ClassNK News

Tokyo-based classification society - ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to a CII management solution called Bearing CII Optimizer, developed by Bearing, Inc. In order to promote the spread and development of innovative technologies, ClassNK has offered Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions. ClassNK supports the deployment of products and services through third-party certification for equipment and software technology with innovative functi...

ClassNK has issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for a cargo containment system (CCS) and cargo handling system (CHS) for a liquefied hydrogen carrier developed by GTT. Hydrogen is expected to be used as a source of clean energy for decarbonisation since it does not emit CO2 when combusted. The technological development for maritime hydrogen transportation is progressing actively with the aim of establishing a hydrogen supply chain.  Review of CCS and CHS ClassNK carried out the design...

Tokyo-based classification society, ClassNK has released the latest ‘ClassNK Technical Journal’, which has been published for contributing to the advancement of technology and society through the outcome of R&D and technical activities. ‘ClassNK Technical Journal’ The latest issue - ‘ClassNK Technical Journal No.7 2023 (I)’ focuses on efforts toward the safe operation of progressively larger container ships. It provides an overview of structural rules ap...

ClassNK has issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for an ammonia and liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carrier which has been jointly developed by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line). Ammonia is projected to be widely used as a source of clean energy for decarbonisation since it does not emit CO2 when combusted, and is expected to be increasingly transported by sea. On the other hand, efforts toward carbon dioxide capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS), a pro...

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a part of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) has been granted Approval in Principle (AiP) from the Japanese classification society ClassNK for a ship that can transport ammonia and liquefied CO2 (LCO2). LCO2 carriers play an important role as one of the means of efficiently transporting captured and liquefied CO2 to storage sites or effective use sites in the CCUS (Carbon dioxide Capture, Utilisation and S...

ClassNK has received approval from the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP) to accept HermAce developed by FURUNO ELECTRIC CO., LTD (FURUNO) as an alternative for the onboard Annual Performance Test (APT) of the Voyage Data Recorder (VDR). It is now possible to conduct VDR APT remotely for Panamanian-flagged vessels registered with ClassNK.  Checking remote diagnosis SOLAS requires a VDR to have an APT with a qualified engineer visiting the vessel annually to check the operation and record vo...

Tokyo –based classification society, ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to cyber-security service for ships called FSE (Fleet Secure Endpoint), provided by JSAT MOBILE Communications Inc. In order to promote the spread and development of innovative technologies, ClassNK has offered Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions. ClassNK supports the deployment of products and services through third-party certification for equipment and softwar...

NYK Line, IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd. (IHI Power Systems), Nihon Shipyard Co., Ltd. (Nihon Shipyard), Japan Engine Corporation, and Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) (hereafter, “the consortium”) are pleased to announce that the world’s first four-stroke ammonia-fuelled engine has successfully completed a land-based test for the stable combustion of fuel ammonia having an 80% co-firing ratio, as part of a demonstration project for the commercialisation of vessels equipped with a do...

Tokyo – based classification society, ClassNK has released its new white paper – ‘Towards MASS social implementation’. Regarding the development of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), various efforts gaining momentum worldwide, including the Nippon Foundation MEGURI 2040 Fully Autonomous Ship Program. The push for international rule establishment has been further intensified as the IMO MSC has agreed on a work plan to set forth mandatory requirements effective fro...

Tokyo-based classification society, ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to a Ship Support Solution called MaSSA-One developed by BEMAC Corporation. In order to promote the spread and development of innovative technologies, ClassNK has offered Innovation Endorsement as a swift certification service in cooperation with technological front runners, in order to establish appropriate evaluation criteria. Among the certification categories, ‘Products &...

Tokyo-based classification society, ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to an onboard data platform called TMIP (TERASAKI Marine Information Platform), developed by Terasaki Electric Co., Ltd. In order to promote the spread and development of innovative technologies, ClassNK has offered Innovation Endorsement as a swift certification service, in cooperation with technological front runners to establish appropriate evaluation criteria. Among the certificat...

Tokyo-based classification society, ClassNK has released ‘Guidelines for Shipboard CO2 Capture and Storage Systems’. The guidelines include provisions for indicating the class notation for vessels equipped with CO2 capture and storage systems or designed as ‘ready’ for their installation. In addition to fuel transition, interest in capturing CO2 from ships’ exhaust gas is growing as a way to reduce GHG emissions, and the development of onboard systems for capturing...

Tokyo – based classification society, ClassNK has released ‘Guidelines for Additional Fire-fighting Measures for Container Carrier’, which specify requirements for indicating additional fire safety measures on container carriers as a class notation. With the expansion of logistics and the growth in ship sizes, the characteristics and loading methods of cargo carried by ships have increasingly diversified. To achieve a higher level of safety, efforts are being made to implement...

ClassNK has released new features for its GHG Emissions Management Tool, ‘ClassNK ZETA (Zero Emission Transition Accelerator)’. ClassNK ZETA ClassNK ZETA is a tool for visualising CO2 emissions and CII ratings of ships. It provides accurate current status and simulation of CII ratings by linking with ‘ClassNK MRV Portal’, which is a compliance supporting system for MRV schemes, such as IMO-DCS and EU-MRV regulation. The following three features are newly released: C...

Tokyo-based classification society, ClassNK has issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for an ammonia fuelled gas carrier, which has been jointly developed by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING Co., Ltd., and Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Ammonia is expected to be used as a ship fuel for decarbonisation, since it does not emit CO2 when combusted. Meanwhile, adequate safety measures are imperative, as it has been pointed out that ammonia is toxic to humans and corrosive to...

Tokyo-based Classification Society, ClassNK has granted the Class C Innovation Endorsement Provider Certification to FUKUJIN KISEN CO., LTD, a ship-owning company based in Ehime, Japan. ClassNK offers its third-party Innovation Endorsement ‘Provider Certification’, which supports innovative initiatives, to companies and organisations. ClassNK's third-party certification ClassNK conducts the third-party certification on the initiatives to transform their own business methods As co...

Tokyo – Leading Classification Society, ClassNK granted the Class C Innovation Endorsement Provider Certification to Yusen Logistics Co., Ltd. ClassNK offers its third-party Innovation Endorsement ‘Provider Certification’, which supports innovative initiatives, to companies and organisations. As companies pursue ESG-oriented management and SDGs, ClassNK conducts third-party certification on the initiatives to transform their own business methods and organisations to establish...

Tokyo-based Classification Society, ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to HermAce Remote Monitoring & Troubleshooting Platform, developed by FURUNO ELECTRIC CO., LTD (FURUNO) and issued a certificate to the company. In addition, for ClassNK registered ships flagged with the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), the HermAce voyage data recorder (VDR) digital twin and remote service has been accepted as an alternative to the onboard VDR Annual Perfor...

Tokyo-based classification society - ClassNK has released ‘Guidelines for Container Stowage and Securing Arrangements (Edition 3.0)’ and ‘Guidelines for Parametric Roll Countermeasures’, in order to achieve safer and more efficient marine transportation of containers. Responding to rapid increases in the size of container ships and advances in lashing technology, the ‘Guidelines for Container Stowage and Securing Arrangements (Edition 3.0)’, which have provid...

Tokyo-based classification society - ClassNK has granted its Innovation Endorsement for Products & Solutions to an object recognition system on machine vision and sensor fusion called Groke Pro, developed by Groke Technologies Oy. In order to promote the spread and development of innovative technologies, ClassNK has offered Innovation Endorsement as a swift certification service, in cooperation with technological front runners to establish appropriate evaluation criteria. Among the certifi...

NAPA, a maritime software and data analysis expert, and classification society - Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) have announced the results of a joint study conducted with Marubeni Corporation, which has measured the impact of voyage optimisation on the greenhouse gas emissions and Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) ratings of a real-life fleet. The research found that a vessel’s fuel consumption and CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 7.3% by using NAPA Voyage Optimisation. Moreover, the a...

Tokyo-based Classification Society, ClassNK has issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for a large ammonia fuelled 210,000 DWT bulk carrier, which has been jointly developed by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) and MITSUI & CO., LTD (MITSUI). Ammonia is expected to be used as a ship fuel for decarbonisation, since it does not emit CO2 when combusted. Meanwhile, adequate safety measures are imperative, as it has been pointed out that ammonia is toxic to humans and corrosive to materials. Class...

Singapore Shipping Association (SSA) and ClassNK have signed a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) to establish a framework for cooperation in cyber security research activities. Cyber security has been acknowledged by the maritime industry as a key element to keep ships safe during operations, and to ensure its solid and steady digital transformation in coming years. Singapore, being a global maritime hub that connects regional and global markets, is ideally positioned for such research activiti...

Tokyo-based Classification Society – ClassNK has issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for a dual fuel generator engine using hydrogen gas as fuel and related machinery systems and arrangements for a 160,000 m3 liquefied hydrogen carrier developed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI). This marks ClassNK’s first AiP for a dual fuel generator engine using hydrogen gas as fuel. As hydrogen is expected to be used as a clean energy source to realise a decarbonised society, ClassNK ha...

The Maritime Technologies Forum (MTF) of which DNV is a founding member has released a comprehensive assessment to compare the feasibility and readiness of alternative marine fuels. The new heatmap report assesses the level of current readiness of fossil LNG, bio-methanol, and green ammonia compared to fossil MGO. Assessment framework The assessment applied MTF’s Framework for Assessing Decarbonisation Technologies and Alternative Energy Carriers to fossil MGO, fossil LNG, bio-methanol,...

Representatives from maritime and energy organisations convened in Sydney in October with the aim of accelerating the development of a green corridor for the transportation of iron ore between Australia and East Asia (the Australia-East Asia Iron Ore Green Corridor) and identifying key actions to fuel the clean shipping of iron ore by matching emerging clean ammonia supply with industry demand. Net-zero-emission shipping solutions In June 2022, 13 members of the Getting to Zero Coalition and A...

NYK Group company MTI Co., Ltd., Japan Marine United Corporation, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group company Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., Furuno Electric Co., Ltd., Japan Radio Co., Ltd., BEMAC Corporation, ClassNK, and NAPA Ltd., have come together to establish the ‘Maritime and Ocean Digital Engineering’ (MODE) cooperation programme at the University of Tokyo from October 1. The programme aims to promote and enhance digital engineering technology and skills for the mari...

Tokyo-based Classification Society - ClassNK has released the latest ‘ClassNK Technical Journal’, which has been published for contributing to the development of the maritime industry, through the outcome of R&D (Research & Development) and technical activities. ClassNK Technical Journal The latest issue ‘ClassNK Technical Journal No.5 2022 (I)’ focuses on ‘Zero-Emission Ships’, including efforts of the planning and design of next-generation greener...

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, has completed the conceptual design of a Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC), initially powered by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), but adaptable to future use of ammonia as the main fuel. Approval in Principle (AIP) for the design has been acquired from the Japanese classification society - ClassNK. Conceptual design of VLGC The conceptual design of an LPG-powered VLGC enabling future conversion to ammonia fuel was...

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) have been granted Approval in Principle (AiP)(Note) from the Japanese classification society ClassNK for the joint development of CO2 transport technology for liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carriers. LCO2 carriers transport liquefied CO2 at low temperature and high pressure, which is contained in the cargo tank system. Compliance with regulations Since the design of cargo c...