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also estimate the carbon footprint of
the recycling process.
The improvements in the infrastructure
facilities of yards
The improvements in the infrastructure
facilities of yards can be
seen in terms of using impervious
flooring for secondary and tertiary
cutting, placing cranes to lift heavy
weight items, creating storm water
drainage and collection system, etc.
At the same time, the yard operating
procedures have also improved.
For example, effective implementation
of safe-for-entry, safe-for-hot
work, confined-entry, working-atheight
and other similar procedures
to ensure safe and environmentally
sound recycling are now in place.
These developments are supported
by training programs for workers
provided by Gujarat Maritime Board.
To complement these training, we, at
GMS, have also developed a trainthe-trainer
program in collaboration
with IR Class with an aim to have a
greater outreach.
The Alang-Sosiya yard modernization
project costing 730 Crore INR
funded mainly by Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA) to provide
impervious flooring on yards is
also a positive step towards yard upgrade.
Keeping our responsibility towards
improving the industry standards
in mind, we have developed the
Responsible Ship Recycling Program
(RSRP) which caters to the needs of
ship owners interested in ‘green’ recycling.
Under this initiative, we engage
with yards holding SoC with the
HKC for the recycling of end-of-life
ships, monitor the entire process and
provide detailed progress reports and
a final completion report to the ship
owners. In a first in the industry, for
every ship recycled under RSRP, we
The contribution of R&D activities
in improving the industry
The contribution of R&D activities
in improving the industry is also important.
However, not many are willing
to invest into research activities
in ship recycling, mainly due to their
ignorance about the importance of
the ship recycling sector in supporting
sustainability. On the contrary,
our commitment to develop and improve
existing practices has led us
to collaborate with one of the India’s
premier university, IIT Gandhinagar
to develop green recycling technologies.
We are currently sponsoring a
1-year research project for a selected
M.Tech. student and aim to develop
safe and environmentally friendly
paint removal technology.
The initiatives taken by different
stakeholders to develop the ship recycling
industry in India has led to a
multi-dimensional improvement of
recycling yards, recycling operations
and R&D of new techniques. The frequent
use of ‘green’ recycling services
by ship owners will further motivate
non-compliant yards to upgrade their
facilities in line with the standards
set by the HKC. More importantly,
the positive decision by the European
Commission on the inclusion of
improved Indian ship recycling yards
in the list of approved yards will be a
great landmark for the ship recycling
industry in India.
The frequent use of ‘green’
recycling services by ship owners
will further motivate non-compliant
yards to upgrade their facilities in line
with the standards set by the HKC”
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