Why Every Shipyard Should Contract A Marine Surveyor

19 July 2021
 Categories: , Blog

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If you are in the business of building and repairing boats, ships, or other water-bound vessels, you need the services of a certified marine surveyor. They inspect all assembled vessels, ascertaining compliance. Scheduled inspections foster identifying problems and weak points in the ship structure, allowing timely remedies. A qualified marine surveyor can inspect different types of vessels and accurately evaluate their seaworthiness. Shipyards should contract consulting services from certified marine surveyors to ascertain their vessels' safety and compliance with relevant maritime codes. Certified marine surveyors have the required expertise to assess and approve proposed ship designs and assess assembled vessels for defects. As such, shipyards should hire marine surveyors for the following reasons:

Optimized Assembly Costs

Running a shipyard is not cheap, and small mistakes can increase the expenditure. The amount of money used to hire a marine surveyor is worth it because they can avert potential calamities that would otherwise have devastating implications. Part of their role is to ensure all machinery is functioning as required. Equipment used in communication, navigation, and locomotion of the ships should work at peak efficiency. Regular inspections allow marine surveyors to detect potential problems timely and recommend cost-efficient remedies. Thus, marine surveyors are essential experts in shipyards to eliminate avoidable accidents. 

Avoid Liability in Contract and Negligence

The primary objective of hiring a certified marine surveyor is to avoid legal liability when vessels that are leaving your shipyard run into technical problems. Clients can sue your firm over negligence if you fail to do a satisfactory inspection of their boats. Mere inspection cannot hold ground in a court of law since only a certified professional can possess the knowledge to inspect ships for safety concerns accurately. Thus, certified marine surveyors may benefit a shipyard by acting as expert witnesses during negligence litigations, disproving their liability. It will help to hire a third-party firm outside of your employee payroll to be confident of their impartiality and competence. 

Maritime Code Compliance

The marine industry is regulated by laws that are customized to specific vessels. Like vehicles, water-bound vessels have load limits they should not exceed. If the goods the ships carry are not well distributed, it can lead to accidents and fatalities, exposing your business to legal liabilities. A certified marine surveyor from a reputable consultancy firm can cross-check the gross tonnage and deadweight tonnage of all the vessels in the yard against the ship's stability handbook. Moreover, they can use load lines and draft makers to reduce overloading attempts on your ships. Thus, shipyards should consult with marine surveyors to ascertain their compliance.