Cargo Pump Room Safety:

.cprs   .cps  .prs

Ventilation system :-

1. cargo pump-rooms should be mechanically ventilated and the capacity should be 20 air changes per hour of the total volume of the pump-room.

2. the position of the vent outlet should be arranged at a distance of at least 3 m measured horizontally from any ignition source and from the nearest opening to accommodation, service or machinery spaces.

3. an emergency intake located about 2 m above the pump-room lower grating is to be provided. This emergency intake is to be used when the lower intake is sealed off due to flooding in the bilges. The emergency intake should have a damper fitted which is capable of being closed from the exposed main deck and lower grating level.

4. floor gratings should not disturb the free flow of air.

5. the fan blade should be non sparking type.

.1 cargo pumps, ballast pumps and stripping pumps, installed in cargo pump- rooms and driven by shafts passing through pump-room bulkheads shall be fitted with temperature sensing devices for bulkhead shaft glands, bearings and pump casings. A continuous audible and visual alarm signal shall be automatically effected in the cargo control room or the pump control station;

.2 lighting in cargo pump-rooms, except emergency lighting, shall be interlocked with ventilation such that the ventilation shall be in operation when switching on the lighting. Failure of the ventilation system shall not cause the lighting to go out;

.3 a system for continuous monitoring of the concentration of hydrocarbon gases shall be fitted. Sampling points or detector heads shall be located in suitable positions in order that potentially dangerous leakages are readily detected. When the hydrocarbon gas concentration reaches a pre-set level which shall not be higher  than 10 % of the lower flammable limit, a continuous audible and visual alarm signal shall be automatically effected in the pump- room, engine control room, cargo control room and navigation bridge to alert personnel to the potential hazard; and

all pump-rooms shall be provided with bilge level monitoring devices together with appropriately located alarms.

7. A fixed sampling arrangement to enable the oxygen content within the pumproom to be monitored from the deck by portable meter prior to pumproom entry. Where such an arrangement is fitted it should ensure that remote parts of the pumproom can be monitored.

10. Manually activated trips for the main cargo pumps provided at the lower pumproom level and at the top (maindeck) level.

11. Spray arrestors around the glands of all rotary cargo pumps in order to reduce the formation of mists in the event of minor leakage from the gland.

12. Examining the feasibility of fitting a double seal arrangement to contain any leakage from the primary seal and to activate a remote alarm to indicate that leakage has occurred. However, the impact of any retrofit on the integrity of the pump will need to be clearly assessed in conjunction with the pump manufacturers.

13. Particular attention to be given to the adequacy of fire protection in the immediate vicinity of the cargo pumps.

14. Because of the problems associated with flashback re-ignition after the use of the primary fire-fighting medium, consideration to be given to the need to provide a backup system, such as high expansion foam or water drenching, to supplement the existing system.

15. On ships fitted with an inert gas system, the provision of an emergency facility for inerting the pumproom could be an option, although careful attention must be paid to the safety and integrity of the arrangement.

16. The provision of Emergency Escape Breathing Devices (EEBDs) located within the pumproom and sited to be readily accessible.

17. Fire extinguisher of foam type must be present at the bottom platform of the cargo pump room.

18. dead man alarm must be fitted in pump room.

19. a neil robertson stretcher to be present on bottom platform of cargo pump room.

20. ODMCS

21. Intrinsically safe fire detectors are installed in pump room for detection of fire in pump room.

Intrinsically safe in cargo pump room:

→ Intrinsically safe fire detectors are installed in pump room for detection of fire in pump room.

→ Intrinsically safe lights are installed in pump room for detection of fire in pump room.