Every incident report ends up in front of a drop-down. Somewhere between the narrative and the corrective action, the form asks the reporter to pick a cause, and the list of causes on offer is the incident reporting taxonomy. It…
A vessel picks up an ECDIS finding during a PSC inspection. Four months earlier, the ship’s own navigational audit flagged something that reads completely differently but is, on inspection, the same underlying issue. Eight months before that, a SIRE inspection…
On 18 June 2026, IMO issued MSC-MEPC.5, Guidance on assessments and applications of remote surveys, ISM Code audits and ISPS Code verifications — approved jointly by MSC 111 and MEPC 84 in concurrence, and developed by the Sub-Committee on Implementation…
A ship safety management system is mandatory under the ISM Code, and in most of the fleets I review the document is technically compliant and still hard to use. It has grown after every observation, with nothing taken out. It…
TMSA compliance runs across thirteen elements, each scored against four progressive stages, resubmitted to the OCIMF portal every twelve months. That’s the whole shape of it. Most of the confusion I see isn’t about any single element — it’s about…
A VDR navigational audit is an independent review of recorded bridge data — audio, radar, ECDIS and helm — that shows how a bridge team actually works, not how it performs for an observer. I have written nineteen articles on…
DryBMS audit planning and close out — Subject Area 5 in the DBCE framework — covers whether a company’s internal audit programme is planned, staffed, reviewed and followed through to close-out, assessed against the same Basic-through-Excellence structure as every other…
DryBMS engine room and bunkering — Subject Area 17 in the DBCE framework — covers how a company runs its machinery spaces and handles fuel: procedures for the safe operation of plant, and procedures for bunkering, assessed against the same…
DryBMS risk assessment — Subject Area 22 in the DBCE framework — covers how a company assesses, prioritises and manages its operating risks so that people aren’t harmed, the environment isn’t damaged and operations stay effective, assessed against the same…
On 6 July 2026, IMO issued MSC.1, Guidelines for Software Maintenance of Shipboard Computer-Based Navigation and Communication Equipment and Systems — approved at MSC 111 (13 to 22 May 2026) and developed by the NCSR Sub-Committee. It is the first…
Most ship managers treat a VDR audit log the way many do at first: a useful internal record of what the bridge team actually did, separate from what the SMS says they should have done. Good practice, not something a…
DryBMS mooring and anchoring — Subject Area 19 in the DBCE framework — covers planning and operational processes for mooring, anchoring, and safe access, assessed against the same Basic-through-Excellence structure as every other subject area. It’s another of DBCE’s seventeen…