DCN October Edition 2019

MARITIME ENGINEERING & SALVAGE
When technology
meets ocean
Dynamic Under Keel Clearance ® technology integrates a number of scientific fields
to solve the complex problem of optimising port operations, writes Paula Wallace
OMC International’s DUKC product is an Aussie technology
that enables core calculations to execute safe under keel
clearance and delivers value through increasing vessel drafts
and sailing windows.
Critically, it draws on expertise in hydrodynamics,
oceanography, naval architecture, surveying, pilotage,
environmental and maritime engineering, data processing,
artificial intelligence, and cloud computing.
“An operational DUKC is more than an under keel clearance
calculator,” OMC chief executive Peter O’Brien tells Daily Cargo News.
“It brings together a specific range of engineering disciplines from
differing technical backgrounds and skills around a product and
service offering that is greater than the sum of its individual parts.”
For some clients, DUKC has delivered an average benefit of
a 0.60-metre to 1.0-metre draft. This can equate to as much as
15,000 tonnes of additional cargo per vessel. In the example of iron
ore, this is USD$1.35 million in additional revenue per vessel.
“Another example is increasing the draft of import tanker
vessels. A terminal operator has stated that every 10 centimetre
increase in draft equates to a $1m cost saving per annum,” Mr
O’Brien says.
As the technology has evolved, it has expanded to other
applications including channel design and dredge optimisation,
voyage planning, and port capacity modelling.
There are numerous examples where the implementation
of DUKC and channel optimisation has reduced the dredging
requirements, resulting in cost savings of millions of dollars.
HOW DUKC WORKS
Ports need to know how deep each vessel can safely be loaded, and
when it is safe to sail that vessel. The margin between the vessel
and the seabed is called the under keel clearance. Traditionally, this
is determined using static rules.
Static rules comprise a fixed UKC requirement to determine
times of sailings and/or maximum sailing drafts. This fixed
UKC requirement must account for a range of conditions, and
does not consider individually the factors that influence UKC. In
reality, these factors change dynamically depending on vessel,
channel and environmental conditions. The implication is that
the static UKC rules typically must account for some level of
uncertainty to accommodate the expected range of scenarios
and conditions.
“Adopting a one-size-fits-all approach generally results in an
inefficient operation,” Mr O’Brien says.
“Furthermore, the assumptions on which the static UKC rules
were originally based also change over time. Often, the static UKC
rules themselves are not reviewed in line with the changes to the
underlying assumptions.”
Examples of changes to port operations that may influence the
applicability of a static UKC regime include vessel size, transit
speed, channel depth profile, transit time, and changes to port
layout resulting from new berths or dredging.
“The safer alternative is a dynamic UKC approach through the
DUKC system which was developed by OMC. DUKC is a physicsbased,
cloud-hosted, e-Navigation system that accurately calculates
vertical motions of vessels,” Mr O’Brien says.
Integrating in real time data from the Port’s IoT devices,
the calculations consider a multitude of factors including the
environmental conditions (waves, tides, currents, etc), the details
of the ship and how it is loaded, and the transit specifics such as
OMC
48 October 2019
thedcn.com.au