Lifting Appliances & Cargo Gear Certification
in Rotterdam.

Ship lifting appliance and cargo gear certification

Lifting appliances and loose gear must remain safe, traceable, and ready for statutory or class review. This service covers shipboard cranes, derricks, engine-room cranes, stores cranes, provision cranes, vehicle ramps, lifting beams, spreaders, shackles, blocks, hooks, and associated loose gear. vslSafety coordinates the competent-person examination, testing equipment, attendance window, and certificate package around the vessel’s port call.

Regulatory context and inspection intervals

Requirements depend on flag, class, equipment type, and the vessel’s certification history. The common framework includes ILO Convention No. 152, national lifting regulations, class rules, and SOLAS regulation II-1/3-13 for onboard lifting appliances and anchor handling winches. Annual thorough examinations and five-year proof-load tests are common, while repairs, alterations, overload events, or replacement of a load-bearing part may trigger additional examination and testing. The SOLAS II-1/3-13 certification programme applies from 1 January 2026 and may become due at the first renewal survey for existing equipment.

Typical service scope

• Review of the Cargo Gear Register, previous Forms 2 and 3, certificates, and equipment list
• Visual and functional examination of structures, brakes, limit switches, ropes, sheaves, hooks, foundations, and safety devices
• Static or dynamic proof-load testing with certified weights, water bags, calibrated load cells, and an agreed test procedure
• Inspection and identification of loose gear, including SWL marking and certificate traceability
• Defect reporting, retesting after rectification, and preparation of the required competent-person certificates

Information needed for a quotation

Send the vessel name and IMO number, port and attendance dates, flag and class, appliance type and maker, safe working load, outreach or test configuration, quantity of loose gear, last examination and load-test date, and copies of the Cargo Gear Register. State whether test weights, water bags, crane operators, riggers, transport, permits, or class attendance are required. Final acceptance and certificate format remain subject to the vessel’s flag administration, class society, and applicable port rules.

Certificates and common planning questions

What documents should the attendance produce?

The required package may include a report of thorough examination, proof-load certificate, loose-gear certificates, test-equipment calibration records, marked equipment list, defect report, and entries or endorsements in the Register of Lifting Appliances. ILO model Forms 2 and 3 are often requested, but national formats differ. Confirm the required forms with flag or class before testing so the attending competent person has the correct authority and templates.

Does every crane need a five-year load test?

Five-year testing is common under lifting regimes, but the trigger and test load depend on the appliance, governing convention, national implementation, installation date, and survey history. New installation, substantial repair, alteration, or replacement of a stress-bearing component can also trigger a test. A document review should establish the due scope before weights are mobilised.

Can testing be completed during cargo operations?

Sometimes, but only where the berth, terminal, vessel, competent person, and surveyor accept a segregated test area and safe operating plan. Water-bag filling and discharge, test-weight delivery, crane radius, deck loading, weather, and exclusion zones can control the schedule. Testing should never conflict with cargo work or place personnel beneath a suspended load.

What happens when a defect is found?

The examiner records the defect and decides whether testing can continue safely. Repairs may need approved materials, qualified welders, NDT, maker input, or class attendance. The appliance should not return to service above any imposed limitation until rectification and the required re-examination or retest are complete. vslSafety can coordinate repair and retesting as one port-call work package where resources permit.