Clasification Society Rulefinder 2016 - Version 9.25
Statutory Documents - IMO Publications and Documents - Resolutions - Assembly - IMO Resolution A.1071(28) – Revised Guidelines on the Implementation of the International Safety Management (ISM) Code by Administrations – (Adopted on 4 December 2013) - Revised Guidelines on the Implementation of the ISM Code by Administrations - 4 CERTIFICATION AND VERIFICATION PROCESS

4 CERTIFICATION AND VERIFICATION PROCESS

  4.1 Certification and verification activities

  4.1.1 The certification process relevant to a Document of Compliance for a Company and to a Safety Management Certificate for a ship will normally involve the following steps:

  • .1 interim verification;

  • .2 initial verification;

  • .3 annual or intermediate verification;

  • .4 renewal verification; and

  • .5 additional verification.

  4.1.2 These verifications are carried out at the request of the Company to the Administration, or to the organization recognized by the Administration to perform certification functions under the ISM Code, or the verifications are carried out at the request of the Administration by another Contracting Government to the SOLAS Convention. The verifications will include an audit of the safety management system.

  4.2 Interim verification

  4.2.1 Interim certification may be issued under certain conditions as specified by the ISM Code and should facilitate the implementation of a safety management system.

  4.2.2 The Company should apply for interim certification to the Administration.

  4.2.3 The process of interim Document of Compliance verification of the management system undertaken by the Administration would require an assessment at the Company's offices in accordance with paragraph 14.1 of the ISM Code.

  4.2.4 On satisfactory completion of the assessment of the shoreside safety management system, arrangements/planning may commence for the assessment of applicable ships in the Company's fleet.

  4.2.5 The process of interim verification of the ship should be undertaken by the Administration to ensure that the ship is provided with a safety management system, in accordance with paragraph 14.4 of the ISM Code.

  4.2.6 On satisfactory completion of the interim verification, an Interim Document of Compliance will be issued to the Company; copies should be made available by the Company to every shoreside premises and each applicable ship in the Company's fleet. As each ship is assessed and issued with an Interim Safety Management Certificate, a copy of the certificate should also be forwarded to the Company's head office.

  4.3 Initial verification

  4.3.1 The Company should apply for ISM Code certification to the Administration.

  4.3.2 An assessment of the shoreside management system undertaken by the Administration would necessitate assessment of the offices where such management is carried out and possibly of other locations which may include delegated safety management system tasks, depending on the Company's organization and the functions at the various locations.

  4.3.3 On satisfactory completion of the assessment of the shoreside safety management system, arrangements/planning may commence for the assessment of the Company's ships.

  4.3.4 On satisfactory completion of the assessment, a Document of Compliance will be issued to the Company, copies of which should be made available to each shoreside premises and each ship in the Company's fleet. As each ship is assessed and issued with a Safety Management Certificate, a copy of it should also be forwarded to the Company's head office.

  4.3.5 In cases where certificates are issued by a recognized organization, copies of all certificates should also be sent to the Administration.

  4.3.6 The safety management audit for the Company and for a ship will involve the same basic steps. The purpose is to verify that a Company or a ship complies with the requirements of the ISM Code. The audits include:

  • .1 verification of the conformity of the Company's safety management system with the requirements of the ISM Code, including objective evidence demonstrating that the Company's safety management system has been in operation for at least three months and that a safety management system has been in operation on board at least one ship of each type operated by the Company for at least three months; and

  • .2 verification that the safety management system ensures that the objectives defined in paragraph 1.2.3 of the ISM Code are met. This includes verification that the Document of Compliance for the Company responsible for the operation of the ship is applicable to that particular type of ship, and it includes assessment of the shipboard safety management system to verify that it complies with the requirements of the ISM Code and that it is implemented. Objective evidence demonstrating that the Company's safety management system has been functioning effectively for at least three months on board the ship and ashore should be available, including, inter alia, records from the internal audit performed by the Company.

  4.4 Annual verification of Document of Compliance

  4.4.1 Annual safety management audits are to be carried out to maintain the validity of the Document of Compliance, and should include examining and verifying the correctness of the statutory and classification records presented for at least one ship of each type to which the Document of Compliance applies. The purpose of these audits is to verify the effective functioning of the safety management system, and that any modifications made to the safety management system comply with the requirements of the ISM Code.

  4.4.2 Annual verification is to be carried out within three months before and after each anniversary date of the Document of Compliance.

  4.4.3 Where the Company has more than one shoreside premises and/or delegates safety management system tasks, the annual assessments should endeavour to ensure that all sites are assessed during the period of validity of the Document of Compliance.

  4.4.4 During the annual verification, administrations should verify if the Company is operating all ship types on the Document of Compliance. Appropriate action should be taken if the Company has stopped operating a particular ship type.

  4.5 Intermediate verification of Safety Management Certificates

  4.5.1 Intermediate safety management audits should be carried out to maintain the validity of the Safety Management Certificate. The purpose of these audits is to verify the effective functioning of the safety management system and that any modifications made to the safety management system comply with the requirements of the ISM Code. In certain cases, particularly during the initial period of operation under the safety management system, the Administration may find it necessary to increase the frequency of the intermediate verification. Additionally, the nature of non-conformities may also provide a basis for increasing the frequency of intermediate verifications.

  4.5.2 If only one intermediate verification is to be carried out, it should take place between the second and third anniversary date of the issue of the Safety Management Certificate.

  4.6 Renewal verification

 Renewal verifications are to be performed before the validity of the Document of Compliance or the Safety Management Certificate expires. The renewal verification will address all the elements of the safety management system and the activities to which the requirements of the ISM Code apply. Renewal verification may be carried out from three months before the date of expiry of the Document of Compliance or the Safety Management Certificate, and should be completed before the date of expiry.

  4.7 Additional verification

  4.7.1 The Administration may, where there are clear grounds, require an additional verification to check if the safety management system still functions effectively. Additional verifications may be carried out following situations beyond normal procedures such as port State control detentions, or in the case of reactivation after the interruption of the operations due to a period out of service, or in order to verify that effective corrective actions have been taken and/or are being properly implemented. Additional verifications may affect the shore-based organization and/or the shipboard management system. The Administration should determine the scope and depth of the verification, which may vary from case to case. The additional verifications should be completed within the time period agreed, taking into account guidelines developed by the Organization. The Administration should follow up on the results of the verification and take appropriate measures, as necessary.

  4.7.2 On satisfactory completion of the shipboard assessment, the Safety Management Certificate should be endorsed for additional verification.

  4.8 Safety management audits

 The procedure for safety management audits outlined in the following paragraphs includes all steps relevant for initial verification. Safety management audits for the interim, annual, intermediate, additional and renewal verification should be based on the same principles, even if their scope may be different.

  4.9 Application for audit

  4.9.1 The Company should submit a request for audit to the Administration or to the organization recognized by the Administration for issuing a Document of Compliance or a Safety Management Certificate on behalf of the Administration.

  4.9.2 The Administration or the recognized organization should then nominate the lead auditor and, if relevant, the audit team.

  4.10 Preliminary review (Document review)

 As a basis for planning the audit, the auditor should review the safety management manual to determine the adequacy of the safety management system in meeting the requirements of the ISM Code. If this review reveals that the system is not adequate, the audit will have to be delayed until the Company undertakes corrective action.

  4.11 Preparing the audit

  4.11.1 The auditor should review the relevant safety performance records of the Company and take them into consideration when preparing the audit plan, for example, flag State records, port State controls, and class and accident reports.

  4.11.2 The nominated lead auditor should liaise with the Company and produce an audit plan.

  4.11.3 The auditor should provide the working documents which are to govern the execution of the audit in order to facilitate the assessments, investigations and examinations in accordance with the standard procedures, instructions and forms which have been established to ensure consistent auditing practices.

  4.11.4 The audit team should be able to communicate effectively with auditees.

  4.12 Executing the audit

  4.12.1 The audit should start with an opening meeting in order to introduce the audit team to the Company's senior management, summarize the methods for conducting the audit, confirm that all agreed facilities are available, confirm time and date for a closing meeting and clarify possible unclear details relevant to the audit.

  4.12.2 The audit team should assess the safety management system on the basis of the documentation presented by the Company, and objective evidence as to its effective implementation.

  4.12.3 The objective evidence should be collected through interviews and examination of documents. Observation of activities and conditions may also be included when necessary to determine the effectiveness of the safety management system in meeting the specific standards of safety and protection of the environment required by the ISM Code.

  4.12.4 Audit findings should be documented. After activities have been audited, the audit team should review the objective evidence collected. This should then be used to determine what is to be reported as major non-conformities, non-conformities or observations, and should be reported in terms of the general and specific provisions of the ISM Code.

  4.12.5 At the end of the audit, prior to preparing the audit report, the audit team should hold a meeting with the senior management of the Company and those responsible for the functions concerned. The purpose is to present the observations in such a way as to ensure that the results of the audit are clearly understood.

  4.13 Audit report

  4.13.1 The audit report should be prepared under the direction of the lead auditor, who is responsible for its accuracy and completeness.

  4.13.2 The audit report should include the audit plan, identification of audit team members, dates and identification of the Company, and observations on any non-conformities and on the effectiveness of the safety management system in meeting the specified objectives.

  4.13.3 The Company should receive a copy of the audit report. The Company should be advised to provide a copy of the shipboard audit reports to the ship.

  4.14 Corrective action follow-up

  4.14.1 The Company is responsible for determining and initiating the corrective action needed to correct a non-conformity or to correct the cause of the non-conformity. Failure to correct non-conformities with specific requirements of the ISM Code may affect the validity of the Document of Compliance and related Safety Management Certificates.

  4.14.2 Corrective actions and possible subsequent audits should be completed within the time period agreed. For corrective actions this should not normally exceed three months. The Company should apply for the follow-up audits as agreed.

  4.14.3 Failure to take adequate corrective actions, in compliance with the requirements of the ISM Code, including measures to prevent recurrence, may be considered as a major non-conformity.

  4.15 Company responsibilities pertaining to safety management audits

  4.15.1 The verification of compliance with the requirements of the ISM Code does not relieve the Company, management, those undertaking delegated safety management system tasks, officers or seafarers of their obligations as to compliance with national and international legislation related to safety and protection of the environment.

  4.15.2 The Company is responsible for:

  • .1 informing relevant employees and those undertaking delegated safety management system tasks about the objectives and scope of the ISM Code certification;

  • .2 appointing responsible members of staff to accompany members of the team performing the certification;

  • .3 providing the resources needed by those performing the certification to ensure an effective and efficient verification process;

  • .4 providing access and evidential material as requested by those performing the certification; and

  • .5 cooperating with the verification team to permit the certification objectives to be achieved.

  4.15.3 Where major non-conformities are identified, Administrations and recognized organizations (ROs) should comply with the procedures stated in the Procedures concerning observed ISM Code major non-conformities (MSC/Circ.1059-MEPC/Circ.401).

  4.16 Responsibilities of the organization performing the ISM Code certification

 The organization performing the ISM Code certification is responsible for ensuring that the verification and certification process is performed according to the ISM Code and these Revised Guidelines. This includes management control of all aspects of the certification according to the appendix to these Revised Guidelines.

  4.17 Responsibilities of the verification team

  4.17.1 Whether or not the verifications involved with certification are performed by a team, one person should be in charge of the verification. The leader should be given the authority to make final decisions regarding the conduct of the verification and any observations. His responsibilities should include:

  • .1 preparation of a plan for the verification; and

  • .2 submission of the report of the verification.

  4.17.2 Personnel participating in the verification are responsible for complying with the requirements governing the verification, ensuring confidentiality of documents pertaining to the certification and treating privileged information with discretion.

Parent topic: Revised Guidelines on the Implementation of the ISM Code by Administrations
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