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For suppliers · IMPA section 79

Marine electrical suppliers for ships: cables, lamps, fuses and the approvals behind them

A ship’s electrical stores look like a hardware shop’s — lamps, fuses, cable, plugs, batteries — but the cable has to be built to the IEC 60092 family, anything in a hazardous area needs an explosion-protection certificate, and every fixed item goes into the ship’s inventory of hazardous materials. Quote the standard and the certificate with the price.

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Section 79

ITEMS: 2,825GROUPS: 25 · FAMILIES: 257BUYING GUIDES: 13SOURCES: 11

GeoMarineHub editorial team · reviewed 2026-10-10

Who buys electrical equipment on board, and why

On ships that carry an electro-technical officer, the ETO — a certificated role under STCW regulation III/6 — usually raises the electrical requisition and the chief engineer approves it; on ships without one, the chief or second engineer does. That division is practice, not a rule.[1]

Cable for fixed installations is chosen to IEC 60092-352, which recommends cables built to IEC 60092-350, -353, -354 and -376 and requires them to meet the flame-spread tests of IEC 60332-1-2 and IEC 60332-3-22. The same standard keeps ordinary flexible cords to uses away from the marine environment — portable tools, domestic appliances.[2]

For US-flag ships, 46 CFR 111.60-1 makes the IEC 60092 parts (or IEEE 1580 and the UL cable standards) mandatory and requires IEC cable to meet Category A or A F/R flammability. Short-circuit protection is by circuit-breakers or fuses, which is why fuses are among the most ordered groups.[3,4]

Hazardous areas — tanker cargo zones, paint stores, battery rooms — change the specification. The EU ATEX directive expressly excludes seagoing vessels and the equipment on board them; US rules instead require apparatus tested to the IEC 60079 series and certified under the IECEx scheme.[5,6]

What requisitions ask for

Pilot lamps and fuses are the two largest groups in IMPA section 79, followed by cable accessories — glands, lugs, ties — cables, lamps, lighting fixtures, fluorescent and LED tubes, plugs and receptacles and insulation materials. Batteries, solders, circuit breakers and transformers, flashlights and switches complete the list.

A lamp line gives base, voltage and wattage; a fuse line the type (IEC cylindrical, DIN, glass tube), size and rating; a cable line the IEC construction, core count and cross-section. Engineers often add the maker of the fitting on board — a replacement has to fit the holder that is already there.

Largest groups in IMPA section 79 — 2,825 items in 25 groups
GroupIMPA items
Pilot Lamps392
Fuses353
Cable Accessories237
Cables224
Lamps216
Lighting Fixtures195
Fluorescent Lamps180
Plug & Receptacles178

Counted from the IMPA-coded catalogue this site is built on. Every group is browsable in the section 79 catalogue.

Buying guides buyers read for this section

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 (cables and fittings)
A class type-approval certificate states the rules the product complies with and the vessels it may be installed on, and can lapse if design changes. Check its validity date before quoting. Approval is issued by the individual society: IACS members may accept each other’s certificates but are under no obligation to.[8,9]
IECEx certificate of conformity
For equipment in hazardous areas, give the IECEx certificate number; IECEx certificates are public and can be checked by the buyer in the scheme’s online certification system.[7,6]
IHM Material Declaration and SDoC
IMO’s inventory guidelines count securely fitted equipment, including electrical cables, as fixed, and electrical and electronic equipment is listed in the inventory. A cable is several homogeneous materials — sheath, insulation, conductor — so the declaration is made per material.[10]
Asbestos-free statement
IMO’s circular on asbestos lists electric fuses and cords among the places asbestos has been found on ships, so buyers ask for an asbestos-free declaration with older-pattern spares.[11]

Quoting electrical equipment on GeoMarineHub

State the IEC construction and the type-approval holder for cable, the rating and breaking capacity for fuses, the base and voltage for lamps, and whether you supply per metre, per drum or per box. If you quote an LED replacement for a fluorescent or incandescent line, say so on the line.

Electrical lines travel with valves, packing and jointing and other engine-room stores. On GeoMarineHub, choose section 79 among your categories and activate the ports you deliver to; lines from the section posted there reach you, and bids are sealed. Register as a supplier — free.

Sources

  1. [1] UK MCA — MSN 1860 (M) Amendment 1, UK requirements for Electro-Technical Officers — https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/msn-1860-m-amendment-1-uk-requirements-for-electro-technical-officers
  2. [2] IEC 60092-352:2005 Electrical installations in ships — Choice and installation of electrical cables (Public.Resource.Org copy) — https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/ibr/inc/iec/iec.60092-352.1979.pdf
  3. [3] 46 CFR 111.60-1 — Construction and testing of cable (USCG, via Cornell LII) — https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/46/111.60-1
  4. [4] IEC 60092-202:2016 Electrical installations in ships — System design, protection (Public.Resource.Org copy) — https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/ibr/inc/iec/iec.60092-202.2016.pdf
  5. [5] EUR-Lex — Directive 2014/34/EU (ATEX), Article 1(2) exclusions — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32014L0034
  6. [6] 46 CFR 111.105-3 — Approved equipment in hazardous locations (USCG, via Cornell LII) — https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/46/111.105-3
  7. [7] IECEx — IEC System for Certification to Standards relating to Equipment for use in Explosive Atmospheres — https://www.iecex.com/
  8. [8] DNV GL — Type Approval Certificate TAE0000279, electric power cable (example certificate, manufacturer-hosted) — https://camunacavi.lappgroup.com/fileadmin/DAM/Lapp_Camunacavi/catalog_pages_1_17/DNV_TAE0000279.pdf
  9. [9] IACS — Frequently asked questions (type approval and cross-acceptance) — https://iacs.org.uk/about-us/faq
  10. [10] 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
  11. [11] 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

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.

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