Technical & Failure Investigation services

Technical and Failure Investigation (TFI) 

Lloyd’s Register (LR) Advisory’s Technical and Failure Investigation (TFI) service supports clients in addressing machinery failures, understanding why they occur and assessing emerging risks. This provides a clear, evidence-based foundation for repair and recovery decisions, and for returning the asset to operation safely and efficiently.  

Technical investigation 

TFI also provides technical engineering services to support shipbuilder and shipowner clients with bespoke technical investigations, including preparation of optimised propulsion shafting system alignment calculations and shafting vibration calculations for their new building and/or modification projects on in-service vessels. 

Failure investigation 

Failure investigations are delivered through a coordinated approach combining onboard vessel assessment, laboratory capability and engineering analysis within a single service to establish the failure mechanism and root cause. Findings are consolidated into a defined, evidence-based outcome, providing a technical basis for repair decisions and supporting corrective action and recovery planning. 

The service can be deployed at short notice to support investigation as soon as information and vessel access is available, enabling timely response where failures occur or risks develop. This is particularly important where machinery issues can lead to operational disruption, extended downtime and potential off-hire of the vessel. 

Where multiple parties are involved, we provide an independent technical view, giving clients confidence that conclusions are fully evidenced and that the right actions are being taken. 

What this means in practice 

Independent assurance that the design and installation are sound, particularly where propulsion shafting is critical and any failure in service would have serious consequences. It provides a clear understanding of what failed and why, allowing repair and corrective actions to be based on solid technical evidence. This reduces the risk of recurrence, supports recovery planning and return to operation and improves control over asset performance and operational risk. 

Where TFI adds value 

• Vessel propulsion shafting system at new construction or modifications that affect shafting system alignment and vibrations 
• Machinery and propulsion system failures
• Engine and auxiliary component failures
• Shafting, vibration and noise-related issues
• Critical components including stern tube bearings, propellers, rudders, seals, couplings, engines, shafts 

Selected examples of investigations 

• Engine catastrophic failure investigation
• Propulsion shafting alignment investigation
• Sterntube bearing failure investigation
• Accommodation vibration investigation
• Pod propulsion vibration investigation
• Waterjet failure investigation
• Bow thruster vibration investigation
• Shore power plant engine failure investigation
• Rudder shell plate and casting failure investigation
• Side shell plating cracks in WBTs
• Air lubrication system retrofit hull structure assessment
• Machinery and structural vibration investigation 
• Shaft vibration assessments (TVC, LVC, AVC)
• Shaft alignment calculation
• Sterntube oil film thickness calculation
• Metallurgical investigation of failed machinery components including engine pistons, cylinder liners, conrods, shell bearings, cylinder heads, fuel pump springs, fuel injector nozzles, heat exchanger tubes, large pump shafts, side shell plating, seawater valves, propeller blades, rudder plate, bilge tank MIC investigation. 

Why LR Advisory TFI 

Our TFI team brings together specialist expertise across marine and mechanical engineering, machinery dynamics, finite element analysis (FEA), associated noise and vibration (N&V), data acquisition and metallurgy. This is supported by wider LR capability, including naval architecture, hydrodynamics and computational fluid dynamics (CFD), allowing complex failure mechanisms to be assessed and validated in full. 

We also provide an independent technical perspective, separate from OEMs and shipbuilders, supporting confident decision-making where multiple parties are involved.