On 7 September, the Korean government approved IMO BWMS CODE (New G8) for South Korean BWMS manufacturer Techcross ECS. Following the USCG type approval obtained in 2018 and the new BWMS CODE, now Techcross BWMS can be used without restriction in all ports.
IMO BWM Convention (2004) was comprehensively amended in 2018, requiring that all BWMS installed on ships on or after 28 October 2020 must obtain BWMS CODE.
Unlike the previous IMO G8 certification, BWMS CODE features a new category called System Design Limitation (SDL). This category specifies the operational condition of the system. As explained, Techcross ECS reduced the freshwater holding time from 48 hours (as stated in the earlier USCG type approval) to 23 hours.
The company also claimed that the system successfully enhanced the operation temperature with more than or equal to -2℃, in addition to improving the feed salinity to 1 PSU or above from 1.5 PSU with mixing solution involved for fresh water (less than 1 PSU).
In addition, the company said that ECS A type, the initial BWMS model of Techcross, is on the process of renewal tests for USCG type approval to address some limitations. Although there are only 96 ships equipped with ECS A type, as informed, Techcross is willing to take responsibility for all of products they have sold despite considerable time and cost.