GUIDELINES ON SURVEYS

These Guidelines on Surveys are intended to complement your experience. They

are effort to give my modest experience as Surveyor. These guidelines cannot, and
do not cover everything that may be encountered, and may not be applicable in all
situations, but when intelligently considered they should be a useful reference. In
all situations however, the good judgment of the Surveyor, built upon his
experience and training, together with IMO and Class Rule requirements, will
provide the basis for decisions.
The following comments from a Surveyor who was subpoenaed to appear in court
on a maritime case are of general interest:
The job of a field Surveyor, especially in conducting shipboard surveys, is
becoming more and more complex with each passing year. This is due in part to
ever-evolving technological changes in ship design; construction and operating
procedures which require the Surveyor to constantly strive to keep abreast of, and
familiar with, the current state of the art.
I have had to realign my procedures in approaching shipboard surveys in order to
obtain the best possible results. Basically there are three necessary steps to any
survey each of which must be addressed by the attending Surveyor. The Surveyor
must take the time to adequately prepare himself (review IMO Class Rules, work,
IACS Process Instructions/Procedures and Survey Status), prior to attending the
vessel. Secondly, the survey itself must be conducted as thoroughly as time and
conditions permit. Finally, the report must be written accurately in a timely manner."
If the Surveyor is prepared in this manner the vessel can be attended with
confidence and the survey should progress efficiently in a logical manner with all
appropriate requirements being properly fulfilled or at least addressed in a
satisfactory manner.
In writing the survey reports, the Surveyor should remember that you may be
called upon to attest to their accuracy and completeness. This may be under oath
before a Marine Board of Investigation or a formal Court of Law. In either case, it is
not an enjoyable experience for the Surveyor or who represent, if he is found in
error or omission.
In summary, by following the foregoing procedures, a field Surveyor should be able
to obtain the best results possible. It should be remembered that although the
actual survey remains the most important part of the process, its vapidity will
undoubtedly suffer if The Surveyor was not fully prepared beforehand or the report
was not properly and promptly written afterwards.

Surveying is mainly a matter of judgment, training and experience, and while much
of it cannot be learned from a book, a certain amount of guidance notes, based on
the experience of others, is often helpful. The following abstract is an excellent
summation of the principles under which a Surveyor works:
The function of the Surveyor is not mere inspection, but rather thorough and
objective observation, accurate reporting, and carefully reasoned
recommendations, as implied by the title, Surveyor. The Surveyor must exercise
diligence to see that the full intent of the IMO and Class Rules is carried out. But at
the same time, he must not use the Class Rules as a bulwark against question or
criticism. When the work of the Surveyor is criticized there is always a temptation
for him to retreat to a completely arbitrary and pedantic position, using the IMO or
Class Rules as a buffer. This condition of unintelligent surveying completely
nullifies the purpose for which you were required. If The mere wording of the IMO
or Class Rules is to be the sole criterion, it should be at least theoretically possible
to have them enforced by anyone who can read and write and who has a
smattering of technical knowledge, instead of by a staff of experienced Marine
Surveyor or engineers trained over a period of many years and upon whose
judgment of your bureau clients have learned to rely with implicit confidence, the
Surveyors are urged to maintain the high and responsible position which has
contributed so much to the which serve to give reputation and trust to your office.
As a minor elaboration on the above, two points are added. First, to keep in mind
that the Surveyors duty is to make recommendations for maintaining or restoring
the vessel in compliance with IMO and/or Class requirements. How this is
accomplished is the Owner's option, however the Surveyor should use all his
knowledge and experience to assist the Owner in working, out the mast
expeditious and economic means possible, In other words, the Surveyors position
is to review and accept or reject the Owner's proposals for restoring or maintaining
the vessel in as IMO or Class requirements, not to initiate the proposals. The
second additional point is that the Surveyor must personally satisfy himself about
every item that is to be reported on in, the survey this includes the insides of
boilers and tanks and close-up views of all structural work involved, no matter how
difficult of access, dirty, hot or cold.
A Surveyor should be extremely careful not to make premature or snap decisions,
He should approach a problem by first assembling all data in an organized manner,
taking due account of the probable accuracy or the various segments, then review
it in an analytical manner to the best of his ability, and finally state his
recommendation in terms clearly understandable to all parties involved.
A Surveyor should be equally careful to make his recommendations as early as
possible in the survey so the work can be put in hand in time to avoid delays. He
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should especially avoid making second thought changes or last minute

recommendations.
It is no loss or face to change a recommendation when subsequently presented
with legitimate reasons for it, i.e. with newly disclosed information, but if it becomes
necessary to do this often, recommendations are probably being made without
adequate analysis, or with too much reliance on hearsay data.
A Surveyor in the course of a days work may have to make decisions in many
diversified fields such as welding, engine construction, electrical equipment
installation, material testing, turbine repairs, boiler, construction, refrigeration
installation, automatic and remote control system testing, load lines and safely
equipment regulations, etc. It is impossible to be an expert in every field, however
by listening to the discussions of other people and specialists concerned with each
case, evaluating their knowledge, and then applying his own basic engineering
knowledge and experience, a Surveyor can normally make worthwhile decisions. It
is usually a good idea to listen to comments by the workmen on the job, as much
can be learned from their experience as well. Ship's engineers and manufacturer's
representatives are al so good sources of information, but their comments should
be carefully weighed as they are often unintentionally biased. If in doubt about
making a major decision always consult your experienced Surveyor, this may save
your own reputation as well as that of the your office. Also be prepared in advance
for the particular job in hand. Do your homework before confronting the decision
making part of the job.
First of all, study the SOLAS and Class Rules and Work your own Procedures
instructions and know them well enough to be able to refer to them quickly when
needed. Know the status of surveys on a ship before going aboard; have its weak
points or trouble spots in mind, as well as their remedies Know for example, the
maximum tailshaft clearance required for re-bushing the bearing before going to
the drydock; know where to look, for possible fractures in the hull structure, or
excessive wear in the machinery; know the required settings before attending to
set the safely valves. Be especially prepared for thickness gauging surveys with
the allowable wastage of at least principal members.
In writing a survey report it is most important that no hypothesis or opinion be given
by the Surveyor as to the cause of any damage or defect lf the condition merits
special attention, the office definitely wants to know about.
It is essential as well that the Surveyor get his reports in quickly, damage reports
particularity, should be promptly written and distributed, so as to be available as
soon as needed, such as at the next port, where re-survey or repair may be
necessary, Reports have to be written sooner or later, and they are much easier to
write when the job is fresh in mind and not mixed in the mind with other
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subsequent jobs. It also enhances the reputation of both the Surveyor and the
Bureau when the Owners receive their reports promptly.