W&O in three-year valve supply agreement with Vard

Vard Søviknes. Photo: Tone Molnes

Leading maritime industry valves, actuation and instrumentation supplier W&O has reached a three-year supply agreement with Norway-based ship designer and builder Vard, a member of the Fincantieri Group. Under the agreement, W&O will provide technical support to the design and engineering departments of Vard, covering all valve challenges on newly built vessels. This will include delivering valves, actuation and instrumentation packages to Vard in Norway, Romania, and Vietnam.

Vidar Hoel, technical project manage at W&O, based in Ålesund, Norway, will lead on technical support throughout the project. With more than 20 years of marine valve experience, Hoel will coordinate a W&O project team of specialists based in the Netherlands, Romania and Singapore. W&O’s international network of offices and warehouses will support Vard with a service that makes the supply chain of valves easy, quick and efficient.

As part of the agreement, Vard will be able to utilize W&O’s data management and radio frequency identification (RFID) tagging systems. W&O creates an easily accessible history for each critical valve installed on a vessel. W&O’s application of digital technology in combination with its technical expertise of W&O will support Vard’s continued efforts to deliver state of the art vessels for its customers.

Kristof Adam, managing director, W&O Europe, commented: “Vard is well known in the industry for its progressive vessel designs and for embracing innovations. The combination of W&O’s digital valve and certification management, our international network of warehouses and valve technical experts, means we are ideally placed to support Vard across their new build vessels over the next years.

Vard Group says that its new partnership with W&O will mean that the company and its customers are supported by a knowledgeable, technical valve supplier across its shipyards in Norway, Romania and Vietnam.