ClassNK First 2011 Meeting of Technical Committee

The first meeting of the ClassNK Technical Committee was held at the Industry Club of Japan in Tokyo Feb. 8. The Technical Committee, which includes top technical experts from throughout the maritime industry as well as leading maritime universities, is charged with reviewing and approving all amendments to the ClassNK Rules. During today’s meeting the Committee approved a total of 39 amendments and revisions to the leading class society’s rules, including changes reflecting new research, amendments to international regulations, and the changing needs of the maritime industry.  

ClassNK Chairman and President Noboru Ueda opened the meeting by thanking the members of the Committee, saying that “The quality of our rules is the foundation of our success as a class society, and it is thanks to the diligence and hard work of the Technical Committee that ClassNK is able to provide the world’s maritime industry with rules of the highest caliber and clarity.”

“This has been a busy year for ClassNK,” remarked Mr. Ueda, adding that “In addition to serving as the Chair society of the International Association of Classification Societies, we have also helped bring about the establishment of the association of Asian Classification Societies (ACS), and strengthened our connections with the Asian Shipowners Forum and Asian Shipbuilding Experts Forum. Going forward we will continue to work to ensure that the knowledge and expertise of the Asian maritime industry are reflected in the rules and regulations that govern our industry.”

Mr. Ueda then went on to introduce the new rule revisions proposed by the class society, saying “the revisions we present to you today represent one part of these greater efforts, and our proposed amendments reflect not only the results of our independent research and development projects, but also data gained from the analysis of vessel damage, amendments to international conventions and regulations, and our ongoing efforts to better serve the many different sectors of the global maritime industry.”
 
At this first meeting of the Committee, ClassNK presented a total of 39 revisions for review, including the following four amendments. Full text for all proposed amendments will be uploaded to the ClassNK website (http://www.classnk.or.jp/hp/en/Rules_Guidance/) at a later date.

    Construction of the base of bulwark stays
    Methods for fixing attachments to Hatch Corners
    Requirements for Bridge Navigation Watch Alarm Systems（BNWAS）
    Establishment of new rules for workboats and offshore support vessels

Following a thorough review, the Committee approved all of the revisions proposed by the class society. The newly approved amendments will now be submitted for final review by the ClassNK Board of Directors and Japan’s Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport & Tourism (for the rules for Japanese flagged vessels). Upon final approval, newly revised versions of the ClassNK Rules will be printed and made available to the public via the ClassNK website.