Houlder has been appointed as an authorised engineering partner by Alfa Laval, a leading global supplier of products and solutions for heat transfer, separation and fluid handling.

Alfa Laval UK has listed Houlder as one of its authorised engineering partners, ensuring ship owners and operators have a complete, high quality package for ballast water management system design and installation contracts. Alfa Laval supplies PureBallast, its IMO & USCG-approved ballast water treatment system and can subcontract Houlder’s independent engineering experts to integrate the equipment onto the vessel.

When fitting vessels with new technology, the industry needs a solution which is time efficient, cost-effective and reliable. This agreement enables ship owners to benefit from industry collaboration via three thorough steps to the design process: an on-board survey with 3D scanning, concept engineering, and detailed engineering. Early arrangement drawings, followed by detailed production reduces the risk of costly challenges later in the process. A clear end-to-end solution protects ship owners from delays and costly installation errors.

Tristan Matthews,  Business Unit Manager, Marine Capital Sales, Alfa Laval UK & Ireland, commented: “Our list of authorised engineering partners ensures we  can offer our customers the most reliable and efficient route to installation. Our engineering partners are extremely high quality, reliable and demonstrate market-leading expertise.

“This agreement with Houlder ensures we have an independent and experienced expert available to provide the best possible service to our customers. Installing technologies onto vessels can be a huge time resource in terms of project management and it’s important we can offer alternative and reliable solutions to ship owners looking for the complete package.”

Ben Myers, Head of Project Management Services, Houlder, added: “Working as one of Alfa Laval’s  authorised engineering partners provides ship owners and operators with reassurance and high quality expertise that will ensure a methodical and specialist design and installation process for ballast water management systems.

“The challenges of integrating systems vary in each case and it is essential to consider all areas of the design process before installation. We work with a variety of supply partners to ensure the installation is low-risk, time-efficient, and hassle-free.”

Houlder’s inhouse marine engineering capability means the team is ideally placed to take accountability for installations on our clients’ behalf, including all survey, design and yard works. Houlder has been involved with ballast water management since the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) legislation governing discharge was ratified.