Who buys valves and cocks on board, and why
Engine-room valves are usually raised by the second or chief engineer, deck, ballast and storm valves often through the chief officer — practice rather than a written rule. The rule that shapes the order is in the Load Lines Protocol: shell fittings and the valves required at scuppers, inlets and discharges must be of steel, bronze or other approved ductile material, and valves of ordinary cast iron are not acceptable.[1]
US-flag rules say the same in their own words: overboard and shell-connection valves are to be of a listed steel, bronze or ductile cast iron specification, brittle materials such as cast iron are not used, and neither is lead or any heat-sensitive material melting at or below 1,700 °F.[2]
Class rules carry the restriction into the type approval. DNV certificates for butterfly and wafer valves restate where grey cast iron may not be used — ship’s side and bottom, sea chests, collision bulkheads — so a JIS cast-iron globe valve that is fine for inboard service cannot replace a ship-side valve.[3,4]
Spares also bring old problems back. IMO’s asbestos circular notes that ships built free of asbestos have been found with it on board after repairs and purchases of spare parts, and its indicative list includes valve gland packing.[7,8]
What requisitions ask for
IMPA section 75 is organised by standard. DIN globe, butterfly, check, safety and gate valves are its largest groups, followed by JIS ordinary globe and angle valves, DIN ball valves, JIS screw-down check valves, DIN pressure-reducing valves and general-pattern butterfly valves. Overflow valves, screwed valves, fire and deck-wash valves and storm valves complete the list.
A valve line carries the standard and its number, nominal size, pressure rating, body and trim material, end connection and actuator — lever, worm gear, handwheel. Ships built in Japan or Korea often run JIS valves throughout; European-built ships run DIN. Quote the same standard unless the buyer asks for a cross-reference.
| Group | IMPA items |
|---|---|
| DIN Globe Valves | 319 |
| DIN Butterfly Valves | 317 |
| DIN Check Valves | 235 |
| DIN Safety Valves | 212 |
| DIN Gate Valves | 166 |
| JIS Ordinary Globe & Angle Valves | 164 |
| DIN Ball Valves | 156 |
| JIS Screw Down Check Valves | 132 |
Counted from the IMPA-coded catalogue this site is built on. Every group is browsable in the section 75 catalogue.
Buying guides buyers read for this section
- Stainless Ball Valves Reduced Bore — SUS304 / SUS316, BSP
- Butterfly Valves with Lock Lever — Wafer & Semi-Lugged
- Butterfly Valves with Worm Gear — Wafer & Semi-Lugged
- JIS F 7307 / F 7308 Cast Iron 10K Globe & Angle Valves
- JIS F 7379 Brass 30K Bite-Joint Stop Valves 4–10 mm
- Storm Valves JIS — Overboard Non-Return, Vertical & Angle
Each guide tells buyers how to specify the item so bids compare — the same terms your quote will be read against.
Certificates and documents to have ready
- Class type approval certificate
- A DNV valve type approval states the rules and class programme it meets and that the product is accepted on all DNV-classed vessels; a significant design change can invalidate it, and validity can be checked online. One DNV approval also requires a DNV product certificate, with surveyor-witnessed production testing, for larger, higher-pressure valves. IACS societies may accept each other’s approvals but are not obliged to.[3,5]
- Material certificate (EN 10204)
- EN 10204 defines the types of inspection document supplied to a purchaser of metallic products; the class certificate names the type its rules require for valve bodies. Say which one your quote includes.[6,3]
- Seat test and fire-safe status
- The DNV example specifies seat leakage testing at 1.1 times maximum allowable working pressure to EN 12266-1, and records that valves with non-metallic seats are not to be considered fire safe.[3]
- Asbestos-free declaration and IHM
- IMO expects every item installed to come with a statement of compliance, which may be an asbestos-free declaration. For the inventory of hazardous materials, identical items such as valves can be listed together, but materials above the thresholds still need declaring.[7,8]
Quoting valves and cocks on GeoMarineHub
Repeat the standard and number on your line, give the body material and the certificates you include, and price the actuator separately if the line does. When you offer a DIN equivalent for a JIS line, give face-to-face length and flange drilling — the engineer has to know it fits the pipe.
Valve lines travel with gaskets and gland packing and pressure gauges. On GeoMarineHub, choose section 75 among your categories and activate your ports; lines from the section posted there reach you, sealed from rivals. Register as a supplier — free.
Sources
- [1] IMO — Resolution MSC.143(77), amendments to the 1988 Load Lines Protocol, regulation 22 (scuppers, inlets and discharges) — https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/KnowledgeCentre/IndexofIMOResolutions/MSCResolutions/MSC.143(77).pdf
- [2] 46 CFR 56.50-95 — Overboard discharges and shell connections (USCG, via Cornell LII) — https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/46/56.50-95
- [3] DNV — Type Approval Certificate TAP000012D, butterfly valves (example certificate, manufacturer-hosted) — https://assets.victaulic.com/assets/uploads/literature/Approvals/Maritime_DNVGL_TAP000012D_761.pdf
- [4] DNV GL — Type Approval Certificate TAP000002V, resilient-seated wafer valves (expired example, manufacturer-hosted) — https://ebora.nl/resize/breda_dnvgl-certificate-10062018_13201262576073.pdf/dnv-gl-type-approval-certificate-composeal-resilient-seated-wafer-typepdf.pdf
- [5] IACS — Frequently asked questions (type approval and cross-acceptance) — https://iacs.org.uk/about-us/faq
- [6] EN 10204:2004 Metallic products — Types of inspection documents (EVS catalogue) — https://www.evs.ee/en/evs-en-10204-2004
- [7] IMO — MSC.1/Circ.1374/Rev.1, Information on prohibiting the use of asbestos on board ships (IRI copy) — https://www.register-iri.com/wp-content/uploads/MSC.1-Circ.1374-Rev.1.pdf
- [8] IMO — Resolution MEPC.379(80), 2023 Guidelines for the development of the Inventory of Hazardous Materials — https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/OurWork/Environment/Documents/RES.MEPC.379(80)%20IHM.pdf
A practical page for suppliers, not legal or certification advice. Conventions, class rules and flag requirements change; the issuing body, the buyer's specification and your contract have the last word.