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Solas

The document outlines the history and significance of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which was established in response to the Titanic disaster in 1912. It details the various chapters of the SOLAS Convention, which set minimum safety standards for ship construction, equipment, and operation, and highlights the ongoing amendments to ensure maritime safety. The 1974 version of SOLAS is considered the most important international treaty for merchant ship safety and includes provisions for life-saving appliances, fire safety, navigation, and the management of dangerous goods.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
22 views23 pages

Solas

The document outlines the history and significance of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which was established in response to the Titanic disaster in 1912. It details the various chapters of the SOLAS Convention, which set minimum safety standards for ship construction, equipment, and operation, and highlights the ongoing amendments to ensure maritime safety. The 1974 version of SOLAS is considered the most important international treaty for merchant ship safety and includes provisions for life-saving appliances, fire safety, navigation, and the management of dangerous goods.

Uploaded by

dorisutili
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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SOLAS

SAFETY OF LIFE AT SEA


HISTORY OF LIFE AT SEA
 Seafaringhas always been one of the
world's most dangerous occupations.
The unpredictability of the weather and
the vast power of the sea itself seemed
so great that for centuries it was
assumed that little could be done to
make shipping safer.
THE CATALYST FOR CHANGE

 THE
R.M.S.
TITANIC
 https://
www.yout
ube.com/
watch?
v=FSGesk
FzE0s
THE CATALYST FOR CHANGE
 The sinking of the Titanic on 14 April 1912 after colliding with an iceberg was
the catalyst for the adoption in 1914 of the first International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).
 More than 1,500 passengers and crew died and the disaster raised so many
questions about the safety standards in force that the United Kingdom
Government proposed holding a conference to develop international regulations.
 The Conference, was attended by 13 countries and introduced
 new international requirements dealing with safety of navigation for all merchant
ships;
 the provision of watertight and fire-resistant bulkheads;
 life-saving appliances;
 fire prevention and fire fighting appliances on passenger ships.
 Other requirements dealt with the carriage of radiotelegraph equipment for ships
carrying more than 50 persons;
 the establishment of a North Atlantic Ice Patrol.
 The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) was adopted on
20 January 1914 but did not enter into force in July 1915 as the war had broken out
in Europe. It had been signed by only 5 states but led to extensive application
regulations in Britain, France, the United States and Scandinavia.
International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), 1974
 Adoption: 1 November 1974; Entry into force: 25 May 1980
 The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally
regarded as the most important of all international treaties
concerning the safety of merchant ships.
 The first version was adopted in 1914, in response to the Titanic
disaster, the second in 1929, the third in 1948, and the fourth in
1960.
 The 1974 version includes the tacit acceptance procedure - which
provides that an amendment shall enter into force on a specified
date unless, before that date, objections to the amendment are
received from an agreed number of Parties.
 As a result the 1974 Convention has been updated and amended
on numerous occasions. The Convention in force today is
sometimes referred to as SOLAS, 1974, as amended.
TECHNICAL PROVISIONS
 The main objective of the SOLAS Convention
is to specify minimum standards for the
construction, equipment and operation of
ships, compatible with their safety.
 Flag States are responsible for ensuring that ships under their flag
comply with its requirements, and a number of certificates are
prescribed in the Convention as proof that this has been done.
 Control provisions also allow Contracting Governments to inspect ships
of other Contracting States if there are clear grounds for believing that
the ship and its equipment do not substantially comply with the
requirements of the Convention - this procedure is known as Port State
control.
 The current SOLAS Convention includes Articles setting out general
obligations, amendment procedure and so on, followed by an Annex
divided into 12 Chapters. The chapters are detailed in the following
slides.
Chapter I • General provisions

• Construction - Subdivision and stability, machinery and electrical


Chapter II-1 installations

Chapter II-2 • Fire protection, fire detection and fire extinction

Chapter III • Life-saving appliances and arrangements

Chapter IV • Radiocommunications

Chapter V • Safety of navigation

Chapter VI • Carriage of cargoes

Chapter VII • Carriage of dangerous goods

Chapter VIII • Nuclear ships

Chapter IX • Management for the safe operation of ships

Chapter X • Safety measures for high-speed craft

Chapter XI-1 • Special measures to enhance maritime safety

Chapter XI-2 • Special measures to enhance maritime security

Chapter XII • Additional safety measures for bulk carriers


CHAPTER 1
 General Provisions
Includes regulations concerning the
survey of the various types of ships and
the issuing of documents signifying that
the ship meets the requirements of the
Convention. The Chapter also includes
provisions for the control of ships in
ports of other Contracting Governments.
CHAPTER 2 -1
 Construction - Subdivision and stability, machinery and electrical installations
The subdivision of passenger ships into watertight compartments must be such that
after assumed damage to the ship's hull the vessel will remain afloat and stable.
Requirements for watertight integrity and bilge pumping arrangements for passenger
ships are also laid down as well as stability requirements for both passenger and
cargo ships.
 The degree of subdivision - measured by the maximum permissible distance between
two adjacent bulkheads - varies with ship's length and the service in which it is
engaged. The highest degree of subdivision applies to passenger ships.
 Requirements covering machinery and electrical installations are designed to ensure
that services which are essential for the safety of the ship, passengers and crew are
maintained under various emergency conditions.
 "Goal-based standards" for oil tankers and bulk carriers were adopted in
2010, requiring new ships to be designed and constructed for a specified design life
and to be safe and environmentally friendly, in intact and specified damage
conditions, throughout their life. Under the regulation, ships should have adequate
strength, integrity and stability to minimize the risk of loss of the ship or pollution to
the marine environment due to structural failure, including collapse, resulting in
flooding or loss of watertight integrity.
CHAPTER 2-2
 Fire protection, fire detection and fire extinction
Includes detailed fire safety provisions for all ships and
specific measures for passenger ships, cargo ships and
tankers.
 They include the following principles: division of the ship
into main and vertical zones by thermal and structural
boundaries; separation of accommodation spaces from the
remainder of the ship by thermal and structural boundaries;
restricted use of combustible materials; detection of any
fire in the zone of origin; containment and extinction of any
fire in the space of origin; protection of the means of
escape or of access for fire-fighting purposes; ready
availability of fire-extinguishing appliances; minimization of
the possibility of ignition of flammable cargo vapour.
CHAPTER 3
 Life-saving appliances and arrangements
The Chapter includes requirements for life-saving
appliances and arrangements, including
requirements for life boats, rescue boats and life
jackets according to type of ship. The International
Life-Saving Appliance (LSA) Code gives specific
technical requirements for LSAs and is mandatory
under Regulation 34, which states that all life-
saving appliances and arrangements shall comply
with the applicable requirements of the LSA Code.
 Amended up to May 2011
CHAPTER 4
 Radiocommunications
The Chapter incorporates the Global Maritime Distress and
Safety System (GMDSS). All passenger ships and all cargo
ships of 300 gross tonnage and upwards on international
voyages are required to carry equipment designed to
improve the chances of rescue following an accident,
including satellite emergency position indicating radio
beacons (EPIRBs) and search and rescue transponders
(SARTs) for the location of the ship or survival craft.
 Regulations in Chapter IV cover undertakings by contracting
governments to provide radiocommunication services as well
as ship requirements for carriage of radiocommunications
equipment. The Chapter is closely linked to the Radio
Regulations of the International Telecommunication Union.
CHAPTER 5
 Safety of navigation
Chapter V identifies certain navigation safety services which should be
provided by Contracting Governments and sets forth provisions of an
operational nature applicable in general to all ships on all voyages. This
is in contrast to the Convention as a whole, which only applies to certain
classes of ship engaged on international voyages.
 The subjects covered include the maintenance of meteorological
services for ships; the ice patrol service; routeing of ships; and the
maintenance of search and rescue services.
 This Chapter also includes a general obligation for masters to proceed
to the assistance of those in distress and for Contracting Governments
to ensure that all ships shall be sufficiently and efficiently manned from
a safety point of view.
 The chapter makes mandatory the carriage of voyage data recorders
(VDRs) and automatic ship identification systems (AIS).
CHAPTER 6
 Carriage of Cargoes
The Chapter covers all types of cargo (except
liquids and gases in bulk) "which, owing to
their particular hazards to ships or persons on
board, may require special precautions". The
regulations include requirements for stowage
and securing of cargo or cargo units (such as
containers). The Chapter requires cargo ships
carrying grain to comply with the
International Grain Code.
CHAPTER 7
 Carriage of dangerous goods
The regulations are contained in four parts:
 Part A - Carriage of dangerous goods in packaged form - includes provisions for the
classification, packing, marking, labelling and placarding, documentation and stowage of
dangerous goods. Contracting Governments are required to issue instructions at the
national level and the Chapter makes mandatory the International Maritime Dangerous
Goods (IMDG) Code, developed by IMO, which is constantly updated to accommodate new
dangerous goods and to supplement or revise existing provisions.
 Part A-1 - Carriage of dangerous goods in solid form in bulk - covers the documentation,
stowage and segregation requirements for these goods and requires reporting of
incidents involving such goods.
 Part B covers Construction and equipment of ships carrying dangerous liquid chemicals in
bulk and requires chemical tankers to comply with the International Bulk Chemical Code
(IBC Code).
 Part C covers Construction and equipment of ships carrying liquefied gases in bulk and
gas carriers to comply with the requirements of the International Gas Carrier Code (IGC
Code).
 Part D includes special requirements for the carriage of packaged irradiated nuclear fuel,
plutonium and high-level radioactive wastes on board ships and requires ships carrying
such products to comply with the International Code for the Safe Carriage of Packaged
Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium and High-Level Radioactive Wastes on Board Ships (INF
Code).
 The chapter requires carriage of dangerous goods to be in compliance with the relevant
provisions of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code).
CHAPTER 8
 Nuclear ships
Gives basic requirements for nuclear-
powered ships and is particularly
concerned with radiation hazards. It
refers to detailed and comprehensive
Code of Safety for Nuclear Merchant
Ships which was adopted by the IMO
Assembly in 1981.
CHAPTER 9
 Management for the Safe Operation
of Ships
The Chapter makes mandatory the
International Safety Management (ISM)
Code, which requires a safety
management system to be established
by the shipowner or any person who has
assumed responsibility for the ship (the
"Company").
CHAPTER 10
 Safety measures for high-speed
craft
The Chapter makes mandatory the
International Code of Safety for High-
Speed Craft (HSC Code).
CHAPTER 11-1
 Special measures to enhance
maritime safety
The Chapter clarifies requirements
relating to authorization of recognized
organizations (responsible for carrying out
surveys and inspections on
Administrations' behalves); enhanced
surveys; ship identification number
scheme; and port State control on
operational requirements.
CHAPTER 11-2
 Special measures to enhance maritime security
 Regulation XI-2/3 of the chapter enshrines the International Ship and Port
Facilities Security Code (ISPS Code). Part A of the Code is mandatory and part
B contains guidance as to how best to comply with the mandatory
requirements. Regulation XI-2/8 confirms the role of the Master in exercising
his professional judgement over decisions necessary to maintain the security
of the ship. It says he shall not be constrained by the Company, the charterer
or any other person in this respect.
 Regulation XI-2/5 requires all ships to be provided with a ship security alert
system. ,Regulation XI-2/6 covers requirements for port facilities, providing
among other things for Contracting Governments to ensure that port facility
security assessments are carried out and that port facility security plans are
developed, implemented and reviewed in accordance with the ISPS Code.Other
regulations in this chapter cover the provision of information to IMO, the
control of ships in port, (including measures such as the delay, detention,
restriction of operations including movement within the port, or expulsion of a
ship from port), and the specific responsibility of Companies.
CHAPTER 12
 Additional safety measures for bulk
carriers
The Chapter includes structural
requirements for bulk carriers over 150
metres in length.
Amendments
 The 1974 Convention has been amended
many times to keep it up to date.
 Amendments adopted by the Maritime
Safety Committee (MSC) are listed in
MSC Resolutions.
 The Amendments which most recently
came into effect are the 2012
Amendments effective January 2014.
They are shown on the next slide
• to introduce a mandatory requirement for new passenger ships for
either onboard stability computers or shore-based support, for the
SOLAS regulation II-1/8-1 purpose of providing operational information to the Master for safe
return to port after a flooding casualty

• regarding the testing of free-fall lifeboats, to require that the


operational testing of free-fall lifeboat release systems shall be
SOLAS regulation III/20.11.2 performed either by free-fall launch with only the operating crew on
board or by a simulated launching;

• on ships' manning, to require Administrations, for every ship, to


establish appropriate minimum safe manning levels following a
SOLAS regulation V/14 transparent procedure, taking into account the guidance adopted by
IMO (Assembly resolution A.1047(27) on Principles of minimum safe
manning); and issue an appropriate minimum safe manning document

• to add a new SOLAS regulation VI/5-2, to prohibit the blending of bulk


SOLAS chapter VI liquid cargoes during the sea voyage and to prohibit production
processes on board ships

• to replace regulation 4 on documents, covering transport information


SOLAS chapter VII relating to the carriage of dangerous goods in packaged form and the
container/vehicle packing certificate

• on enhanced surveys, to make mandatory the International Code on


SOLAS chapter XI-1 the Enhanced Programme of Inspections during Surveys of Bulk
regulation XI-1/2 Carriers and Oil Tankers, 2011 (2011 ESP Code, resolution A.1049(27)).

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