The Port State Control (PSC) regimes’ joint Concentrated Inspection Campaign (CIC) will be on the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW). The upcoming CIC will be included in routine PSC inspections from 1 September.
According to a statutory news post by classification society DNV, the focus will be on crew certification and competencies.
CICs are held every year and focus on a particular topic for a three-month period. Last year, this was ship stability. The CIC is usually initiated by the Paris and Tokyo MoUs with the majority of other PSC regimes joining.
Also read: Port State Control campaign on stability kicks off in September
Included in the routine PSC inspections
The CIC will be included in the routine PSC inspections from September to November 2022. A pre-defined questionnaire will be used to assess that ships comply with STCW conventions. Any deficiencies found during the CIC will be reported in the PSC inspection report with the related PSC Code.
DNV warns that deficiencies in STCW certification and other operational requirements are likely to trigger an ISM-related deficiency, because they are affecting the Safety Management System (SMS).
DNV: ‘We anticipate that the CIC will not be limited to certification or document control due to several fake crew certificates and lack of competence of seafarers regarding their certification in the past. Therefore, DNV’s view is that one part of the CIC will focus on the evaluation of competences of the master, officers and crew when performing duties and during emergency scenarios.’
It is expected to cover a variety of operational inspection areas, the classification society adds: ‘from efficient communication between crew members, and assessing navigational controls such as ECDIS, to voyage planning or safe navigation, and witnessing emergency drills.’
Also read: Netherlands moves up to second place on Port State Control performance list
DNV recommendations
- Check if all crew members’ certificates of competence are at hand and valid.
- Check if the Muster List is up-to-date and crew members are familiar with their assigned duties.
- Keep hours of rest updated.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of familiarisation for the master and officers in charge.
- Familiarise the crew with their duties and with the checklist PSC officers will use in the inspection when this is published (in August).
