IRClass, the Indian Register of Shipping, today announced an increase in the range and level of services it provides to the Indian Navy, with the advent of naval vessels in service being maintained in IRClass.
“Several types of Indian Naval vessels have been, and are being, constructed in conformance with our Rules and Regulations,” said Arun Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director of IRClass. “These include most yard craft and also certain types of warships and auxiliary vessels. Earlier, such vessels had been built in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of other classification societies, with IRClass being involved for some dual class vessels. We are pleased to state that over time, the trend has shifted towards vessels being specified as single IRClass. We have developed specific Naval Rules for both combatant as well as non-combatant ships. A Certificate of Class is issued to all such vessels at time of commissioning. However, the ships were not maintained in class during service, and the certificate was not revalidated.”
“In a milestone development, the Indian Navy has now commenced the practice of maintaining its yard craft in-class,” he explained. “These vessels will be periodically surveyed by us and, subject to compliance with our criteria, their Certificates of Class will be revalidated. Any repairs or maintenance undertaken in order to comply with class requirements will also be inspected and certified by us. This is akin to the practice in vogue for commercial ships worldwide.”
With increase in the size and commitments of the Indian Navy, the load on naval maintenance facilities has appreciably grown. By maintaining vessels in class, the Navy will benefit from the amassed skills and experience of IRClass for regularly assessing the condition of ships maintained in class and for certifying the adequacy of repairs, thus materially assisting in the upkeep of naval afloat assets.