The Rules

The days are long gone when you could just build a large yacht and sail off into the sunset.

This is a good thing.

As much as they frequently feel more like hull fouling than propulsion, the myriad rules and regulations that need to be navigated when designing large vessels are, mostly, a big step forward.

Rules, what rules?

Designing and building boats longer then 24 metres long will generally involve three key administrative players: the flag state (the country where the boat is registered), the classification society and the authority in charge of the port it’s visiting. We’ll call this trio flag, class and port for convenience.

Internationally, this trio has inter-linking requirements for boats for which they’re responsible. This collection of responsibilities is known generally as ‘the rules’.

Unless each of the three members of this gang is happy, none of them are. A port will only allow a vessel in if it is currently ‘in class’ (ie if the classification society is happy with the vessel), and class will only be happy if flag is happy. What makes them happy? The rules.

Who are these people?

‘Port’ is the authority in charge of any port that the vessel is visiting. They are interested in making sure that the boat is safe for its crew (eg: have they been paid? Are their accommodations up to requirements?), for other vessels and for the environment. They’re also interested in the duties and taxes side of operations.

‘Flag’ is the state where the vessel is registered. It is, in a sense, the vessel’s nationality. A vessel can visit many ports, but it has only one port of registry. The flag state is responsible for ensuring that the vessel complies with appropriate legislation. The larger flag states for yachting include the Cayman Islands Shipping Registry and the Marshall Islands.

Fun bedtime reading regarding the roles and responsibilities of flag states can be had at the Paris MoU site’s white, grey and black list, which compares the performance of the world’s 27 flag states, including the number of detentions of vessels flying each flag.

‘Class’ is responsible for ensuring that a vessel’s strength, integrity, propulsion, steering, power generation and auxiliary systems are suitable and functioning. In order to maintain ‘in class’ status, a vessel will be subject to regular surveys by a classification society. Class will review designs and details prior to and during construction of a vessel, and often survey the same vessel throughout its life. The larger classification societies include DNV/GL, Lloyds Register of Shipping, RINA (Italy) and ABS. To deep-dive on all things classification, check out the International Association of Classification Societies.

Nuts and bolts

These organisations operate under collections of international legislation. The pointy end of that legislation is the delightfully named UNCLOS - the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which lays out the responsibilities and rights of how nations are to interact with the world’s oceans. Flag states are required to ensure compliance with the UNCLOS. Compliance involves that the requirements of the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO) are fulfilled.

The IMO rules are generally about the safety of the ship, its crew and the environment. The actual rules that are applied to a given vessel will vary depending on the type of boat, its routes and its cargo, but a sample set may include:

	BWM	Convention on Ballast Water Management
	COLREGS	International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea
	Load lines	International Convention on Load Lines
	MARPOL	International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
	SOLAS	International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea
	STCW	International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers

COLREGS for example will give you absolute clarity (sometimes annoyingly so) about where the navigation lights need to be placed. Load lines is, among other things, interested in doors, hatches, ventilation and Samuel Plimsoll’s load line mark. MARPOL is particularly interested in what the boat does with its garbage and dirty oil (and record keeping thereof).

Classification society rules, in contrast, will be more interested in the sub-atomic detail of the design of the boat’s structure, machinery and systems, fire detection and suppression and electrical systems. They will want to see material certificates for the hull shell plates and test certificates for the fire suppression systems. Flag administrations may delegate some of their responsibilities to the classification society which can sometimes create a merry-go-round of accountability, but that’s all part of the fun of building large, complicated floating cities!

The challenge

The hardest part of applying most of these design rules is that they are written for a generic boat, frequently quite different from the one for which you are responsible. Complying with the intent of the rules is often achieved by demonstrating that an equivalent standard has been achieved, when the specific requirement cannot. Many rules specifically allow for such equivalencies (thank you SOLAS), but some irritatingly do not (I’m looking at you, COLREGS).

The ability to think laterally, and to work collaboratively with Flag and Class, is essential in this process.

The wrap

I hope this has helped unveil some of the interactions and demystify some of the administrative complexities of getting boats built. There’s no substitute for experience in navigating complex rulesets in order to get a vessel compliant and sailing away. Character building, but necessary.

Any questions or comments? Don’t hesitate to get in touch.

May the wind be ever at your back,

Nick.