Paolo Moretti
In response to the EU masterplan and the increased interest in the use of LNG as a fuel, RINA will launch the company’s “Gas Centre of Excellence” at Posidonia (Stand 3.211). This important initiative will gather together the experience from RINA’s gas experts across the group including D’Appolonia, CSM, RINA Services.
The EU masterplan aims to develop framework conditions for the use of LNG on ships in the Mediterranean, Atlantic Ocean and Black Sea areas. This plan will increase the potential of Motorways of the Sea by lowering transport costs and reducing CO2, NOx and SOx emissions, in conjunction with greening the transport corridors and using LNG as an alternative to marine bunkers.
RINA’s Gas expertise which covers Test, Inspection and Certification (TIC) and Consulting Engineering services including CSM, which focussed on special steel alloys, will be “virtually” centred in Italy, Greece and Northern Europe. As the centre will be virtual, RINA will have the flexibility to deliver services globally, thereby helping the industry address the particular needs of utilising Gas as a green fuel source. This specialist knowledge has already led to the classification of four LNG fuelled cruise vessels having a capacity of 8000 persons. And in the development there are two EU projects (GAINN4CORE and GAINN4MOS) which aim to support the use of LNG as fuel.
Paolo Moretti, RINA’s Marine General Manager said, “This initiative brings together the global gas expertise amalgamating the competencies from within the group. RINA Services will provide classification and inspection, particularly of vessels and offshore and onshore terminals. Experts from CSM will provide advice on materials. D’Appolonia are actively providing engineering consultancy around the design, construction and management of LNG terminals. Operating LNG ships and terminals demands significant training so the RINA Academy, as part of our Gas Centre of Excellence, has developed both basic and advanced LNG fuel courses, in line with the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) requirements”.
As well as the launch of the Gas Centre of Excellence, RINA will be presenting a number of papers including, ‘Addressing the challenges and opportunities of LNG as a fuel for shipping’ at Posidonia.
RINA’s geographical reach and overall competencies in engineering consultancy, testing, inspection and certification were recently expanded with the acquisition of the Edif Group which includes the ERA engineering consultancy and the NDE testing, inspection and certification business. This acquisition results in an expanded international geographic footprint for RINA, particularly in the US and UK, together with an increased profile in the marine industry.
RINA is a multi-national group, which delivers verification, certification, conformity assessment, marine classification, environmental enhancement, product testing, site and vendor supervision, training and engineering consultancy across a wide range of industries and services. RINA operates through a network of companies covering Marine, Energy, Infrastructures & Construction, Transport & Logistics, Food & Agriculture, Environment & Sustainability, Finance & Public Institutions and Business Governance. With a turnover of over 378 million Euros in 2015, over 3, 000 employees, and 163 offices in 60 countries worldwide, RINA is recognized as an authoritative member of key international organizations and an important contributor to the development of new legislative standards. www.rina.org
Edif Group provides technical inspection, and engineering consultancy services to reduce risk, optimise performance and enhance capability, for critical industries and environments world-wide.
Edif Group is formed of two companies, Edif ERA and Edif NDE, comprising more than 100 years of brand history. Our long term customer relationships are built on an ongoing commitment to broaden services, deepen sector experience and an ability to respond quickly to needs on a local and global scale.
The Edif Group achieved turnover of over £77.8 million on a pro forma basis in 2015 and is present in 20 offices internationally. The company has about 650 employees and over 2, 500 associates. The company was recently recognised in the London Stock Exchange’s 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain report 2016, for the second year running.
