New SOLAS requirements for towing and mooring equipment

New inspection, maintenance and procedural requirements for all ships

Paragraph 9 of amended SOLAS Regulation II-1/3-8, as amended by resolution MSC.474(102), states that “for all ships, mooring equipment, including lines, shall be inspected and maintained in a suitable condition for their intended purposes”.

For more information, consult the following:

What should shipowners and ship managers do now?

Owners (or ship managers) should establish the following onboard maintenance and inspection procedures:

Review your procedures

While normally most of the above are already covered by the onboard Safety Management System, it is highly recommended that companies review their procedures, records and forms to ensure the above items have been properly addressed.

For new construction, designers and shipbuilders should ensure the supplied documentation provides sufficient information (e.g. technical data, maintenance manuals, mooring rope specification and certificates) to support owners in developing their maintenance and inspection procedures.

Challenges for ships built before 1 January 2007

Ships with a keel lay date before 1 January 2007 were not required to comply with SOLAS, Chapter II-1/ 3-8, so may not have the original design concept to support the development of the new SOLAS maintenance and inspection requirements. For such cases, the following options are available:

On a consultancy basis, LR may also support owners carrying out calculations to determine the MBLSD for establishing the original design concept, based on the owner’s available information. These calculations are carried out independently of any subsequent plan appraisal.

When will surveyors verify the requirements?

The maintenance and inspection procedures above are required to be confirmed on board at the time of:

For further information

For further information or advice, please get in touch with your local Lloyd's Register office or contact [email protected]

Download PDF of Class News 15/2023