Sperry Marine to Perform VDR Annual Inspections

Northrop Grumman Corporation's Sperry Marine business unit has received service approval from the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) to conduct annual performance testing of shipboard voyage data recorder (VDR) installations. Sperry Marine is the first company in the marine industry to obtain classification society approval for VDR performance testing as required by the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention. According to Andy Fraser, director of worldwide service for Sperry Marine, the company expects to secure similar approvals from other classification societies very quickly. The ABS service approval means that Sperry Marine can perform VDR recertification testing in virtually every major seaport in the world. The SOLAS regulations state that a voyage data recorderVDR, including all sensors, must be recertified annually on or before the date of the original installation. The test must be conducted by an approved testing or servicing facility to verify the accuracy, duration and recoverability of the recorded data.