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Loss Prevention Bulletin - AVA/2013/0003

Mar 15, 2013
Revision: Oct 04, 2013

Bunker 221B Surveys

(A Short Guide to the Detection & Prevention of Bunker Fuel Concealment)

About Bunker Detective:

Bunker Detective is an exclusive division of AVA Marine Group Inc.
AVA Marine is a professional marine surveying and consultancy firm founded and led by its principal marine surveyor
Kaivan H. Chinoy. The Company provides a comprehensive range of specialist marine surveying, marine loss control &
consultancy services primarily in Western Canada and the West Coast of the United States and with offices in
Vancouver, Toronto, Rio de Janeiro, Kuwait, Singapore and Shanghai it can provide bunkering services in all major
bunkering ports.
To learn more about our marine surveying capabilities, visit our website at ava-marine.com / bunkerdetective.com
AVA Marine | Bunker Detective is also the member of the AIMU (American Institute of Marine Underwriters), CBMU
(Canadian Board of Marine Underwriters) and MIABC (Marine Insurance Association of British Colombia) and the IBIA
(The International Bunker Industry Association)
Global Offices in: Vancouver| Toronto| Rio de Janeiro| Kuwait| Singapore| Shanghai

Head Office: World Trade Center |Suite 404-999 |Canada Place |Vancouver |British Colombia |Canada |V6C 3E2
T: +1.604.641.1204 | C: +1.604.356.3405 |F: +1.604.608.9874 | E: [email protected]| bunkerdetective.com
Copyright 2012 A Division of AVA Marine Group Inc | Registered Company No. BC0943478

Overview
At the present market rate, bunker cost is one of the largest operating expense incurred in a
TC voyage. With such high costs involved, it becomes imperative for the charterers to know
the exact bunker quantity onboard at the time of supplying bunkers.
To prevent bunker misappropriation AVA Marines exclusive division Bunker Detective
www.bunkerdetective.com is able to offer 221B Surveys (commonly known as Bunker
Detective Surveys) to ship operators globally.

Bunker Index Prices

Source: www.worldbunkering.com

What are 221B (or Bunker Detective) Surveys?

221B or bunker detective surveys are carried out by marine surveyors on behalf of the
charterers to find conceal (hidden) bunker fuel onboard.
To find concealed fuel someone qualified has to go on board the vessel and get their hands
dirty. In order to prevent fuel losses Bunker Detective experienced surveyors offer
impartial, independent quantity measurement inspection services for marine fuels, issuing
detailed bunker survey reports to confirm fuel delivery and report any bunker fuel shortages.

Why are they called 221B Surveys?

The term is derived from an historic reference to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes
London residence where he ran his consulting detective business - 221B Baker Street.

How Bunker Fuel is concealed?

There are many ways to conceal fuel on a vessel some of the examples are:

Short bunker delivery

Hidden compartments
Use of magic pipes
Altered sounding pipe lengths
Non-class approved and / or altered sounding tables
Sounding tapes not properly calibrated
Doctored fuel gauges and so on.

What is a magic pipe?

Magic pipe is a terminology used when finding conceal bunkers. If used properly to an
untrained eye it can be hard to detect and thus making bunker fuel dissappear just like
magic.
These magic pipes are fabricated onboard by marine engineers and desgined to fit tighly inside
the actual sounding pipe. The bottom end of the magic pipe is closed and the pipe pushed
through the fuel to the bottom of the tank. During sounding, the tank thus appears empty or
gives false soundings.
Note magic pipe is also the term used to bypass the OWS (Oily Water Separator) connection
in order to dump oil overboard. Unlike the use of magic pipe for bunker concealment, use of
magic pipes to bypass the OWS is a criminal offense and heavy fines and penatlies may be
imposed and / or imprisonment.

Cost / Losses for the Charterer

For example concealing just 10 Mt of MDO @ $900/mt. is $9000 and 20 mt. of IFO @ $650/mt.
comes to $13000. Thats $ 22,000 in losses for the charterer. This is a very small find.
Normally a typical find would be in excess of 30 mt. and on a good day we have found in
excess of 70 mt. with findings as large as 120 mt. Thats over $75,000 in losses.

BUNKER DETECTIVE SURVEY RESULTS

Name of Vessel:
Type of Survey:
Location of Survey:
Date of Survey:

xxxxxxxx
221B
Vancouver
xxxxxxxx

Our Ref: xxxxx

Client Ref: xxxxx

221B BUNKER SURVEY RESULTS

HSFO
ROB at time of survey
ROB as per log book
Weight differential
TOTALS
Approx Value

LSFO

MT
MT
772.346 373.450
681.758 393.506
90.588 -20.056

MDO

LSMDO

MGO

LSMGO

MT
0.000
0.000
0.000

MT
0.000
0.000
0.000

MT
0.000
0.000
0.000

MT
65.258
63.710
1.548

72.080
USD $ 45,000.00

The following is a presentation on bunker concealment methods commonly found on vessels. Bunker
fuel concealment detection largely depends on the hands-on approach and practical experience of
surveyors. This guidance should not be construed as exhaustive.

Methods & Techniques to Detect Bunker Fuel Concealment:

Trim & List:
The perfect time for bunker quantity measurement is when no cargo and ballast operations are
taking place and when the vessel is on even keel with no list. However, this is not always
practical as such it is important to check for list and trim accurately before and after the
soundings. Take average trim/list and always use the corrected trim for calculations.

Falsifying Documentation onboard:

Questionable Tank Sounding (Calibration) Tables
Verify that the sounding tables are approved and endorsed by the Class or Recognised
Authority. Having more than one set of sounding book is not uncommon and having the tables
modified to their advantage is always a possibility. Inserted pages, corrections, different
print/paper type are all indications of tampering. Sometimes the vessel may have a new
calibration table (with the old one being obsolete). This could be following modification of the
tanks internal structure during a dry dock repair or simply because the original calibration
tables would have been incorrect. Always find out the reason for new calibration table and
making sure its Class Certified.
Incorrect Fuel Densities and Missing BDN Records
Fuel densities given by the Chief Engineer should be verified against Fuel Laboratory Analysis
Reports for the most recent bunker stem and if not readily available then densities stated in
the BDN (Bunker Delivery Note) should be used.
Since BDN must be retained on board for 3 years from the date of fuel supply and should be
readily available for inspection by port state control and relevant authorities (because noncompliance with fuel oil sulphur limits could lead to fines / detention of the vessel) as such
there is no excuse for not maintaining a file for previous and current BDNs.

Overstating Fuel Consumption:

Verify fuel consumptions for last 30 days or as required from the engines log book / noon
reports / deck log abstracts. Example engine over consumption could be shown due to alleged
heavy weather during the voyage or boiler over consumption shown even when the vessel
would have been idle at anchorage for significant period of time in hot weather. These are all
tell-tale signs of fuel misappropriation.
Oil Record Book (ORB):
ORB should be scrutinized for last sludge / bilge transfer operations; retention of oil residues
(sludge); identity and capacities of tanks; records of collection and disposal oil residue to shore
facility etc. This will give an idea of the vessels sludge and waste oil management systems. On
many occasions concealed bunkers have been found in waste tanks transferred via an
unauthorized connection like a rubber hose!

Soundings:
Verify the condition of sounding tape; deliberate altering of sounding tapes and using wrong
size of bobs. Always use own sounding tape and a ruler to report exact sounding or ullage
especially if it is below the 20 cm mark.
Note down the reference heights / gauge heights of each tank in a note book and check the
same against reference height noted by physical measurement of the tanks. The reference
heights will differ if some foul play is involved like blocking the bottom of the sounding pipes
with bobs later to be fished out. In cases like these investigate further and take the entire
missing length as full sounding.
Pay particular attention to millimeter soundings especially when the tanks are full and taking
ullages as small errors will have a big impact of the total bunker quantity.

Bunker Tanks:
Verify the number and location of all bunker tanks onboard including overflow tank; sludge
tank etc., ensuring it corresponds with the tank capacity diagram.
Note: Refer to supplements to Marpol I/VI Certificates. This will indicate the exact
number and capacities of sludge tank, drain tank, residue tank, waste oil tank, bilge
tank etc.
A surveyor might come across some tanks as being declared empty. We have heard all sorts of
excuses like: The tank is not in use as it contains only sludge or the heating coils have been
damaged and the tank emptied out and not in use (check paper trail to find out if the operators
have been informed of this or any repair work scheduled for dry dock, check log books etc.)
In any case investigate further by opening manhole covers for tanks that have been declared
empty or containing sludge or other reasons.

Temperatures:
Accurate temperature recording is crucial. Verify temperature on the surface of the sounding
tape just before it is being pulled out (this may not be very accurate but will give a general
idea of the average tank temperatures). In case of unusual high temperatures reported by the
chief engineer attached manual thermometer to the tape bobs to ascertain the exact
temperature. Investment in a good digital thermometer may be worthwhile. These can be
dipped directly into the tanks through the sounding pipe.
Note the body temperature of fuel oil transfer pumps before and after the
soundings/measurements to eliminate any transfer of fuel oil and / or re-inspecting engine
room tanks after completing the soundings. For this reason it is advisable to start the
soundings of the tanks located on the deck and working your way to the tanks in the engine
room.

Settling / Service Tanks:

Service and settling tanks are another convenient and effective method to hide bunkers;
however, the quantity hidden will be limited by the tank capacity. Under normal conditions the
quantities of fuel oil in settling tanks should not be less than 60-80% of the capacity and in
case of service tanks not less than 80-85% capacity. This is because usually the fuel pump
would be set to fill up the tank automatically when below 60%. In any case, investigate further
if the volume of the tanks (from the guage meter/level indicator) is less than 2/3 of the tank
capacity. Another method is to verify low level alarms of the tanks if the level is less than as
indicated above.
Whenever in doubt check every service and settling tank with float gauge by independent
means of a full depth sounding or top ullage, even if it takes additional time.

Doctored Tank Gauges:

Verify working of the tank gauges. There are different types of gauges but the most commonly
found are:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.

Float type liquid level gauges (by Semco) also called mechanical/analog type gauges.
Flat type glass level gauges (by Hanla)
Marine float type (by Hanla)
Magnetic float type level gauges with brightly colored flags (by Hanla)
Tabular glass type (by Hanla)
Self-powered content gauge also called a Pressure Gauge (by Hanla)
Dial type float level gauges are composed of float (by Hanla)

Verify that:

the floats are not jammed / stuck by opening the gauge

tanks declared empty are verified by opening the drain valve

the inlet valve to the oil column (level flooding tube) from the settling/service tank is in
open position (we often find this in shut position thus giving inaccurate readings in the
glass tubing)

where applicable compare physical gauge data obtained with the reading on the engine
control room panel. (Most new vessels will have online readings of fuel oil
temperatures and volume in the engine control room).

For fuel oil settling/service tanks (since these are always being heated) one method is to use
the infrared thermometer to scan the tank bulkhead (surface) to find the approximate level of
fuel oil inside the tanks.

Magic Pipes:
Magic pipe is the most convenient and effective method to conceal bunkers. The ships satff
usually has no trouble finding the right materials to fabricate a magic pipe onboard. Look for
tell-tale signs

Tampering with flange bolts, especially under the engine room floor plating (these are
the easiest to play around with without detection if one is not careful)

Excessive oil stains or evidence of fresh paint on the flanges

Magic pipes - Look for dissimilar metals like galvanized or bronze pipe inserted within
the sounding pipe if in doubt ask for a bucket of gas oil and pour into the sounding
pipe if there is no foul play then of course the gas oil will find its way into the tank (in
case of foul play radical change in sounding or overflow will occur). Use of fiber-glass
tubes is not uncommon.

Another method used to conceal bunker is by lengthening the sounding pipe and
blocking the bottom by the similar length using some sort of an obstruction like a
sounding bob etc. This will give the correct referrence height even though the pipe has
been tampered. That is why it is very important to closely examine pipe flange/coupling
leading through the engine room floor plating for any for evidence of tampering.

If a sounding pipe is in a location which is directly underneath the engine room ladder
(of the bottom engine room platform) then check for any evidence of scratches,
excessive oil stains and/or fresh paint (to cover up) as these may indicate pulling
out/inserting a magic pipe.

Remember a bunker surveyor is trying to find something in a very short time that the ships
staff have planned and devised during the entire voyage. Surveyors may find resistance and
abuse to demands like opening manholes, dismantling pipes etc., but it is important to conduct
oneself professionally and courteously at all times. Do a good job with integrity, impartialty
and honestly, protect your findings and leave!

Disclaimer: This loss prevention bulletin is based on the authors own research, knowledge and
experience in the subject matter and should only be used for reference rather than being taken as a legal
advice for any particular case or used for any other purpose.

About this Bulletin

The primary function of Bunker Detective as a marine consultancy firm is Loss Prevention by
focusing on best practices to help avert those claims that are considered avoidable and by
playing an active role in keeping the shipping industry informed.
The bulletins will be circulated to the Marine Industry and P&I Clubs so that its members are
kept informed. We respect your privacy and in case you do not wish to receive these bulletins
then please let us know and your name shall be removed from the mailing list promptly.
Contact for Bunker Detective:

Kaivan H. Chinoy MSc (UK), HND Naut. Sc

Principal Marine Loss Control Advisor

BUNKER DETECTIVE
T: +1 (604) 641-1204
C: +1 (604) 356-3405
F: +1 (604) 608-9874
E: [email protected]
For new assignments please email: [email protected]