IACS Holds Council Meeting

The flagship Common Structural Rules project for bulk carriers and oil tankers was discussed and a presentation delivered to industry representatives who attended the closing session. The rules will enter into force on July 1, 2015. 

The IACS expert group on structural safety of containerships reported on a post MOL Comfort review which it has carried out. This work has resulted in the development of two new IACS Unified Requirements (URs): UR S11A which is a longitudinal strength standard for container ships and URS34 dealing with functional requirements and load cases for direct analysis of container ships. These two important URs will be delivered during the first quarter of 2015.

Unified Requirements (URs) are minimum technical requirements adopted by all IACS members that refer to specific class rules requirements. URs are not intended to address all strength aspects of hull structures as that is the function of the class rules of individual members.

Two new IACS initiatives were also discussed: the first one on LNG bunkering guidelines and the second dealing with complex on-board systems. LNG bunkering guidelines are presently being considered by a number of organizations and the IACS initiative will seek to build on what has already been introduced. 

IACS said complex systems is a topic of crucial importance for the industry as onboard systems develop rapidly in complexity. IACS is currently focusing on this subject with the formation of a dedicated expert group. At the last tripartite meeting (shipowners, shipbuilders and classification societies) in Shanghai in October, steps were taken to publicize these items to the industry participants and this continued at the Council meeting where plans for future cooperation were discussed with industry representatives.