BSMT 3 - POLARIS

SEAM 3
DAMAGE REPORT
Hisman
Hondrada,
Jereos
Lunas
Malapitan
Montelibano
Nabor
LO 16: Damage Report

STRUCTURE/ITEMS
INCLUDED IN
PREPARING A
DAMAGE REPORT
LO 16: Damage Report

INTRODUCTION
After double spacing, immediately by the left margin, comes a typical
beginning with the formulaic expression This is to certify, followed by the
conventional legal phrase without prejudice and trinomial cause, nature
and extent. This has the very effective practical result of introducing a
solemn and court-like atmosphere whereby a Surveyor certifies that he
did attend on board ship.
LO 16: Damage Report

DESCRIPTION OF THE SHIP

After the conventional Introduction, the Surveyor passes to giving
“service” information, that is, the description of a ship. The first segment
(a) provides textual information about the ship type, construction and
manufacturer, whereas the second segment (b) contains ship’s
particulars in the form of a list. The basic function of this segment is to
provide key particulars on the ship in question. Items listed (b) may vary
but the sequencing of the data is very much fixed.
LO 16: Damage Report

BRIEF NARRATIVE
In the case of damage reports, the use of this short segment is again very
practical. Namely, it enables the readers (primarily arbiters) to gain an
understanding into the subject and saves their time, since they have to
tackle a lot of ship accident cases in a day. Thus, upon reading this brief
segment of text, arbiters get the most significant information such as: the
ship’s name, nature of the accident and the time and place of the accident.
LO 16: Damage Report

BRIEF NARRATIVE
As far as the ordering of the information is concerned, the surveyor
presents the facts chronologically; from the time the ship set sail from the
last port of call, through the situation at sea, to the time it arrived at the
port of destination and its present condition (lying in berth, waiting for
inspectors, grounded, etc). In addition, time signals are precise; in most
cases dates and hours are explicitly given (19.04.92, 10.00 hours, etc).
LO 16: Damage Report

PERSONS IN ATTENDANCE
The marine surveyor must explicitly quote the names of persons who
attended the survey, their rank and the party they represent (ship-owner,
insurer, etc). This is the shortest segment of the damage report which is in
some cases named Persons in Attendance, Parties to Various Inspections
and Discussions, Attending, Present at Survey, etc.
LO 16: Damage Report

SURVEY
Narrative discourse represents a specific form of discourse in which an
author tells about certain actions that an actor or group of actors did for
the sake of achieving a specific goal of state. Narration implies not only
telling about events but also telling about the mental states of people.
LO 16: Damage Report

SURVEY
Narrative discourse in the segment named Survey ensures clarity,
chronological sequencing and original presentation of information.
Therefore, in this segment there is an attempt to identify and illustrate the
linguistic means aimed at achieving objective, factual and precise
narrative. This is mainly accomplished by the use of past tenses and
syntactic means aimed at specifying the time and place of the event.
LO 16: Damage Report

SAMPLE NARRATIVE DISCOURSES

The crew had managed to remove various bags from the ‘tweendeck and clear
the aftermost access to the lower hold. The no.1 lower hold was therefore
entered…
Divers had been engaged to search any cracks or hole in a way or foremost
bottom and side shell and they were subsequently requested to concentrate …
The square of the main hatch was examined; double bottom tanks were sounded;
no ingress of water was observed; bilges were repeatedly sounded; the motor
was disconnected and sent to shore; it was confirmed that the bilge system was
in order
LO 16: Damage Report

SURVEYOR’S SUMMARY
This segment of the report is sometimes also referred to as of Surveyor’s
notes, Surveyor’s comments or simply, Summary. The surveyor’s task is to
express his overall opinion on the situation and propose future actions
necessary to make the ships seaworthy. If the reporting in previous parts
of the report was mainly factual and had a neutral tone, now the surveyor
must express his personal opinion on the possible cause of the accident and
the parties to blame.
LO 16: Damage Report

SURVEYOR’S SUMMARY
Yet, after analysis of the linguistic determinants prevailing in this segment,
the conclusion reached is that marine surveyors avoid expressing final
conclusions or strong assumptions. Thus, discourse features used in this
segment are for the purpose of expressing doubt, possibility and
hypothetical thinking.
LO 16: Damage Report

ENDING
The surveyor guarantees that the survey was made to his best knowledge
and emphasizes that his work was carried out without prejudice. This
formulaic ending is found in all twenty reports making the corpus of the
analysis. Apart from the collocation without prejudice, a very common
component of the ending paragraph is true and correct, also very common
in a legal and merchant register.
LO 16: Damage Report

STRUCTURAL
FEATURES AND
TYPICAL
DAMAGE
LO 16: Damage Report

UPPER DECK AREAS

The longitudinally continuous upper deck of a bulk carrier suffers hull
girder stress. The longitudinal bending causes an axial force on the upper
deck that may cause cracking of the deck plate at the locations where the
stress is concentrated.
Bulk carriers have cargo hatchways for the convenience of cargo-handling
facilities. These hatchways reduce the ship’s torsional strength and invite
concentrated stress at the hatchway corners which may be evident by
cracking of the deck plates in these areas
DEFORMATION
BUCKLING OF CROSS-DECK STRIPS
Generally, longitudinal beams are arranged under the longitudinally continuous
upper deck outboard of the side lines of the cargo hatchways. This is called the
longitudinal system. When the deck beams for cross-deck strips are also arranged
in this manner, buckling of the cross-deck strips may take place due to insufficient
strength against the axial forces acting on them in a transverse direction. The
transverse system is the preferred method of construction for cross-deck
members. Particular attention should be given to buckling of the main deck on
those ships where the cross-deck strips are arranged in the longitudinal system.
CRACKING
HATCHWAY CORNERS
The large cargo hatchway openings reduce the torsional strength of the hull and
invite stress concentration at their corners on the upper deck. In this regard,
upper deck plating at hatchway corners is one of the focal points for cracking.
Particular attention should be paid to these areas during inspection.
Cracking at hatchway
.
CRACKING
UPPER DECK PLATING AND FITTINGS
Various metal fittings are welded to the upper deck plating. These installations
may cause stress concentrations at the welded joints or have defects in the welds.
Deck platings in the vicinity of manholes, hatchside coaming end brackets,
bulwark stays, crane post foundations and deck houses, etc. are to be carefully
watched for cracking.

Various crackings in upper deck plating

.
CRACKING
HATCH COAMINGS
Hatch coamings are subjected to hull girder stress. Although they are not critical
longitudinal strength members, they should be watched carefully to ensure that
these cracks do not spread. Cracking may be initiated at defects in welded joints
and metal fittings to the coamings that will invite stress concentration. Such
cracking is considered serious to the ship’s safety because it may be the initiation
of a fracture on a large scale.

Cracking in hatch coaming

CORROSION ON DECK
Thinner steel structures on deck, such as
cross-deck strips, hatch coamings, hatch
covers, etc., are easily corroded and often
holed. The best way to deter corrosion is to
keep the structure well coated and painted.
The parts most liable to corrosion in the upper
deck area are as follows:
.
CORROSION ON DECK
1. CROSS DECK STRIPS
The thickness of cross-deck plating between hatchways is designed about a half
of that of main-strength deck plating because it is not a longitudinal strength
member. However, crossdeck strips provide an important part of the transverse
strength of the ship, and corrosion and waste of the cross-deck plating may be
considered serious to the ship’s soundness.
CORROSION ON DECK
2. HATCH COVERS
The thickness of hatch covers is
approximately the same as that of cross
decks. Holes in hatch covers caused by
corrosion lead to water ingress in cargo
holds, which may lead to shifting of
cargo and/or problems with the stability
of the ship.
CORROSION ON DECK
3. HATCH COAMINGS
When steam pipes are arranged beside
hatchside coamings, the corrosion
progress of the coaming is very rapid.
Corrosion holes of the coaming plates
lead to the same problems as those
associated with hatch cover corrosion.
CORROSION ON DECK
4. WEATHER TIGHT DOOR, SMALL
HATCHES AND WALL VENTILATOR
COVERS
Not only covers, door plates and
coamings but also hinges, gaskets and
clips are to be always kept in good
condition. .
CORROSION ON DECK
5. STANDING PIPES ON DECK
Vent and sounding pipes from water ballast or fuel oil tanks and
ventilation pipes for closed spaces under the upper deck are liable to
corrosion. If these pieces become holed, seawater comes directly into
the tanks or cargo holds and may cause contamination of fuel oil, cargo
damage, shifting of cargo, and/or stability problems..
CORROSION ON DECK
6. FORECASTLE AFT WALL
The bilges in forecastle space may cause corrosion of the bulkhead where it
meets the deck. In flush-decked bulk carriers, the boatswain store aft wall
may be corroded in the same manner. Large bulk carriers generally do not
have forecastle and have their boatswain stores down below the upper
deck in forepeak spaces. Bilges left in such spaces also cause corrosion of
the aft end bulkhead which separates boatswain store and No. 1 cargo hold.
Such wastage may lead to water ingress, cargo damage, cargo shifting,
and/or stability problems.
CORROSION ON CARGO HOLD
1. STRUCTURAL FEATURES
On typical bulk carriers, the topside and bilge hopper tanks compose a double
hull surrounding the cargo space, which together with the double bottom
provides hull strength and rigidity. Single-hulled side shells provided with
individual transverse frames are located between the topside and bilge hopper
tanks. In recent designs, these hold frames and end brackets are thinner than
the side shell and are not constructed with web frames and side stringers, as is
the case with general cargo carriers. Below is a comparison of thickness of hull
skin plates and hold frames in cargo hold.
CORROSION ON CARGO HOLD
2. CORROSION AND WASTE ON HOLD
FRAMES
Corrosion generally attacks thinner steel structures and is accelerated in
thinner plates. In the time a thicker steel plate loses half of its original thickness
a thinner plate might corrode completely.
Among the various members composing cargo hold structures, the hold frames
are usually the thinnest structures, especially at the web plates. In addition, the
hold frames also have more surface area exposed, in that both surfaces of the
plate are susceptible.
 WHAT TO LOOK FOR?

The following are examples of the more common

damage/defects that may occur:
1. Fractures at the boundaries of corrugations and bulkhead stools,
particularly in way of shelf plates, shedder plates, deck, inner bottom,
etc.
2. Buckling of the plating/corrugations, leading to the failure and
collapse of the bulkhead under water pressure in an emergency situation.
3. Excessive wastage/corrosion, in particular at the mid-height and
bottom of bulkheads, which may look in deceptively good condition. This
is created by the corrosive effect of argo and environment, in particular
when the structure is not coated.
this respect special attention should be given to the following areas:
3.1 bulkhead plating adjacent to the shell plating;
3.2 bulkhead trunks which form part of the venting, filling and discharging
arrangements between the topside tanks and the hopper tanks;
3.3 bulkhead plating and weld connections to the lower/upper stool shelf plates;
3.4 weld connections of stool plating to the lower/upper stool shelf plates and inner
bottom;
3.5 in way of weld connections to topside tanks and hopper tanks;
3.6 any areas where coatings have broken down and there is evidence of corrosion or
wastage. It is recommended that random thickness determination be taken to establish
the level of diminution; and
3.7 other structures, e.g., diaphragms inside the stools, particularly at their upper and
lower weld connections
ENHANCED SURVEY
PROGRAMME
Enhanced survey programme is a guideline for
shipping companies and owners to prepare their
ships for special surveys to maintain the safety of
the vessel while at sea or at a port. A survey
programme (a Planning document for surveying and
paperwork) is to be developed by the owner and is
to be submitted to the recognised authorities such
as classification societies, 6 months before the
survey.
Enhanced Survey programme is developed in such a way that it can be
integrated with other surveys which are performed at following intervals:
– Annual
– Intermediate Survey
– Dry Dock Survey
For a company to comply and perform an ESP or an enhanced survey
program, it needs to design an enhanced survey programme, which must
include the step by step planning to implement the special survey. It can be
said that the ESP is conducted to check the watertight integrity of the ship by
inspecting the following areas of the ship:
– Close-up survey of the structures such as Shell, frames, bulkheads etc.
– Thickness measurement of hull
– Inspecting and Testing of Cargo Tanks
– Inspecting and Testing of Ballast Tanks
– Inspection and Testing of Hatch Covers and Coamings
– Inspecting and Testing fuel tanks, side and double bottom Tanks
What to check in ESP?
Ship’s structural damage or deformation
Corrosion
Condition of Hull
Pitting
Condition of Coating
Watertight Integrity of ship
– Close-up survey of the structures such as Shell, frames, bulkheads etc.
– Thickness measurement of hull
– Inspecting and Testing of Cargo Tanks
– Inspecting and Testing of Ballast Tanks
– Inspection and Testing of Hatch Covers and Coamings
– Inspecting and Testing fuel tanks, side and double bottom Tanks
What to check in ESP?
Ship’s structural damage or deformation
Corrosion
Condition of Hull
Pitting
Condition of Coating
Watertight Integrity of ship
After the survey, following reports are made by the inspector, whose copies are to be kept
and maintained onboard as part of necessary documentation:
1. Reports of structural surveys
2. Condition evaluation report
3. Thickness measurement reports
A new chapter XI is added for special measures to enhance maritime safety under this
resolution. According to these guidelines, it has 2 Annexes:
Annex A: Guidelines on enhancing survey programme of inspection during survey of
bulk carrier.
Annex B: Guidelines on enhancing survey programme of inspection during survey of oil
tankers.
Each annex A & B has 9 chapters which are almost similar. The only dissimilarities being
operational and constructional aspects of both type of vessels i.e. oil tankers and bulk carriers.
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