News Bulletins

Regulation changes are afoot again. In reality they are never far away as the sector is forever changing to meet the evolving needs of the modern boating and shipping world. Work is now well underway by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency  in the UK to update the “colour codes” that are used by coding examiners on vessels under 24 metres in commercial use. Presentations have been given to the UK based Certifying Authorities in recent weeks and a roll out of the first phase is not too far away I suspect. The codes are long overdue for a refresh, and this is to welcomed when the current codes are finally updated. In my role as Chair of the Certifying Authority Professional Standards Working Group, I have a special interest in seeing what the outcome is.

The other significant looming regulation change is the IMO 2020 Sulphur Cap which is set to hit the shipping sector and to be enforced from January. Disruptive change for the industry for sure, the word on the street amongst those in the know is that many ship and vessel owners/operators are struggling to be ready to meet the new regulations for a variety of reasons. The new regulation will see marine sector emissions in international waters slashed. The marine sector will have to reduce sulphur emissions by over 80% by switching to lower sulphur fuels. Clearly this is a challenge and not without significant cost for some, so it will be interesting to see how Flag States react in their local waters to non-compliant vessels.

View the bulletin to continue reading: IIMS-News-Bulletin-October-2019 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Marine surveyors it seems face similar challenges the world over. That is my conclusion having recently met members in Brisbane and Singapore. OK maritime regulations differ around the world, but the fundamentals of the job are essentially the same, not restricted by geographical location. Put simply, it is a requirement to have enough technical competency to carry out the survey or inspection assignment, write a factual and concise report whilst having a range of business skills to enable your surveying practice to flourish. When put like that it appears to be straightforward enough. Something to think about perhaps?

I was quite overwhelmed by the number of surveyors (not all of whom are members) who turned up for the two-day IIMS Brisbane workshop on 1st and 2nd August – 50 plus in total. My thanks to all those who came along for what was an excellent event. We plan to return! From there I travelled to Singapore and was pleased to catch up with many of those who have attended previous Institute events in that area before. More details on both seminars can be found elsewhere in this bulletin.

Sad news has reached me about the death of two long standing, stalwart members of IIMS. Caroline Rostant based in Trinidad passed away unexpectedly in Austria and Tony McGrail (located in the UK) succumbed to a serious illness.

View the bulletin to continue reading: IIMS-News-Bulletin-September-2019 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Since announcing the crowdfunding opportunity for members to support the purchase of Murrills House as the Institute’s new permanent home just a month ago, I have been delighted at the initial flurry of support. With online and direct donations, we have already raised over £10,000. A big thank you to those who have made a donation already. It is truly appreciated.

The announcement just a couple of weeks’ ago that approval has been granted with funding for a UK ‘trailblazer’ marine surveyor apprenticeship scheme is excellent news. I have been involved from the outset on this project and it is remarkable to see how it has developed; and I am proud of IIMS’s involvement. None of us know what impact this may, or may not, have on the marine surveying landscape, but it is a positive step in the right direction.

This month I would like to put out a plea to find new markers for the IIMS Diploma Professional Qualifications. Our panel is ageing, and we could do with some new faces and fresh impetus as part of our succession plans! The work is not onerous, and you do not need to leave your office. If you are an expert in an area of marine surveying and are interested in becoming a marker, IIMS is keen to hear from you.

View the bulletin to continue reading: IIMS-News-Bulletin-August-2019 or click to read it in eReader format.

To say June was a month to remember is something of an understatement. As I look back now, it seems barely possible that we got through the sheer volume of work that we did. It started with a Maritime & Coastguard Agency audit of our Certifying Authority. These are never the easiest of days and auditors are always looking for whatever they can find. Next up was the annual Seawork exhibition at Southampton. This is a renowned three-day show for the workboat sector and draws a number of members to the event and to our stand. I was unable to leave the stand due to the number of visitors.

The following week brought new challenges for the head office team as we headed to London to prepare and deliver the three-day IIMS Conference, Annual General Meeting and eCMID seminar. Handing out three Blue Water awards and three Honorary memberships was a great pleasure.

As you may have heard, IIMS is now deep in negotiations to purchase Murrills House from our landlord as the new permanent home for the Institute. This is an extraordinary opportunity and exciting project to be involved with. IIMS has started a crowdfunding campaign which will remain open until 31 March 2020.

View the bulletin to continue reading: IIMS News Bulletin July 2019 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.