Ship hulls should be protected with a system that lends itself to fast, effective cleaning without risk of damage to the coating and without posing any kind of hazard to the environment. Ecospeed is this system.
There is currently no hull coating available which will not foul. The only way to remove this fouling is to clean it off. The Ecospeed coating has a glassy surface that was designed to be washed without being damaged. This enables fast and efficient fouling control throughout a ship’s entire service life.
Fast and easy cleaning
Underwater maintenance
Underwater maintenance of Ecospeed is carried out with specially designed underwater hull cleaning tools that simultaneously remove all fouling and optimize the smoothness of the paint surface. It allows divers to clean the flat areas as well as the harder to reach parts of the hull without damaging the coating.
One of the many unique characteristics is that with repeated underwater hull cleaning Ecospeed’s surface improves. Cleaning can be carried out whenever needed, at any point in the coating’s lifespan.
High-pressure cleaning in drydock
Ecospeed can also be cleaned in drydock with high pressure tools. The coating is always in an as new, excellent condition after a high pressure washing and no material is lost. Only the fouling is removed. The coating stays on the ship instead of dispersing in the water and contaminating the shipyard and the surrounding waters.
Several Subsea Industries customers use this method to have their vessels cleaned. Their ships are taken out of the water, cleaned with high pressure tools and put back in the water in a matter of hours. They all said that this approach helped them get through the financial crisis.
Fewer drydockings
There has been a trend of extending the maximum drydock interval to seven and a half years or even ten years, if a stringent set of rules is followed. One of the requirements is a very strict underwater maintenance plan. Ecospeed’s qualities make the coating ideally suited for such a regime. Regular underwater cleaning will maintain and improve the ideal surface characteristics. The biggest barriers to ships staying out of drydock for seven and a half or more years are dealing with biofouling and maintaining hull coating integrity. Ecospeed allows ship owners and operators to overcome both these barriers.
Long lay-up periods have no negative effect
The coating is also suited for ships which have a stationary period because an impermeable and impenetrable barrier is created. This gives the coating its excellent and durable anti-corrosive properties and protects the underwater hull against mechanical damage. Despite the aggressive nature of certain types of fouling, no corrosion or damage to the steel will be present on the underwater hull of the vessel after cleaning. Hard fouling is unable to penetrate or damage the coating.
Environmentally safe
Toxic-free
Ecospeed is 100% non-toxic and there is no negative effect on the water quality or the marine environment during maintenance.
The definite biofouling solution: clean before you go
The underwater cleaning of Ecospeed prevents the spread of biofouling entirely. The cleaning frequency is optimized to minimize fouling. This prevents macrofouling from building up.
Removal of the ban on underwater cleanings
Several major ports have overturned the existing general ban on underwater hull cleaning, specifically making an exception for vessels coated with Ecospeed.
Conclusion
Ecospeed is an entirely different, more cost-effective and environmentally acceptable approach to hull protection and anti-fouling.
There is no need to reblast and recoat the hull; no corrosion, no impact on the environment and, if regular hull cleaning is carried out, fuel savings of up to 50% can be achieved.