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What is C-Box?
Utilizing cutting edge IoT and cloud technology, C-Box, short for Compliance Box supports operators meet ship overboard discharge compliance rules and protects against Coast Guard enforcement. The Patent-Pending C-Box is a sealed and programmable data console designed to provide overboard discharge prevention and monitoring with limited human interfaces and involvement.
When a ship operator initiates an overboard discharge command, C-Box intelligently compares the request against the vessels GPS location and the predefined geofence programmed into C-Box.
Discharge is prevented when the vessel is inside the geo-fence and may be completed only with a duty holder override command. The discharge data recorded for operators records and transmitted to the cloud for Coast Guard review, if necessary.
The data records are stored locally on C-Box and in the cloud where it supports paperwork reduction, future audits and proof of activities to protect against enforcement action.
What Regulations Are Driving C-Box?
What Regulations Are
Driving C-Box?
Currently, the U.S. Clean Water Act dictates legislation regarding incidental discharge from ships up to 3nm from the US shore. A Vessel General Permit (VGP) may be obtained to allow discharge under specified conditions.
Internal vessel compliance checks are required to ensure the terms of the VGP are met. Ships file documentation via paper, digital inputs and self-declaration of violation. Inevitably violations routinely occur and go undetected, unreported and at sea difficult to enforce.
The Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) signed into law December 2018 and will be enforced by the US Coast Guard by 12/2022. Governance will extend to 12nm from the US shore. The VIDA maintains a consistent approach across all states with designated No-Discharge Zones.
How C-Box Works?
The C-Box is installed between the ships Integrated Automation System (IAS) and the valve control cabinet and uses a series of commands to automatically process VIDA compliance, prevent violations and produce ship records to reduce the paperwork burden.
The C-Box uses proven Commercially off the Shelf (COTS) equipment all independently tested by the C-Box team onboard.
A multitude of COTS equipment can be used for data transmission including satellite, cellular, and HF radio and ultimately the Starlink system, providing a complete, secure, and independent infrastructure for data transmission to the cloud. Data is processed in a format specified by regulation and the customer.
How C-Box Solves
the Problem?
The crew may spend months at sea in and out of various waters with an absence of a hard boarder rules and regulations all begin to merge into one. C-Box removes the human error or neglect by automatically preventing illegal discharges and any overide is sent directly to the authorities for further investigation.