• is maintained in a sound, seaworthy condition;


• has on board a competent crew;


• has on board at least one officer proficient in the languages used at both the loading and unloading ports, or has an officer available who is proficient in the English language; and


• is free of defects that may prejudice the ship’s safe navigation, loading or unloading.

• is suitable for access to the planned loading or unloading facilities; and


• does not have cargo handling equipment which would inhibit the safety of the loading and unloading operations.

• weathertight, and efficient in all respects for the normal perils of the sea and the intended voyage;


• provided with an approved stability and loading booklet written in a language understood by the ship’s officers concerned and using standard expressions and abbreviations. If the language is neither English, nor French, nor Spanish, a translation into one of these languages should be included;


• provided with hatch openings of sufficient size to enable the cargo to be loaded, stowed and unloaded satisfactorily; and


• provided with the hatch identification numbers used in the loading manual and loading or unloading plan. The location, size and colour of these numbers should be chosen so that they are clearly visible to the operator of the loading or unloading equipment.

• water depth at the berth;
• maximum size of the ship;
• mooring arrangements;
• fendering;
• safe access; and
• obstructions to loading/unloading operations.

1. Rope handling safe procedure

Ropes are made of short fibres that are spun into yarns, which are then made into flat or twisted strands. And the strands are spun or braided to make the finished rope .
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2. Synthetic man-made ropes and hawsers

Although natural fibre ropes are still widely used throughout the marine industry, they have been superseded by synthetic fibres for a great many purposes. Not only do the majority of synthetic ropes have greater strength than their natural fibre counterparts, but they are more easily obtainable and at present considerably cheaper.
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3. Natural fibre rope

All natural fibre rope is manufactured from manilla, sisal, hemp, coir, cotton or flax fibres.The process of manufacture consists of twisting the fibres into yarns and turning the yarns in an opposite direction to establish the strands.
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4. Prepare cargo holds prior loading

Washing is always carried out after the compartment has been swept. Drying time for washed compartments must be allowed for, before loading the next cargo; this time will vary with the climate, but two to three days must be expected.
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5. Strength and stability of the Lifting appliances

The vessel's structure, crane, derrick or other lifting device and the supporting structure should be of sufficient strength to withstand the loads that will be imposed when operating at its maximum load moment .
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6. Anchoring safe practice

Prior approaching an area for anchoring ships master should investigate fully a suitable anchoring position and conduct a planned approach including speed reduction in ample time and orienting the ships head prior anchoring to same as similar sized vessels around or stem the tide or wind whichever is stronger . Final decision to be made on method of anchoring to be used , the number of shackles , the depth of water, expected weather and holding ground. .
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7. MacGregor single-pull weather-deck hatch cover

Hatch covers are used to close off the hatch opening and make it watertight. Wooden hatch covers, consisting of beams and boards over the opening and covered with tarpaulins, were once used but are no longer fitted. Steel hatch covers, comprising a number of linked steel covers, are now fitted universally. Various designs exist for particular applications, but most offer simple and quick opening and closing, which speed up the cargo handling operation..
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8. Cargo holds access arrangement

The access shall be separate from the hatchway opening, and shall be by a stairway if possible. A fixed ladder, or a line of fixed rungs, shall have no point where they fill a reverse slope .
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9. Lay of Ropes and hawsers - Small Stuff descriptions

The lay of rope is a term used to describe the nature of the twist that produces the complete rope .The most common form of rope at sea is known as ‘hawser laid rope’ comprising three strands laid up right- or lefthanded.
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10. Stresses in ship structures and how to mitigate

Heavy weights tend to cause a downward deflection of the deck area supporting the load .This subsequently produces stresses, with consequent inward and outward deflections of supporting bulkheads, depending on the position of initial loading .
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11. Lifting appliances - Maintenance, testing, controls & safety measures

When there is any suspicion that any appliance or item of equipment may have been subjected to excessive loads, exceeding the Safe Working Load (SWL), or subjected to treatment likely to cause damage, it should be taken out of service until it can be subjected to a thorough examination by a competent person.
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12. Safe operation of Lifting appliances and gears

All lifting operations must be properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out to protect the safety of workers.
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