Browse by system
- ^A — ME, Propulsion & Steering
- ^B — Aux Engine Power Generation
- ^C — Boiler
- ^D — Pneumatic
- ^E — FO / LO
- ^F — FWG/ Heat Exchanger
- ^G — Governor
- ^H — HVAC / Refrigeration
- ^I — Hull Structure / Fabrication
- ^J — Crane & Deck Machinery
- ^K — Cargo
- ^L — LSA FFA
- ^M — Motors
- ^N — Navigation
- ^O — Others
- ^P — Pumps
- ^Q — Human Capital & Services
- ^R — MARPOL & Regulatory
- ^S — Stores
- ^T — Turbocharger
- ^U — Underwater/ Diving / UWILD
- ^V — Vessels
- ^W — Deck & Engine Branded Stores
- ^X — Electrical Branded Stores
- ^Y — Yards & Docks
- ^Z — Automation Spares
Apple2Apple comparison
Compare two equipment codes side by side. Pick any make or model, and the tool auto-scopes the second picker to the same equipment category for a meaningful spec-by-spec comparison.
Frequently asked questions
What is Zulu Code?
Zulu Code is an open classification standard that assigns a unique short code to every piece of maritime machinery. It covers systems, equipment types, manufacturers, and specific models across the merchant fleet.
Is Zulu Code the same as AWSEMM?
Yes. The standard was previously known as AWSEMM (All-World Ship Equipment, Machinery & Models) and is now published as Zulu Code. All ^CODE references remain permanent and unchanged.
How does the ^CODE work?
Each code is 1 to 4 uppercase letters prefixed with a caret (e.g. ^AABF). The first letter identifies a System, the second an Equipment type, the third a Manufacturer, and the fourth a specific Model. Codes are stable identifiers that can be embedded in URLs, documents, and machine-readable catalogues.
Is Zulu Code free to use?
Yes. The Zulu Code dictionary is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license (CC BY 4.0). You may copy, redistribute, and build on it for any purpose, including commercial use, provided you give appropriate credit.
How does Zulu Code compare to SFI?
The SFI Group System classifies functions and account groups on a ship (e.g. 601 = Main Engine). Zulu Code is complementary: it identifies the specific maker and model of the equipment performing that function. Each entry can carry a parallel SFI code for cross-walk.
Who maintains Zulu Code?
Zulu Code is an open, community-maintained classification standard. The machine-readable corpus is served from zulucode.org under CC BY 4.0 — anyone may copy, redistribute, and build on it for any purpose, including commercial use, with attribution.
Can AI assistants cite Zulu Code?
Yes. The site publishes an AI-readable discovery file at /llms.txt and a complete code dictionary at /llms-full.txt. GPTBot, ClaudeBot, Google-Extended and other major crawlers are explicitly welcomed on the reference pages. Citations should include the ^CODE and a link back to the code's page.
How can I access Zulu Code programmatically?
Read-only public JSON endpoints are available under /api/public/awsemm/ — including search, entry lookup by slug, and a list of popular codes. See /llms.txt for the current endpoint catalogue.
What is the structure of a Zulu Code page?
Every code page (e.g. /AABF) names the system, equipment, maker and model, and links to related entries, typical applications, and representative vessel types. Machine-readable JSON-LD (TechArticle + DefinedTerm + BreadcrumbList) is emitted on every page for crawlers and AI agents.
Contribute
Zulu Code is an open standard. Spotted a missing maker, an incorrect classification, or a model that should be added? Contact the maintainers. Every contribution strengthens the standard for the whole industry.
Licence
The Zulu Code dictionary is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license. You may copy, redistribute, and build on it for any purpose, including commercial use, provided you give appropriate credit and link back to zulucode.org.
Now you can tag your favorite marine machinery, just by ^XXXX. Be it social media or your official purchase email.
Zulu Code is a hierarchical classification system for maritime machinery. Every piece of ship equipment is assigned a short alphabetic code following a four-level structure: System (1 letter) → Equipment (2 letters) → Make (3 letters) → Model (4 letters).
^A A A E │ │ │ └── Model: G95ME-C │ │ └───── Make: MAN B&W 2S │ └──────── Equipment: Main Engine └─────────── System: ME, Propulsion & Steering