Container trade has suffered huge losses in form of life, property as well as commercial losses. As industry revisit those incidents, it was only due to the miss declaration of Container weights. These serious incidents made the regulators to bring mitigating measures in place and In November 2014, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted mandatory amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter VI, Part A, Regulation 2 – Cargo information.
With very little time left before the amendments to SOLAS VI Regulation to take effect, now is the time for anyone involved in the container supply chain to consider how they will be affected and what they need to do to be ready for 1 July 2016.
While Indian Maritime Administration (DGS) is in process of weighing all the option for implementation, The Company of Master Mariners of India (CMMI) supported by the Directorate General of Shipping has planned for a conference on Carriage of Safe Containers at sea in beginning of December 2015.
Conference is aimed to help reduce the time for preparation, avoid last minute panic and to ensure learned implementation.
CMMI has issued Press release for this conference. Click here to read the press release.
The IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) at its 93rd session (May 2014) approved changes to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention regarding a mandatory container weight verification requirement on shippers. Dangerous Goods, Solid Cargo and Containers (DSC) Sub-committee approved changes to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention that will require verification of container weights before loaded containers may be placed aboard ships.
The DSC report was approved by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) in May 2014 and adopted by MSC in November 2014. The requirement making container weight verification a condition for vessel loading became legally binding on July 1, 2016.
The World Shipping Council and its member shipping companies have developed guidelines to explain what the implementation of the regulations will require of shippers, carriers and terminal operators as of July 1, 2016.
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