Duties of a Gas Engineer in the Merchant Navy

Gas Engineers play a crucial role in ensuring the safety and efficiency of gas systems on board ships. In this blog, we will explore the crucial duties and responsibilities of a Gas Engineer, shedding light on their critical role in safeguarding both crew members and vessel performance.”

Maintenance Duties of a Gas Engineer in the Merchant Navy

Gas Engineer under the supervision of senior engineers is responsible for supervising and carrying out the repair, and testing of: 

  • Cargo compressors 
  • Cargo compressor cooling water analysis and chemical treatment
  • Cargo pumps, inert gas generators, booster pumps, gas-freeing blowers, and related ancillary equipment.
  • The fixed Gas Detector System 
  • Emergency shut down the system 
  • Cargo system alarms and instrumentation
  • Other systems onboard as assigned by the Chief Engineer 
maintenance duties of gas engineers
Maintenance duties of gas engineers

Cargo-Related Duties

The duties of a gas Engineer include assisting the Chief Officer during cargo operations as required. These include but are not limited to: 

  • Pre-arrival checks of the cargo system 
  • Loading, discharging, tank conditioning, and grade change operations
  • Attendance at manifold for ship-shore manifold alignment
  • Manifold connection/disconnection and leak test
  • Cargo sampling 
cargo related duties of gas engineers
cargo-related duties of gas engineers

Gas Engineer Duties in Administration and Recordkeeping

  • Duties of a Gas Engineer include keeping watch based on the competency certificate held and assisting with the maintenance in the Engine room as per Chief Engineer.
  • In addition, Gas Engineers have to maintain planned maintenance schedules and machinery history records. 
  • Gas Engineers also need to take inventory and prepare orders for spare parts for equipment under their charge.
administration and recordkeeping duties of gas engineer
administration and recordkeeping duties

Key-Performance Duties

In addition to the duties of a Gas Engineer mentioned above, one has to take care of the following points – 

  • No overdue maintenance/testing of critical machinery/equipment in PMS in areas of own responsibility.
  • No critical safeties inoperative reposed or bypassed on cargo machinery. No failure of cargo system instrumentation and machinery.
  • No unplanned stoppages or off-hire due to cargo equipment failures.
  • No spares to be below minimum and critical spares requirement in own areas of responsibility.    

Salary of a Gas Engineer

The requirement of Gas Engineers is limited to Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) Tankers and Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Tankers specifically. Both LPG and LNG tankers are vessels that offer the highest salary to active sailing seafarers therefore even Gas Engineers serving on these vessels earn a hefty salary each month. For instance, the salary of a Gas Engineer varies in the range of 4000$ – 6500$ per month. 

salary of gas engineers
salary of gas engineers

How to Become a Gas Engineer in the Merchant Navy

The duties of a Gas Engineer are not easy whether it is in offshore units or onboard LPG/LNG vessels. Gas Engineers have to face exceptionally harsh conditions at work as it is undeniably a challenging job. As a result of which, one needs to be mentally and physically strong to excel in the role of a Gas Engineer. Moreover, in addition to mental and physical toughness, your educational qualifications should include –

An Engineering Degree

One needs to have an engineering degree in any of the following disciplines mechanical, structural, civil, or chemical engineering.

Specific Knowledge and Training About the Field 

A marine engineer can pursue fields such as subsea operations, marine corrosion engineering, process engineering, etc. If you wish to pursue a specific field you must have additional gas engineering training in that field. 

Gas engineer training is mandatory for all aspiring candidates. Training for this job can be attained from a training center, university, academy, or online programs. 

Work Experience 

Most companies look for at least 2 – 4 years of work experience before entrusting someone with a highly responsible job as a Gas Engineer.        

The field of Gas Engineering is still relatively unknown in the maritime industry. However, there is a huge scope for Gas Engineers both onboard and in offshore jobs throughout the world.

Apart from Gas Engineer, there are Marine Engineer who are responsible for the safe working of the heart of the ship which is the Engine, wanna know more about them check out this blog: 

Disclaimer :- The opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author and may not necessarily reflect those of Merchant Navy Decoded. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information provided and disclaim any responsibility for it. Data and visuals used are sourced from publicly available information and may not be authenticated by any regulatory body. Reviews and comments appearing on our blogs represent the opinions of individuals and do not necessarily reflect the views of Merchant Navy Decoded. We are not responsible for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on these reviews or comments.

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DOMINIC SAVIO FERNANDES

Rank : Gas Engineer ( DF )

Aman Manwal

Hi Dominic, kindly share your reviews with us about the blog.