View the August news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin August 2026 (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. It felt akin to a ‘top-level summit’ and it was a revelation. 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.