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Ship and Yacht Building

Ship and Yacht Building

Shipbuilding and yacht construction require reliable instrumentation for managing fluids, fuels, and ballast water in harsh marine environments. Sensors must handle vibration, tilt, and saltwater corrosion while ensuring vessel safety and stability.

Overview

Shipbuilding and yacht construction require reliable instrumentation for managing fluids, fuels, and ballast water across a wide range of vessel types. From commercial container ships and tankers to luxury yachts and specialized offshore vessels, level and pressure measurement systems must deliver accurate data in harsh marine environments. Onboard instrumentation faces challenges including vibration, tilt, temperature fluctuations, and saltwater corrosion. Reliable monitoring of fuel tanks, freshwater reserves, wastewater systems, and ballast tanks is critical for vessel safety, stability, and regulatory compliance. As the maritime industry moves toward cleaner propulsion technologies, new instrumentation requirements are emerging for LNG storage, battery systems, and hydrogen fuel management.

Industry Challenges

Key challenges we help address

Measuring hull compartments with complex geometries and baffles

Managing multiple fluid types across shipboard systems

Operating sensors in salt-water and high-vibration marine environments

Ensuring ballast tank monitoring for vessel stability

Meeting international marine safety classification requirements

Use Cases

Explore specific scenarios and challenges in this industry

Anti-heeling system

Anti-heeling system

Ship and Yacht Building

Ship heeling caused by high winds, uneven cargo loading or the forces of sharp turns is counteracted by anti-heeling systems. To counter these conditions, ballast tanks are connected to each other by means of pipe systems. Depending on the attitude of the ship, the tanks are either blown out or flooded by means of compressed air blowers or pumps. Reliable level measurement is needed to control this system.

Ballast water tanks

Ballast water tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

The ballast water measurements in the wing and double bottom tanks go directly into the control system for the ship trim, draught and list. Since these measuring points are virtually inaccessible during operation on board, reliability and stability are an absolute must. Pressure shocks, abrasive sand particles and seawater place additional heavy demands on the instrumentation.

Bilges

Bilges

Ship and Yacht Building

Every ship has ‘bilges’ – this is space at the lowest point of the vessel between the floor of the engine room and the bottom of the ship. A water/oil mixture collects in this bilge area, where the mixture is pumped out and recovered and separated into water and oil by an on-board skimmer and demulsifying unit. The bilge de-oiling equipment is normally controlled by level switches. The oil sumps of the main engine and any auxiliary systems must also be monitored continuously for safety and environmental reasons.

Cargo tank

Cargo tank

Ship and Yacht Building

The levels in storage tanks, especially those on board chemical tankers must be continuously measured. This is especially important to monitor during loading and unloading operations, because of strict safety and environmental requirements. Any overfilling or product discharge on deck or into the sea could have devastating consequences for human life as well as the wider environment. Also, to prevent damage to the tanks caused via external temperature fluctuations, or overpressure and underpressure created by charging and discharging procedures, the internal tank pressures require continuous monitoring.

Cargo tank in a bitumen tanker

Cargo tank in a bitumen tanker

Ship and Yacht Building

Bitumen is transported at temperatures of around 170 °C to 190 °C. The heating is supplied via an array of multi-layered heating tubes mounted on the floor and sides of the tanks. To ensure efficient utilisation of the tanks as well as a safe ship attitude, the levels in the bitumen tanks require accurate monitoring, particularly during loading and unloading.

Cargo tanks on LNG carriers

Cargo tanks on LNG carriers

Ship and Yacht Building

Liquefied gas is transported in insulated cargo tanks on LNG carriers at temperatures of -162 °C. The instrumentation used must be specially designed for these extreme temperatures. Pressure, level and point level of LNG in the cargo tanks must be reliably measured for the transport.

Cavity tanks

Cavity tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

To extend the duration of stay at sea, every cubic centimetre of space on navy and research vessels is utilised. All available spaces and any inaccessible places on the ship are used as additional tanks for drinking water, diesel or aviation fuel. The tank shape and dimensions are completely different from familiar standard tanks. Depending on the type and size of the ship, they can also extend over several decks. A reliable level measurement is indispensable for the operation of these ships.

Crude oil storage tank

Crude oil storage tank

Ship and Yacht Building

Crude oil is pumped directly into the cargo tanks on board in order to separate gas, oil and water from each other using gravity. To ensure profitable utilisation of the loading capacities as well as effective control of the pumps, the level is measured continuously and the point levels are monitored.

Fresh water and pool water tanks

Fresh water and pool water tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

Every yacht has different tanks on board for storing hot water, pool water and drinking water. For drinking water, an especially hygienic measuring system is required.

Fuel tanks

Fuel tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

The fuel tanks are some of the most important on board. They store a variety of fuels; diesel for the main engine and power generators, petrol for jet skis and dinghies, even aviation fuel for the helicopter. Level measurement ensures optimum availability of fuel at all times. An additional overfill protection system also ensures maximum safety for the environment.

Grey water and black water tanks

Grey water and black water tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

Wastewater accumulated on board is stored in grey or black water tanks up until its final disposal on land. The tanks are equipped with continuous level monitoring as well as point level detection to avoid overfilling.

HFO settling and service tank

HFO settling and service tank

Ship and Yacht Building

To ensure fuel feed to the main engine, heavy fuel oil (HFO) is separated though first being pumped into a settling (buffer) tank. The following service tank or day tank, which is filled via a continuous overflow from the settling tank, directly supplies fuel into the main engine. Heating coils in both of these tanks maintain an even temperature between +75° C and +90° C. A reliable level measurement in these tanks guarantees continuous manoeuvrability of the ships.

Heavy lifter

Heavy lifter

Ship and Yacht Building

Flo-Flo (Float On/Float Off) ships are characterised by their large number of ballast water tanks. These make it possible to lower the ship until the main deck is below the waterline. This allows large floating loads to be loaded. The cargo is lifted out of the water and balanced by pumping out or blowing out the ballast water tanks. To avoid damage to the ballast water tanks from overpressure or underpressure, the internal tank pressures and levels require continuous monitoring.

Hopper

Hopper

Ship and Yacht Building

The hopper contains a mixture of sand, gravel and water. This mixture is collected by one or two suction pipes and drag heads that move over the seabed. The water flows out through so-called overflows and sand and gravel remain and are transported to an end destination for creating new land, or to be used as a supplementary material or building material. Accurate measurement of filling height, to determine the exact volume of displaced material, is important for smooth operation.

Hydraulic oil reservoir tank

Hydraulic oil reservoir tank

Ship and Yacht Building

The hydraulic oil used to transmit power circulates in a closed system. However, it is gradually lost due to lubrication points and leakages in the power equipment. To ensure optimum operation of the power equipment, the level in every hydraulic oil reservoir tank must be monitored for replenishment.

Hydrogen tanker with liquid hydrogen

Hydrogen tanker with liquid hydrogen

Ship and Yacht Building

If energy-rich hydrogen has to be transported over long distances, special tanker ships are used. To minimise losses, the hydrogen is cooled down to -253 °C at 1 bar pressure so that it can be stored in liquid form. The level can be measured either by means of thin impulse lines and conventional differential pressure or free-radiating radar. An elaborate standpipe, which would also lead to increased heat input, is not required.

Interface profiler

Interface profiler

Ship and Yacht Building

Separation tanks on the deck of an FPSOs contain oil and water as well as other products. Mixing hydrocarbons with water can form an emulsified layer that makes it extremely difficult for operators to detect and control the water level. This can lead to loss of hydrocarbons when the water is drained or even damage to the electrostatic grids in desalination tanks due to the salty feed water. Multi phase density profiling is required to identify the different layers, including sand, for reliable, efficient process control. Level measurement is also required to ensure redundancy.

Manifold

Manifold

Ship and Yacht Building

Hose connecting stations, also known as manifolds, connect the pipes and hoses that are required for cargo loading and offloading on tankers. To ensure the safety of facilities on shore and on board, and to control the pumps, the pipeline pressures need to be closely monitored on the manifold. Reliable pressure transmitters are required to ensure safe loading or unloading operations.

Pumps in ballast water tanks

Pumps in ballast water tanks

Ship and Yacht Building

Ballast water is taken on board seagoing vessels to ensure the stability of the ship when sailing with little or no cargo. The water is stored in ballast water tanks. To monitor the function of the pumps, appropriate pressure measurements are employed – pump failure can thus be detected immediately.

Service tanks drinking water

Service tanks drinking water

Ship and Yacht Building

Drinking water is an essential commodity on a ship. It is stored separately in dedicated tanks. Depending on the type and size of the ship, different amounts of fresh water are required for drinking, personal hygiene and cleaning. Direct electrical measuring principles are mandatory for level measurement.

Service tanks with grey and black water

Service tanks with grey and black water

Ship and Yacht Building

Waste water, known as grey/black water on ships, is treated on board larger vessels using ship-board clarification plants or it may be stored in special grey/black water tanks to await final disposal. Direct electrical measuring principles are mandatory for level measurement.

Ship position and draught

Ship position and draught

Ship and Yacht Building

Among the most important measurements on board ships are those for determining draught, trim and list. In general, one measuring point is placed on the bow and another is used in the aft. On larger ships, two additional measuring points are installed on both the port and on the starboard. Accurate level measurements are required to determine the exact values of ship position and draught.

Slop tank

Slop tank

Ship and Yacht Building

Usually a ship has two slop tanks, portside and starboard. This tank contains the water from the cleaning processes on a ship. Especially after sailing the procedure of tank cleaning is processed and the slob tanks are filled with wash water. It includes chemicals, edible oils or other products. A level measurement is important to ensure a reliable cleaning process.

Wave chamber

Wave chamber

Ship and Yacht Building

Container ships can cause enormous damage to the quay if they dock improperly. When a container ship approaches, a giant wave, the so-called "swell", shoots between the columns and floods the chamber. Radar sensors measure the distance to the ship repeatedly and thus determine its speed. The reliable radar measurement detects deviations from the berthing plan in good time. This allows the ship's crew to be informed at an early stage so that countermeasures can be taken.

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