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IMO: Container Weight Verification Rule – Frequently Asked Questions
Beginning July 1, 2016, the International Maritime Organization’s new container mass verification necessities enter into pressure beneath the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), requiring shippers to confirm the precise gross mass of a packed containers earlier than they are often loaded onto a ship.
The IMO says that the declaration of the correct gross mass of a packed container is essential to maritime security, however even with the wealth of knowledge accessible to shippers and trade stakeholders there nonetheless appears to be lots of confusion relating to the brand new rule and its implementation. To assist alleviate some this, right here an inventory of Frequently Asked Questions offered by the IMO relating to the brand new guidelines:
What are the brand new guidelines?
On 1 July 2016, new necessities to confirm the gross mass of a packed container enter into pressure beneath the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).
Why have the necessities for verification of the gross mass of the container been launched?
Knowing the correct gross mass of a packed container is essential to make sure appropriate stowage and stacking and keep away from collapse of container stacks or loss overboard.
This is a crucial security measure, which is aimed toward saving lives and stopping damage and the destruction of property.
Is declaration of gross mass a brand new requirement?
There has at all times been a requirement in SOLAS to declare the gross mass of cargo and containers. The new requirement provides an additional degree requiring verification of the mass.
This is to make sure that the mass declared is a real reflection of the gross mass of the packed container, with a purpose to keep away from damage, cargo harm, lack of containers, and so forth.
How can the gross mass be verified?
The SOLAS regulation permits for 2 strategies to confirm the gross mass of packed containers:
- Method 1. Weighing the packed container utilizing calibrated and licensed tools; or
- Method 2: Weighing all packages and cargo gadgets, together with the mass of pallets, dunnage and different securing materials to be packed within the container and including the tare mass of the container to the sum of the one plenty, utilizing a licensed methodology authorised by the competent authority of the State by which packing of the container was accomplished.
Method 2 is not going to be sensible for shippers of bulk commodities like iron ore, grain, and many others.,
Who gives the verified gross mass?
The shipper is accountable for offering the verified gross mass by stating it within the transport doc and submitting it to the grasp or his consultant and to the terminal consultant sufficiently upfront to be used within the preparation of the ship stowage plan.
Who is the shipper?
The shipper is outlined as a authorized entity or particular person named on the invoice of lading or sea waybill or equal multimodal transport doc (e.g. “through” invoice of lading) as shipper and/or who (or in whose title or on whose behalf) a contract of carriage has been concluded with a transport firm. The shipper could also be a producer, ship agent, freight forwarder, and many others.
What will occur if the verified gross mass will not be offered?
The verified gross mass is a situation for loading a packed container onto a ship. A packed container, for which the verified gross mass has not been obtained sufficiently upfront for use within the ship stowage plan, can be denied loading onto a ship to which the SOLAS rules apply
Who decides on the “certified method” of weighing?
This is the accountability of the competent authority of the State by which packing of the container was accomplished.
Who will implement the rules?
Like different SOLAS provisions, the enforcement of the SOLAS necessities relating to the verified gross mass of packed containers falls inside the competence and is the accountability of the SOLAS Contracting Governments. Contracting Governments appearing as port States ought to confirm compliance with these SOLAS necessities. Any incidence of non-compliance with the SOLAS necessities is enforceable based on nationwide laws.
Who pays if the gross mass of a container will not be verified?
A packed container, for which the verified gross mass has not been obtained sufficiently upfront for use within the ship stowage plan, can be denied loading onto a ship to which the SOLAS rules apply. Any prices related to the non-loading, storage, demurrage or eventual return of the container to the tendering shipper of the container must be topic to contractual preparations between the business events.
What if a container arrives for onward transportation and not using a verified gross mass?
While the shipper is accountable for acquiring and documenting the verified gross mass of a packed container, part 13 of the Guidelines relating to the verified gross mass of a container carrying cargo (MSC.1/Circ.1475) incorporates contingencies for containers obtained and not using a verified gross mass.
In order to permit the continued environment friendly onward motion of such containers, the grasp or his consultant and the terminal consultant might get hold of the verified gross mass of the packed container on behalf of the shipper. This could also be finished by weighing the packed container within the terminal or elsewhere, however whether or not and the way to do that must be agreed between the business events, together with the apportionment of the prices concerned.
What will occur almost about containers loaded previous to 1 July 2016 for transhipment?
The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) at its 96th session in May 2016 agreed that whereas there must be no delay within the implementation of the SOLAS necessities, it will be helpful if Administrations and port State management authorities might take a “practical and pragmatic approach” when implementing them, for a interval of three months instantly following 1 July 2016. This would assist make sure that containers which can be loaded earlier than 1 July 2016, however transhipped on or after 1 July 2016, attain their remaining port of discharge and not using a verified gross mass and it will present flexibility, for 3 months instantly after 1 July 2016, to all of the stakeholders in containerized transport to refine, if mandatory, procedures (e.g. up to date software program) for documenting, speaking and sharing digital verified gross mass knowledge.
The MSC agreed MSC.1/Circ.1548 Advice to Administrations, port State management authorities, firms, port terminals and masters relating to the SOLAS necessities for verified gross mass of packed containers.
What are the potential issues arising from misdeclared gross mass of a container?
There are various potential issues which might come up from a misdeclared container. They embrace:
- incorrect vessel stowage choices;
- re-stowage of containers (and ensuing delays and prices), if the obese situation is ascertained;
- collapsed container stacks;
- containers misplaced overboard (each these obese and containers that weren’t obese);
- cargo legal responsibility claims;
- chassis harm;
- harm to ships;
- stability and stress dangers for ships;
- danger of private damage or dying to seafarers and shore-side staff;
- impairment of service schedule integrity;
- provide chain service delays for shippers of correctly declared containers;
- misplaced income and earnings;
- final minute shut-outs of confirmed, booked and accessible hundreds when the precise mass on board exceeds what is said and the overall cargo mass exceeds the vessel restrict or port draft restrict;
- impairment of ship’s optimum trim and draft, thus inflicting impaired vessel effectivity, suboptimal gas utilization, and elevated emissions from ships;
- legal responsibility for accidents and fines for obese containers on roads, and ensuing time and administrative efforts and prices to hunt reimbursement from accountable events; and
- lack of income for customs authorities in instances the place duties or tariffs are utilized by weight measurement of a commodity.
What different work has IMO finished to forestall lack of containers or issues with containers?
The new requirement to confirm the gross mass of a packed container is only one ingredient of the work that IMO has been doing to deal with losses of containers.
IMO has labored with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), to develop a non-mandatory international code of observe for the dealing with and packing of cargo transport items for transportation by sea and land. The 2014 IMO/ILO/UNECE Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (CTU Code), together with associated informative materials, may be downloaded here.
At the request of IMO, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is revising related ISO standards (ISO 1161:Series 1 freight containers – Corner fittings – Specifications; and ISO 3874: Series 1 freight containers – Handling and securing) with a purpose to incorporate the latest advances in container dealing with and securing tools, taking account of the most recent era of container ships with design capability in extra of 18,000 TEU and together with design and power traits for automated twistlocks.
IMO has additionally adopted the Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing (CSS Code).
Where can I discover out extra?
Contact your nationwide maritime Administration for particular recommendation and steering: contact points.
Please go to the IMO webpage: Verification of the gross mass of a packed container
Download the textual content of the SOLAS regulations.
Download the IMO Guidelines regarding the verified gross mass of a container carrying cargo.
Download MSC.1/Circ.1548 Advice to Administrations, port State management authorities, firms, port terminals and masters relating to the SOLAS necessities for verified gross mass of packed containers.