News Bulletins

View the November news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin November 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

As I sat down to think about the content of my introduction to this month’s News Bulletin, my eye was drawn to a press release from Sunseeker, a UK international brand requiring little introduction which is synonymous with the large yacht sector. The press release reminded me that it is prime marine exhibition and show time, before the harsher northern hemisphere winter climate sets in.

I have just returned from the KORMARINE exhibition in South Korea. IIMS shared a stand with President Peter Broad’s company, Broadreach Marine Ltd. I am grateful to him for keeping me out of trouble during my trip! The exhibition itself was busy – perhaps 20,000 plus visitors. It was certainly a unique opportunity to promote ‘brand IIMS’ to a new audience. We exhibited as part of the Great Britain & Ireland pavilion. Photos and a short report of the event can be found in this bulletin with a longer version being published in next month’s Report Magazine. Whilst in Busan, Peter and I had the chance to participate in a UK Department of Trade networking event on the first night.

View the October news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin October 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Our first online Australian seminar was scheduled for mid-September and more than 80 people registered for the event. My thanks to those who helped to organise the event and also to those who spoke, including a welcome and introduction from IIMS President, Peter Broad.

The big event of the month for me personally came when I accepted an invitation to attend the 30th anniversary conference of the Marine Surveyors Association of Bangladesh (MSAB) as Guest of Honour, which was held at Hotel Agrabad, Chittagong. The event attracted an audience of well over one hundred delegates and it was certainly an adventure and an experience. Importantly, I also had the opportunity to chat openly at a private meeting with Commodore Maksud Alam, Bangladesh Director General of Shipping. I am most grateful to the MSAB President and Committee, my hosts, for making me feel so welcome and for looking after me during my short visit.

View the September news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin September 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

The recent fire aboard the Freemantle Highway has once again brought the subject of the transportation of electric vehicles and lithium-ion batteries by sea into sharp focus. The Dutch coast guard has stressed the cause of the fire on the 11-deck ship is officially unknown and authorities have been careful not to speculate. But an audio recording emerged of one rescue worker suggesting it had started in the battery of an electric vehicle and “it appears an electric vehicle exploded too”.

IIMS has a range of training activities taking place in the run-up to the end of the year. I am looking forward to making a trip to Scotland in November. It has been some while since we ran a training day in that area. It is also pleasing to be able to confirm our four-day practical surveying course for yacht and small craft surveyors will take place from 13 November at the Boat Building Academy in Lyme Regis, UK.

View the August news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin August 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Every now and again I am invited to engage in something slightly unusual. Here’s one such example. Recently, the President of the Marine Surveyors Association of Bangladesh (MSAB), Captain Mahfuzul Islam, and IIMS Regional Director for Bangladesh, Capt Zillur Bhuiyan FIIMS, approached me as their local organisation heads towards its 30th anniversary. They invited IIMS President, Peter Broad, to compose an introduction to their special journal to mark this auspicious occasion.

IIMS is planning to return to the Boat Building Academy in Lyme Regis twice (subject to demand) for courses later this year. The first event, a new programme, is a 4-day residential practical surveying course giving delegates the opportunity to conduct in depth surveys on a couple of small craft under the instruction and guidance of two experienced surveyors before compiling a survey report for marking and assessment.

View the July news bulletin in full: IIMS-News-Bulletin-July-2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Well, what a past few weeks it has been in the life of IIMS. The team has certainly stretched itself on various fronts and to its limits, but ultimately has played a blinder. Well done and thank you. I am referring to the delivery of the recent Annual General Meeting, Southampton Conference and Dinner, coupled with a management board meeting which was followed the week after by our annual presence at Seawork.

Seawork is a good place to start my introduction this month perhaps. The event was good for IIMS and we met a number of old friends and made some interesting new ones. But the three-day show is likely to be best remembered by many for the explosive reaction and negative outpouring from many of those who attended the presentation given by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) on the proposed new Workboat Code 3, which is set to hit the statute books in January 2024 if all goes to plan.

And finally, before I close this month, I wanted to reference the two appalling avoidable disasters that have happened in the past few weeks that have rightly made major news headlines around the world.

View the June news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin June 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

The report by the MAIB into another two needless deaths onboard the vessel Emma Louise at Port Hamble Marina once again reminds me of the hidden dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning. Had a CO detector been fitted on the boat, both men would still be alive today. Such devices are available in the UK at the local hardware store for as little as £20. It frustrates me that vessel owners do not routinely fit them and that there is no mandatory requirement to make them do so. It also poses the question as to where the limit of a surveyor’s duty of care ends. In my opinion, any surveyor boarding a small craft that does not have a CO detector should point out this deficiency to the vessel owner as a matter of course. You can read more about this avoidable tragic incident and download the report elsewhere in this bulletin.

I am pleased to announce the release of the June Report Magazine. Elsewhere in this bulletin you can find links to download the publication. I would particularly like to steer you to this edition for one reason and one alone. The onslaught of AI and its rise to the public’s attention in recent months is both fascinating and alarming.

View the May news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin May 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

The Institute is currently in the midst of delivering some great hybrid training this Spring, both in the UK and further afield too as the year unfolds. Recent events these past few weeks have seen a good number of members participating and the range of topics covered has been wide. The small craft seminar at the end of March saw more delegates returning in person to network face-to-face with their fellow surveyors. But still the majority of attendees are joining online, proving that hybrid is the way to go.

Lithium-ion batteries have been the subject of several presentations and we will come back again to this important topic as regulation lags but starts to be developed. It and its associated dangers are a subject that is frightening a good number of people. The aim quite simply has been to lift the lid off this technology, still misunderstood by many and it will be a recurring theme throughout 2023 to help surveyors understand the challenges.

View the April news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin April 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

I would like to start my column this month by congratulating Gordon Foot. I have been following his progress towards an MBA (Maritime Operations) over the past 18 months and after he reached out to me, assisting him by answering the occasional questionnaire as part of his research for this project. He has now been awarded his MBA based on his thesis “Maritime leadership in a changing world: The role of the future professional mariner”.

I would also like to extend my congratulations to Virginia McVea following her appointment as Chief Executive Officer of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA). I do have a message for Virginia. The MCA has a vital role to play in framing the role of the future professional mariner at a time when the sands are shifting around us on a frequent basis. Good luck to you. It is important to remember that MCA regulations are mimicked around the world by other Flag States, and it is vital the organization remains a trailblazer for the maritime sector, gets ahead of the curve and sets the correct regulation direction of travel.

View the March news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin March 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Well, 2023 has certainly got off to a busy start at IIMS and the team is beavering away on a number of exciting projects. We are pleased to be finally hitting the road again and have plans to deliver some meaningful training events and a Conference too – most offering both the possibility of a face-to-face experience, but with the option to join online via Zoom. I do hope that across the year we will meet some members in real-time. It has been far too long! Click to view the calendar of events.

Lithium-ion batteries remain one of the hottest topics of discussion in the marine world right now, and justly so given there has been a spate of accidents last year linked to this rapidly emerging technology. So, it is interesting to learn that Havila Kystruten, the specialist Norwegian cruise ship operator, has recently decided that only cars and motor vehicles that use fossil fuel can be transported on board the company’s ships in selected ports along the Norwegian coastal route.

View the February news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin February 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Let me start my introduction to this month’s news bulletin on a dark and cautionary note: cyber-crime and online scams. There surely cannot be a person who has not been the subject of a potential online scam, which often manifests itself through a suspicious email appearing in their inbox. I know I get plenty and sadly have learnt to trust no one online these days. Unless I can be sure I know the recipient I do not open emails and download any attachments. I’d urge you to think likewise. And even then, the sender of the email is unaware sometimes they have emailed you as their account has been hacked by fraudsters without their knowledge. All of this can be distressing and costly too, but it is at the lower end of the cyber-crime pyramid.

Given this is now the reality of the world we live in, I wanted to highlight this topic to keep it fresh in your mind, especially in light of two high-profile reported cyber crimes in the past month affecting the shipping sector.

View the January news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin January 2023 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

Welcome to 2023 and may I on behalf of IIMS wish you all the best for a fulfilling and successful year ahead despite the global challenges that surround us. We start 2023 with a bumper January news bulletin featuring some important news and guidance for marine surveyors.

The last IIMS UK Conference took place way back in 2019 for all the reasons you know. We have assessed the possibilities of holding the 2023 AGM and Conference as a hybrid event, meaning you are welcome and encouraged to come and be with us in person, or you can join online. For the 2023 AGM and Conference, we have chosen Southampton as our venue. And we plan a Dinner on the evening of 6th June too. There is more information in this news bulletin about the event.

Almost unbelievably for me, I am about to start my tenth year as CEO of the Institute.

View the December news bulletin in full: IIMS News Bulletin December 2022 (pdf format) or click to read it in eReader format.

As we start to wrap up 2022, I have noticed a distinct step change this year when it comes to the subject and progress of decarbonization. For some years it seems the maritime industry was dragging its heels and coming reluctantly to the decarbonization table. That has noticeably changed and with fervour. New technologies are mushrooming and emerging fast, along with alternative fuels too. We are now moving from the raw science and research stage into the implementation phase.

Each year the IIMS Certifying Authority is subjected to a mandatory audit by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) external monitoring team. It is always a challenge and not a day we look forward to with much relish. As well as a review of our processes and procedures, the MCA conducts a technical review of perhaps 10 vessel files. For the second successive year, I am pleased to say that the audit was clean and tidy with just a handful of minor findings to attend to.