Preliminary results from the Concentrated Inspection Campaign (CIC) on Structural Safety and the International Convention on Load Lines, carried out between 1-September-2011 and 30-November-2011 in the Paris MoU region show that:  42 ships were detained as a direct result of the CIC for deficiencies related to structural safety and load lines in the Paris MoU region.

Problem areas included stability, strength and loading information, ballast and fuel tanks and water and weather tight conditions. The CIC questionnaire was completed during 4,386 inspections on 4,250 individual ships. A total of 1,589 CIC-related deficiencies were recorded and 42 ships (1%) were detained for CIC-related deficiencies.

During the campaign most inspections concerned general cargo/multi-purpose ships with 1,563 (36%) inspections, followed by bulk carriers with 795 (18%) inspections, container ships with 495 (11%) inspections, chemical tankers with 433 (10%) inspections and oil tankers with 296 (7%) inspections. 24 (60%) of the ships detained for CIC-related deficiencies were general cargo/multipurpose ships and 5 (12%) were bulk carriers. Among the other detained ships were 2 container vessels, 2 offshore supply ships, 2 passenger ships and 2 refrigerated cargo ships. 31% of the detained ships were 30 years or older.

Analysis of the recorded deficiencies shows that most deficiencies relate to the freeboard marks (12%), ventilators, air pipes and casings (7%), stability/strength/loading information and instruments (7%) and ballast, fuel and other tanks (5%).

Most inspections were carried out on ships under the flags of Panama with 493 (11%) inspections, Malta with 387 (9%) inspections, Antigua and Barbuda with 343 (8%) inspections and Liberia with 306 (7%) inspections. The flags with the highest number of CIC related detentions were Panama with 7 (17%) detentions, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines with 6 (14%) detentions and Turkey with 3 (7%) detentions.

The background for this CIC was that, as an average for the last 8 years, deficiencies related to structural safety and load lines account for 15% of the total number of deficiencies. During the CIC 13% of the deficiencies recorded were related to structural safety and load lines. The CIC was a joint campaign with the Tokyo MoU.

The States parties of the Viña del Mar Agreement, the Indian Ocean MOU, the Mediterranean MOU and the Black Sea MOU have followed the same routine during the campaign. The detailed results of the campaign will be further analyzed and findings will be presented to the 45th meeting of the Port State Control Committee in May 2012, after which the report will be submitted to the International Maritime Organization.

Source: Paris MOU