News Bulletins

View the September news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.
Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 21 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 33 minutes).

Three little, but often misunderstood words – safety management system, or SMS for short – have been everywhere in the maritime news recently. Yes, SMS seems to be the current buzz phrase of the day! I have seen an alarming increase in incident and accident reporting referencing SMS failures and non-adherence as the primary cause.

So, what’s going wrong? Why is the SMS being overlooked or, worst of all, simply ignored? This is the central theme of my column this month.

View the August news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 23 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 24 minutes).

I have spoken about the onslaught of technology many times before and how it is affecting and transforming the shipping and marine surveying industries, but once again, I have made it the central theme of my introduction to this month’s News Bulletin. On 30 June, I joined the great and the good from the UK maritime industry at the MCA’s 2026 Autonomy Industry Meeting, held in Southampton, UK.  The MCA event coincided with the publication of the new non-mandatory Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) Code on 1 July 2026. Mandatory adoption of the Code is not expected before 2032. As it is a non-mandatory instrument, Member States are allowed to test its use while paving the way for making it mandatory under the SOLAS Convention.

View the July news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 26 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 27 minutes).

The IIMS Annual General Meeting 2026 was held on 2 June. Often rather dry events, an AGM is a vital part of what any Institute or Association does once a year. It was a great opportunity to inform and share the many activities being undertaken by IIMS with an engaged online audience. My thanks to all those who voted this year – looking at our records, we logged the highest number of votes in memory – and especially to those who took time out from their busy schedules to join us online as we broadcast the event live from IIMS HQ at Murrills House. The management board, many of whom were at Murrills House in person, were joined by the IIMS team along with nearly 80 other members online.

View the June news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 20 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 30 minutes).

Announcing awards and recognising exceptional contributions to the marine surveying profession are always pleasing. So, I have the pleasure of announcing three honours. In no order of preference, IIMS has recognised the contribution of three exceptional maritime professionals. They are Nigel Cox, who has been awarded a Fellowship, Joel Lloyd Pinheiro, who also becomes a Fellow, and Joe McWilliam, who has been given an Honorary Fellowship. You can read the citations for the aforementioned men in the News Bulletin, and they will be formally recognised at the IIMS Annual General Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, 2 June. There’s still time (just) to make arrangements for that event, and I hope you will consider joining us from 1400 to 1600 (UK time).

View the May news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 26 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 30 minutes).

Recently, I attended the annual UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s (MCA) Certifying Authority BCC meeting in Southampton, which drew about 40 attendees. All the UK Certifying Authorities and the Recognised Organisations were represented and present. We were joined by senior and key MCA personnel. For the large part, it was business as usual as the regulator announced new initiatives, interpretations, and gave a general news update on a series of policies and ongoing work behind the scenes. But mid-way through the meeting, a comment was made by the Code Lead in his presentation about the Workboat Edition 3 Code in relation to a recently circulated urgent MCA press release. I could not let this go unchallenged.

View the April news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 24 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 27 minutes).

It troubles me once again that I feel the need to start this month’s column by raising the topic of lithium-ion battery fires, especially as the story I want to share with you is a land-based one that happened recently, and not a maritime disaster. You may know of my keen interest in this technology and the challenges surrounding it. The incident I want to speak about, and share with you, is a massive fire in the Scottish city of Glasgow. A major fire broke out in a vape shop adjacent to the city’s main railway station. Over the coming hours, the fire devastated an iconic 130-year-old Victorian building, leading to its eventual collapse, so intense was the conflagration. Imagine a similar situation on a boat or ship?

View the March news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 19 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 26 minutes).

This month, I want to address the matter of recurring safety issues in our industry, and I pose the simple question, to which there is no easy answer: “What are the barriers to progress?” Of course, I don’t have the answers, but as a joined-up, interconnected industry, perhaps we could do as we seek to make incisive inroads into ship, crew, and vessel safety. Over the years, the realisation of enhanced safety training and mechanisms has grown and is now accepted as the norm, as has their implementation, but still, we see the same old type of incidents and accidents recurring. So, do we have an issue with the safety culture, and why are we not learning from history and the past? Nobody should go to work and not return at the end of the day.

View the February news bulletin in full:

 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 20 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 28 minutes).

You do not need me to remind you that we are surrounded by innovative, marine sector tech on all fronts, racing ahead, seemingly at a pace I can’t recall in my lifetime. And as one gets older (rather like me these days), it is easy to turn a blind eye to what’s happening, and to plough on with what we know, accepting the norm, hoping it will all just go away. But of course, it doesn’t, so we must try and embrace what’s new and cope with the inevitable change and resulting disruption to our lives it brings. For younger and less experienced marine surveyors, I’d suggest ignoring what is going on around them right now is dangerous, and creates knowledge voids and potential pitfalls.

View the January news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 20 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 28 minutes).

IIMS celebrates its 35th anniversary later this year. That’s something to be proud of, and as an Institute we have come a long way in a little over a third of a century. I was curious to research and discover what a 35th wedding anniversary is known as. To my surprise and delight, I discovered it is referred to as a coral anniversary! The nautical connotations made it seem very appropriate indeed. Last month leading up to the Christmas break flew by. But before the festive period well and truly took hold, IIMS delivered some meaningful training which attracted huge interest and many attendees. I have written a short report about this flurry of activity in this News Bulletin for those who were unable to participate.

View the December news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 27 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 34 minutes).

Well, it is not often that I find myself at the centre of the news! On my trip to Goa in September to participate in the IIMS Indian Conference, I met up with Nishit Doshi from Trader Magazine, who has closely followed the Institute’s progress over the past decade. We chatted, and I gave an exclusive interview to him. He was keen to know about my journey over the past decade, leadership ethos, and how IIMS continues to evolve and remain relevant amid sweeping changes across the maritime industry. Reading Nishit’s words of introduction to the interview were humbling (and much appreciated) indeed. At the same event, Nishit also spoke earnestly with the current IIMS President, Capt Ruchin Dayal FIIMS, about leadership, technology, and his vision for a more connected, future-ready IIMS. I hope you might choose to read the interviews, and if so, they are available here in one pdf.

View the November news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 24 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 27 minutes).

It seems to be report season! In recent weeks I have been bombarded with them, more than seems normal for this time of the year from recollection. Sadly, I cannot make time to read and digest them all. But out of courtesy and duty, knowing how much time, effort and money has gone into resourcing and publishing them, I do scan read the most relevant ones, and occasionally I am rewarded with some essential nuggets of learned wisdom. One such recent report that grabbed my attention was the P&I Market Review 2025. It offers a deep dive into the current status of the various P&I Clubs. But it was the narrative in the accompanying press release that really hit home. It informs readers that the 2024/25 policy year saw the clubs report a collective underwriting loss of $312m, reversing two years of surpluses and resulting in a net underwriting loss of $98m over the past three years.

View the October news bulletin in full:

(pdf format) or click to read it in eReader magazine format.

Two ‘lite’ podcast versions are also available to listen to. Yacht & Small Craft Surveyors (run time 24 minutes) and Commercial Ship Surveyors (run time 28 minutes).

Wherever I go these days – and I have been around a bit recently – and whoever I meet in the maritime world, be they small craft or commercial ship surveyors, loss prevention executives, insurers and underwriters, and even maritime regulators, it seems there is one subject that comes up time and time again. Can you guess? Ah yes, lithium-ion batteries, and more importantly, the mounting challenges they are presenting in our industry! Perhaps that does not surprise you. Now, please understand, I am not here to stymie innovation or prevent the advance of new technology; clearly, the technology is amazing. However, I am concerned that people are kept safe when surrounded by lithium-ion batteries and, let’s face it, they surround us these days.