Verweij Hoebee Groep, a subsidiary of BMT Group, the leading international maritime design, engineering and risk management consultancy, has expanded its service portfolio with the introduction of management audits of ship owners.

This unique prevention concept goes beyond the standard condition surveys which are conducted on board ships and extends to the examination of both management and technical operations. Director Bruce Verweij explains, “The primary goal is to limit the risk of damage to ships or ships that are under repair. We are the only marine surveying company to offer such a thorough service whereby ship owners are audited, more often than not at the request of Underwriters, in the field of damage prevention.”

Rob Voskamp, Surveyor at Verweij Hoebee Groep adds, “We not only observe operations on board the ship and provide recommendations, if required, concerning necessary maintenance and repair jobs to be carried out, we also carefully examine existing technical management procedures. Often the communication bottleneck is between office personnel onshore and the ship’s crew where safety regulations and other working arrangements may not be received properly or are not interpreted as was originally intended. It’s important that the quality of the crew is considered within these audits in relation to employee education, experience and skills as we regularly advise ship owners to adjust their personnel policy accordingly.”

Bruce Verweij concludes, “This approach is already producing tangible results for clients. Maintenance is receiving more attention and repairs are being carried out more quickly, resulting in less damage and fewer repairs, the latter, being of particular advantage to the owner and, ultimately, underwriters.”

Tags: BMT Group, Verweij Hoebee Groep