EPIRB emergency locator battery change

Battery change on EPIRB trackers must be performed every five years or following device activation.

It should be noted that the reference IMO legislation indicates that individual national authorities may establish revision intervals other than those indicated by the manufacturer. As regards the Italian legislation, the revision of the EPIRBs must be carried out every four years, therefore a more restrictive interval than that established by ACR Electronics.

Any vessel registered in Italy that has an EPIRB on board is required to comply with this directive.

The battery change also involves the execution of the complete Shore Based Maintenance test as established by the IMO MSC-Circ regulation. 1090.

Our company is in possession of all the certifications and requirements imposed by the IMO legislation for the execution of SBM tests:

- ACR Battery Replacement Center certified

- ACR Shore-Based Maintenance Provier certified

- Certification of authorization to issue SBM certificates by the MISE - Ministry of Economic Development.

The SBM certificate is issued following the battery change on any EPIRB.

The entire SBM battery change and test service must meet specific requirements and pass a series of inspections established by both ACR Elecronics and IMO MSC-Circ.1090.

External and internal inspection for anomalies, damage, breakages, non-conforming parts or tampering;

Inspection of the battery pack to verify its integrity and exclude degeneration (battery venting) that could have caused damage to the internal electronic board.

Each EPIRB is subjected to the following checks:

- General cleaning of the EPIRB with specific products.

- New battery installation and service parts.

- Closing the EPIRB hermetic sealing and tightening screws with calibrated tools.

- Pressure test to verify the perfect hermetic seal of the EPIRB.

- Check the EPIRB automatic activation circuit.

- Complete ignition of the EPIRB in the shielded area (Faraday Cage) to prevent signal propagation.

- Frequency measurement detected by appropriate control instruments.

- Issue of the SBM certificate and return to the customer.

All of the above steps are rigorous. If the EPIRB does not fully pass all the tests, the battery change cannot be performed and the beacon must be withdrawn from service and terminated.

On request we can carry out this intervention with rapid timing including collection and return service directly to the port authorities to minimize the stoppage of the unit due to the expired EPIRB.

The battery replacement procedure performed by us on all EPIRBs, includes the release of the Shore Based Maintenance (SBM) certificate in compliance with the IMO MSC1039 standard.

CONTACT US FOR A CUSTOMIZED PRICE

Cookie consent