Thematic module · ninth module developed

# Engine Room Live

Planned Maintenance System and auxiliary machinery, critical spare parts management, bunkering operations, purifiers and separators, fire pumps and fixed systems, blackout and failure management, cyber risk management of automation systems, boiler operations, refrigeration plant, operational energy efficiency, predictive maintenance based on IoT sensors, boiler water treatment, integrated automation and Unmanned Machinery Space (UMS), digital twin for the engine room, methanol engine reliability, fire safety of onboard battery rooms (BESS), and ammonia engine safety and reliability.

Each topic below brings together, in a single place: an operational explanation, the regulatory reference, scope of application, procedure, practical example, real cases, common mistakes, PSC observations, operational tips, a checklist and FAQ — regulations verified as of July 2026.

### Planned Maintenance System (PMS) and Auxiliary Machinery

The silent heart of onboard reliability: how to identify critical equipment under the ISM Code and turn maintenance from reactive into genuinely planned.

### Critical Spare Parts Management

Once critical equipment has been identified, the question becomes: if it fails today, is the spare part really on board? Critical spare parts management answers exactly that.

### Bunkering Operations and Fuel Quality Control

Bunkering is as much a safety operation (spill risk) as a quality one (off-specification fuel): both start well before the barge even arrives.

### Purifiers and Separators (Fuel Oil / Lube Oil Purifiers)

The first line of defence against contaminated fuel and oil: why an incorrect purifier setting ripples through everything, from the main engine to the sludge balance.

### Fire Pumps and Fixed Systems in the Engine Room

The emergency fire pump is designed to work precisely when the main engine room is inaccessible: its maintenance therefore requires a discipline independent from that of the main machinery.

### Blackout and Failure Management

The moment when all the preparation (PMS, spares, drills) is tested together: how to structure the response to reduce the time between the event and the restoration of safety.

### Cyber Risk Management of Automation Systems

From 1 July 2024, new ships must demonstrate cyber resilience from the design stage onward: what changes for the OT systems controlling engines, pumps and engine room automation.

### Boiler Operations

The auxiliary boiler is often the least-monitored unit in the engine room, until a defect in its safety devices suddenly makes it the top priority.

### Refrigeration Plant

The refrigeration plant protects provisions and perishable cargo, but is also one of the onboard systems most exposed to strict international regulation on greenhouse-effect refrigerants.

### Operational Energy Efficiency in the Engine Room

The CII rating can also be improved through levers that belong entirely to the engine room: main engine load optimization, heat recovery, and auxiliary generator management.

### Predictive Maintenance based on IoT Sensors

IoT sensors mounted on engine components transmit vibration, temperature, pressure and oil quality data every few seconds: a paradigm shift from the calendar/running-hours-based Planned Maintenance System.

### Boiler Water Treatment

Correct chemical dosing and a controlled TDS prevent scale formation and foaming/priming: water chemistry, not just the safety devices, determines the boiler's service life.

### Integrated Automation Systems and Unmanned Machinery Space (UMS)

The UMS notation does not certify an absence of supervision, but a level of safety equivalent to that of a manned engine room: SOLAS Chapter II-1 Part E sets out the precise conditions for obtaining it.

### Digital Twin for the Engine Room

The maritime digital twin market is estimated to grow from $0.59 to $2.40 billion by 2032: Classification Societies foresee the first genuine operational digital twins on complex ships between 2025 and 2030.

### Methanol Engines: Reliability and Spare Parts Management in a Still-Young Technology

Orders for methanol-fuelled ships collapsed from 149 to 61 in a single year: not due to a strategic change of course, but because of engine reliability problems that emerged in the first fleets in service.

### Fire Safety of Onboard Battery Rooms (BESS)

A thermal runaway fire in a battery room does not behave like a conventional engine room fire: the new EMSA guidance on Battery Energy Storage Systems exists precisely to close this operational knowledge gap.

### Ammonia Engines: Safety and Reliability of the First Units in Service

After years of bench testing only, two-stroke dual-fuel ammonia engines enter real commercial service in 2026: fuel toxicity calls for a safety approach different from the one already familiar for methanol.

Coming in future updates to this module: first fleet operational experience with ammonia-fuelled engines, currently being gathered following the entry into service of the first units in 2026 and the Interim Guidelines approved at MSC 111 (May 2026), NFPA 855 update on BESS expected in 2026, integration of engine monitoring data into IoT-based predictive maintenance.

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