Specialised LNG carrier ClassNK-NAPA GREEN software installed on vessels

New performance monitoring solution fully compatible with NAPA’s existing Gas Tanker Loading Computer to provide a ‘real time’ 360°view for growing LNG carrier market

HELSINKI – APRIL 30, 2015 – NAPA,  the leading global maritime software house, and ClassNK, one of the world’s leading classification societies, today announced that they have begun installation of new performance monitoring software on an Asian LNG carrier’s fleet. The new ClassNK-NAPA GREEN system has been installed in to work in conjunction with NAPA’s Gas Tanker Loading Computer, a loading support product established for more than a decade ago, to provide a full 360° view of the operation of these vessels.

LNG Carriers have a unique operational profile, complicated by the ability to use wastage, or boil-off, from the cargo as fuel for the transit. This puts vessel crews in the centre of a delicate balance between the interests of the ship operator and the cargo owner when reporting performance and efficiency.

To help square this circle, ClassNK and NAPA have developed a specialist ClassNK-NAPA GREEN solution for LNG carriers that ensures transparent and accurate measurement of performance and efficiency, including measurement of boil-off. The measurements are easy to interpret onboard by crew, as well as being remotely and automatically shared with shore-based reporting systems – delivering vital data that can be passed between owner, operator and chartering cargo owner.

Click here to download images As with other ClassNK-NAPA GREEN solutions, the LNG-specific software also provides effective and actionable analytics around fuel consumption, trim, route, speed and operational efficiency. Amid fluctuating bunker fuel prices, the software optimises operations to fit the profile that makes the most commercial sense for all stakeholders. However, unlike standard ClassNK-NAPA GREEN systems, it is tailored to take into account the various fuels used by LNG Carriers – meaning it can adapt to provide the most accurate operational analysis depending on the fuel used.Jouni Salo, Product Manager, Shipping Solutions at NAPA commented: “With the influx of shale gas onto the market in recent years we have seen a boom in LNG carriers coming online. These vessels have complicated operational profiles and a range of stakeholders with a vested interest in operating them in the most commercially viable way. By developing this specialist performance monitoring solution, NAPA and ClassNK are making it possible for transparent and easily understood information to be automatically shared between onboard personnel, vessel owners, operators, charterers and cargo owners – providing much-needed assurance that the vessel is operating at the most economically viable profile.“In addition we have ensured that the performance monitoring system is able to fully integrate with our existing Gas Tanker Loading Computer. For more than a decade, the NAPA Loading Computer has enabled the safe loading and discharging of the maximum cargo intake for a quarter of the world’s LNG Carriers. The integration of this system with performance monitoring is the first of its kind and will enable all involved to ensure safe, efficient and optimum end-to-end operations.”