IMO | SOLAS Amendments from 01 January 2020

Important amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), and various codes mandatory under the Convention, enter into force on 1 January 2020.

Those amendments include:

• Addressing lifeboat maintenance - preventing accidents with lifeboats - Amendments to SOLAS regulations III/3 and III/20 make mandatory the Requirements for maintenance, thorough examination, operational testing, overhaul and repair of lifeboats and rescue boats, launching appliances and release gear.
• Subdivision and damage stability - A set of amendments to SOLAS chapter II-1 relating to subdivision and stability enter into force, amending, among other things, the regulations on the required subdivision of passenger ships to increase their safety, as well as regulations related to the stability information to be provided to a ship's master.
• Planning for evacuation on cruise ships - Requirements for all new passenger ships carrying more than 36 passengers to be built with evacuation analysis early in the design process come into force.
• Expanding maritime satellite communications equipment providers - Amendments to chapter IV of SOLAS and some codes provide for a "recognized mobile satellite service" to be installed for maritime distress and safety communications.

Full list of SOLAS amendments entering into force on 1 January 2020 can be found by clicking here.

Source: www.imo.org