What is Emergency Shut Down System ?

1. Fibre-optic
2. Electric (Pyle National)

The fibre-optic system utilises a 6-way ST ferrule Furukawa compatible shipside connector into which the shore plug a flexible fibreoptic connector.

The Electric system uses a 37-way explosion proof connector with umbilical cable provided by shore or in some cases the ship’s own equipment. The electric system enables ship-ship transfer with ESD and hotline telephone connection.

The electric system circuits are protected with zener barriers as secondary protection in case the ship breaks away while circuits are still energised. Most shore systems are similarly protected.

The ship’s ESD system is active at all times, whether at sea or in port. When at sea all manifold and tank filling valves are held in the shut position and the cargo and spray pumps are held in the off position. The cargo compressors may be operated as normal, but will stop if an ESD is initiated. The shore ESD input is blocked at Sea.

The control and processing circuitry are installed in the safetylink cabinet in the cargo control room. ESD signals from and to the Distributed Control System and Cargo Control ESD system are fed to the safety link cabinet as are telephone signals.

The manual push butons, which will initiate ESD1 both on the ship and ashore, are usually distributed at the following locations: