Continuous Survey of Machinery

 Classification Societies with International Association of Classification Societies

or IACS such as LR, ABS, GL, DnV, BV, etc require that all machinery under
their rules must be surveyed every five years. This heavy work load is reduced
if all surveys were done at one time, all Classification Societies will allow some
items to be surveyed in rotation, over a number of annual cycles. Here surveys
are continuous over the five year cycle of surveys, so it is called as Continuous
Survey of Machinery or CSM.
 To reduce the costs to Owners/Operators, Class will allow the Chief Engineer
to survey most items under his supervision. Once surveyed by the Chief
Engineer, the items would still require the Class Surveyor to credit the surveys
at an annual audit. The Chief Engineer will be instructed by Class that he is
eligible to undertake these surveys on Class’s behalf, and the specific items he
can and cannot survey.
 To fully utilise the manpower on-board ships, it would be prudent to ensure
that when items are due for survey, that they are also required to be overhauled.
Thus as the time when overhauls are due can be modified by operational
practices, the Chief Engineer should endeavour to ensure that both the overhaul
or planned maintenance routine and the survey are due within the same time
period.
 Two programmes briefed below are approved by the Class in order
that physical opening up machinery is not necessary on every occasion.

Lubricating oil analysis

 This programme could be used on the steering gear machinery. Samples of
the lubricant within the system would be sent for analysis on a regular, three
monthly basis to detect contaminants, wear particles, and oil characteristics,
such as viscosity. These results will indicate the quality of the oil, and the
presence of any internal wear. Based on these results, an internal inspection of
the steering gear should be wavered, and only an operational test be required at
the survey date.

Performance monitoring
 This programme could be used on auxiliary diesel engines. The
operational parameters of the engine, such as exhaust temperatures, lubricating
oil pressures, engine load, boost air pressure, etc, etc, would be recorded under
steady state conditions. These sets of recent readings would be compared with
those taken when the machine was new, or in a known good operating
condition. Based on these results the internal inspection of the engine
components would be wavered.
CONTINUOUS HULL SURVEYS
1. Application
(1) This system covers internal examinations, close-up surveys and thickness
measurements
of tanks and spaces and pressure tests of tanks.
(2) This system is not applicable to oil tankers, bulk carriers, ships carrying
dangerous
chemicals in bulk and general dry cargo ships of not less than 500 gross tonnage.
(3) For ships more than 10 years of age, the ballast tanks are to be internally
examined twice
in each five-year class period, ie. once within the scope of the intermediate survey
and
once within the scope of the continuous system for the special survey.

In other words CHS is not applicable to ESP ships (For ESP ships refer A.744(18))

2. DETAILS:

(1) Each cycle of Continuous Hull Surveys is to be planned to commence at the

time of the
next survey to classification survey or any special survey and complete internal
examinations (including thickness measurements) of each tank and space and
pressure
tests by the completion of the subsequent special surveys.

“Continuous Hull Survey Record” survey file is to be maintained on board..

(2) After confirming that the submitted CHS plan complies with the requirements
for all tanks
and spaces, the application is to be approved and returned to the applicant for
placing in
the onboard survey file. (One copy is to be forwarded to Classification
Department.)