Working with the US Navy

System Hygienics Cleans 4,000 Meters of Ductwork on USS Mount Whitney in Croatia

When a US warship in Croatia needed 4,000 metres of ductwork to be cleaned in just six days, System Hygienics, with its reputation for achieving high standards of cleaning in tight timeframes, was proud to help.

The USS Mount Whitney was dry-docked at Viktor Lenac Shipyard, in Rijeka, in Croatia, with two local companies contracted to complete the clean. But the scale of the project and quick turnaround required led them to enlist the help of Irish ductwork cleaning company Jetvent Ltd who, in turn, contracted System Hygienics to join the team

System Hygienics and Jetvent Ltd each sent two supervisors to Croatia, who travelled by van over a period of three days, transporting the company's Jetvent cleaning equipment. According to Darren Ling, director of System Hygienics, the difficult part of the job was seeking the necessary documentation to comply with Croatia's customs regulations as its not an EU country, the job itself was fairly straight forward.

Darren said: “We have worked closely with Jetvent Ltd over a number of years so when a shipyard manager in Croatia contacted them through their website and they realised the size and timeframe of the job, they asked us to share the contract.'

System Hygienics and Jetvent Ltd cleaned 4,000 metres of ductwork, about one quarter of the warship, while Navy personnel and civilians worked on board. As the ship was dry-docked, no one was living on board at the time.

The Croatian shipyard manager instructed System Hygienics to clean the fifth deck, which comprised of accommodation and toilet areas, as well as the engine room ventilation. System Hygienics was able to use compressed air on board to feed its Jetvent system, which is a remote cleaning method that uses compressed air and a powerful filtered vacuum to access and clean areas that would normally be out of reach.

Darren said: “It is a highly effective system and ideal for this type of job because it is compact and the cleaning nozzle can reach up to 50 metres from one single point achieving a quick and effective clean. We cleaned 2,800 metres of ductwork in just six days, and yes, the ship set sail on time.'