Thickness Measurement for Cargo Ships on the Sado Estuary at Setúbal

Inspection services for ships at Setúbal

Each service has its own page with the method, the class requirements and what the report contains.

Berths, anchorage and the yard across the water

Most gauging at Setúbal happens alongside at the cargo terminals. The ro-ro berth suits car carriers between discharge and loading, the pulp and paper berths allow hold work once the cargo is out, and the bulk quays serve ships that have discharged grain or fertiliser. Cement ships lie at their own terminal, where dust control and the shipper's rules shape the access. In each case the superintendent confirms the cargo programme with the agent, and the team plans the work to follow discharge.

Setúbal also has a large ship repair yard on the estuary, where tankers, gas carriers and bulk carriers are docked, and it is a short run from the commercial berths. Ships that need a docking can move there, and our team can follow with equipment and permits in place. For ships waiting at anchor, the sheltered estuary allows boarding by launch to carry out pre-docking or condition work, provided the harbour master clears the transfer and sea conditions are suitable.

• Ro-ro terminal for vehicles: car-deck, ramp and ballast-tank gauging on car carriers between discharge and loading.
• Pulp and paper berths: hold frames, hatch coamings and ballast tanks on forest-products ships after discharge.
• Cement and clinker terminal: hold and deck gauging on cement carriers, under the terminal's dust and access rules.
• Dry bulk quays: hold, hopper tank and hatch cover readings on bulk carriers once the cargo is out.
• Estuary anchorage: launch-served pre-docking and condition gauging on ships waiting for a berth or the tide.
• Repair yard on the estuary: gauging during docking, for ships moving there from the commercial berths.

Portuguese maritime authority and EU requirements

Portuguese ports are inspected under the Paris MoU, and the national maritime authority and the directorate-general for maritime resources oversee flag and port state matters. Foreign-flag ships calling at Setúbal can be selected for port state control inspections like any other Paris MoU port, and structural condition is one of the areas inspectors look at. A current thickness record helps a master or superintendent answer questions about corrosion without delaying the ship.

EU regulations affect these ships in several ways. The Ship Recycling Regulation requires a valid Inventory of Hazardous Materials for ships calling at EU ports, and owners of older bulk carriers and car carriers often update it when planning a sale. EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime also bear on ships trading to and from Portugal. Car carriers on European routes are a particular case, since newer vessels are LNG dual-fuel, and owners of older tonnage want to know whether the steel will last through the transition.

Wherever a ship is outside a sulphur emission control area, the global 0.50% sulphur cap applies, and many of the ships calling at Setúbal meet it with an exhaust gas cleaning system rather than compliant fuel. Scrubber wash-water piping, the overboard discharge and the hull penetration around it corrode quickly in service, especially on open-loop systems, and are worth adding to the gauging scope.

How a thickness measurement job runs at Setúbal

The sequence for a thickness measurement job at Setúbal is short and written down, so the yard, the surveyor and the superintendent know who arranges what.

Lisbon Airport is the usual arrival point for international travellers, and the road south crosses the Tagus before reaching Setúbal, so the transfer needs a planned allowance for traffic. Technicians from India need a Schengen visa for Portugal, which we apply for once the ship's call is confirmed. Port and terminal access, ISPS clearance and any launch transfer are arranged through the ship's agent, who receives the team's passport and certificate details before arrival.

• Send the vessel name or IMO number, ship type, class society, the survey due (annual, intermediate, renewal survey number, CAP or owner's condition survey), the port and dates, and the scope you expect.
• We confirm the scope against the class rules for that survey, prepare the thickness measurement plan with frame and section references, and say whether the measurement will be credited to a class survey.
• Mobilisation is planned around visa lead times and the vessel's schedule; the ship's agent arranges port access, and the yard or ship arranges staging, lighting, ventilation and gas-free certificates.
• Gauging with calibrated ultrasonic thickness gauges: through sound coatings only where the gauge's through-coating mode has been verified on a coated reference, otherwise on cleaned bare steel, with every reading tied to its frame, strake and location on the sketch.
• Readings are compared with original thicknesses as work proceeds; substantial and excessive corrosion and any cracks are reported to the attending surveyor and the superintendent the same day.
• The final report is issued on the class thickness-measurement formats with sketches, a summary of locations exceeding the allowable margins, piping tables where piping was in scope, and the gauge calibration and technician certificates.

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