DNV-ST-0378 (was DNV 2.22): Offshore Lifting Appliances
DNV-ST-0378 is the offshore lifting appliances standard published by DNV. It replaced the legacy DNV Standard for Certification 2.22 in 2014 and covers design, manufacture, type approval, testing and certification of all offshore and platform lifting equipment — pedestal cranes, knuckle-boom cranes, A-frames, gantries, derricks and the integral lifting accessories that make them work. This page covers what is in the standard, the rename history, and how operators procure equipment under it.
Practical application: For practical application of this topic, see product / system design and engineering studies and analysis.
What ST-0378 covers
ST-0378 applies to permanently installed lifting equipment on:
- Fixed offshore platforms (jackets, GBS, jack-ups in service)
- Floating offshore units (FPSOs, semi-submersibles, drillships)
- Subsea installation vessels and crane vessels
It defines design loads, structural requirements, hydraulic system rules, electrical safety, control system architecture, and the procedural requirements for survey and certification. The standard sits alongside DNV class rules for vessels and DNV-ST-N001, which governs the marine operations themselves.
From DNV 2.22 to ST-0378 — the rename history
Before 2014, offshore lifting appliances were certified to DNV Standard for Certification 2.22 — Lifting Appliances. The 2.22 designation came from DNV’s older numbering scheme. After DNV’s standards reorganisation, the lifting-appliance content was reissued as DNV-ST-0378 with substantively similar technical requirements but a new structure aligned with DNV’s ST series.
A common confusion: operators still refer to lifting appliance certification as “DNV 2.22”, particularly in older contracts and inspection reports. For new equipment, the applicable document is DNV-ST-0378. For older equipment in service, the original 2.22 certification typically remains valid through periodic survey, and operators can reference either standard during recertification.
Key design and material requirements
Design loads. ST-0378 specifies the load combinations a lifting appliance must withstand: dead load, live load, dynamic loads from offshore use, snow and ice, seismic, wind, and accidental loads such as drops or two-block events. Limit-state design follows DNV’s standard partial-safety-factor approach.
Structural materials. All structural and pressure-containing components require certified material. EN 10204 3.1 inspection certificates are the minimum; 3.2 (with classification society endorsement) is required for primary structural members of higher SWL units.
Hydraulic systems. Cylinders, piping, accumulators and valving must comply with the relevant pressure-equipment rules and DNV’s hydraulic-system clauses. Fatigue analysis is required for components in cyclic service — including heave compensator cylinders.
Welding. All structural welds follow DNV’s welding standard with NDT acceptance criteria specific to component class.
Control systems. Control reliability follows ST-0378’s ratings for safety-critical functions including emergency stop, overload protection and snubber-equivalent shock absorption.
NDT and testing
Non-destructive testing under ST-0378 typically includes:
- Magnetic Particle Testing (MT) — surface and near-surface flaw detection on critical welds
- Ultrasonic Testing (UT) — volumetric flaw detection in plate, forging and welded sections
- Radiographic Testing (RT) — applied selectively for primary butt welds
- Penetrant Testing (PT) — alternative for non-magnetic materials
Acceptance criteria depend on component category. Primary structural members and pressure-containing welds carry the strictest criteria.
Functional testing. Every appliance undergoes Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) before delivery, witnessed by a DNV surveyor. FAT verifies mechanical function under load, hydraulic system integrity at maximum working pressure, control logic including all safety interlocks, and pressure relief and emergency lowering.
Proof load test. The unit is subjected to a proof load — typically 1.5× SWL for lifting appliances, 2.0× SWL for some lifting accessories — held for the specified duration with the surveyor present. The unit must show no permanent deformation and pass all functional checks at proof load.
Type Approval vs project certification
DNV offers two routes to certification under ST-0378:
Type Approval (DNV TA). The full design package is reviewed and accepted once. Subsequent units of the same design only need material certification, build inspection and final FAT/proof load. This is the cost-effective route for serially produced equipment.
Project certification. Each unit goes through full design review, material acceptance, build inspection and FAT/proof load. Used when the design varies project-to-project or when Type Approval doesn’t apply.
Choose based on production volume and design variability. Norwegian Dynamics’ RIGEL holds DNV Type Approval; ANTARES is project-certified to allow per-application optimisation. See Heave Compensator Selection for the architectural trade-offs.
ST-0378 vs ST-0377 (shipboard)
DNV-ST-0377 is the parallel standard for shipboard lifting appliances — cranes installed on commercial vessels for cargo handling. The technical content is similar but ST-0377 incorporates IMO-derived requirements and SOLAS implications that don’t apply to platform-mounted equipment.
Where the same hardware family is used in both shipboard and offshore service (e.g. heave compensators that move between vessels and platforms), certification typically references both standards plus the specific class rules of the host vessel.
How heave compensators are certified
A typical heave compensator (PHC, APHC or AHC) certified to ST-0378 follows this scope:
- Design package — load case definition, FEA analysis, fatigue analysis, hydraulic schematic, materials list, NDT plan
- Surveyor design review against ST-0378 limit states
- Material certification — EN 10204 3.1 or 3.2 across all structural and pressure components
- NDT during fabrication — MT, UT, RT and/or PT per acceptance plan
- Witnessed FAT — function test, pressure test, control logic verification
- Witnessed proof load — typically 1.5× SWL
- Issuance of DNV product certificate
For more detail on how compensators reduce the dynamic loads ST-0378 requires you to design against, see Dynamic Amplification Factor (DAF).
Adjacent standards
For most offshore projects ST-0378 is referenced alongside:
- DNV-ST-N001 — Marine operations and marine warranty (covers the lifting operations themselves)
- DNV-RP-N103 — Modelling and analysis of marine operations (the technical input to load calculations)
- DNV-RP-N202 — Subsea lifting (recommended practice)
- NORSOK R-002 — Lifting equipment (Norwegian Continental Shelf)
- API 2C — Offshore pedestal cranes (US Gulf, ANSI-equivalent)
- EN 13852 Parts 1, 2, 3 — European cranes — offshore cranes
Related on Norwegian Dynamics
- DNV Standards for Offshore Lifting — The pillar overview of the five DNV documents that govern compensator certification.
- Crane Load Chart — How DAF feeds into the load-chart calculation under ST-0378.
- Dynamic Amplification Factor (DAF) — Formula and worked example for the dynamic loads ST-0378 makes you design against.
Working on a lift that needs this?
We hold DNV Type Approval on RIGEL and project certification on ANTARES — both compliant with ST-0378. Send your scope and we’ll come back with the applicable cert path and indicative timeline.