MLC-2006. How will you comply?

With less than a week to go before MLC-2006 will come into force it is a mad scramble for shipowners to comply. The authorities seem to be overwhelmed – even the most organised countries have to admit that their flag state administration is not entirely ready for MLC-2006. Some still to this date don’t have their contact details in place for the onboard complaint procedure, others have given no guidance on how often inspections are to take place and yet others are surprisingly well prepared.

The inspectors from the Recognised Organisations have been reported to use entirely different checklists even within the same flagstate and their arguments differ largely before they sign the ship off. The shipowners are left with finding their way through the maze alone.

To guide the shipowners several helpful tools have been published and some administrations use online DMLC Part 2 forms. The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), Lloyd’s Register, Germanische Lloyd and others have published free guides and checklists and MLC-2006 courses have been advertised for months.

Discussion platforms on LinkedIn have been formed, with a rising amount of active members helping to find bits of missing information or discussing the varying tariffs for MLC Certification.

Just how can you, as a shipowner with perhaps several ships of different flags, find your way?

We have had our MLC-Document Generator up and running since April 2013 and can proudly announce that it has been received with praise from the shipowners of different flags and the inspectors alike. The constant feedback from an ever growing base of users including the merchant fleet, super yachts and traditional sailing charter has made it possible for us to keep the flag specific information contained in the Generator up to date and we keep our subscribed users in the loop by sending out regular relevant information.

It is not too late yet. So if you wish for a comprehensive flag specific guide to your DMLC Part 2 with support from our team, have a look at www.mlc-2006.eu

We are looking forward to your success.