS – a desire to create a definitive solution to this pressing issue, one that wouldn’t just deal with the problem, but rather prevent it. That is what hull skating achieves.”

This represents a significant change in the business model for a company like Jotun, and one that is well justified in terms of environmental concerns and legislation, both current and upcoming. It is brave indeed when your core business is selling antifoul to embrace a technology that will result in selling less of it. In taking a wider view of the market and keeping share of the overall business that is solving the problem of vessel hull fouling in an environmentally responsible way, Jotun could be sowing the seeds for continued success in what could have been a rapidly shrinking market.

By Jake Frith