Marine safety service
Mooring Equipment Services
Inspection and maintenance of mooring fittings, winches, lines and tails in line with SOLAS II-1/3-8, MSC.1/Circ.1620 and OCIMF MEG4, including brake testing.
Overview
Mooring equipment inspection and maintenance
Mooring equipment services cover the whole mooring system: winches and their brakes, fairleads, rollers, pedestal rollers, chocks, bitts, bollards, mooring lines and tails, and the documentation that ties them together. Parted mooring lines and snap-back injuries remain among the most serious deck accidents, and most of them trace back to worn or incompatible equipment, brakes that do not render when they should, or lines kept in service beyond their retirement criteria.
Since 1 January 2024 mooring equipment is a SOLAS item on every ship, not only a matter of good practice. vslSafety coordinates specialists who can inspect fittings, test brakes, audit line records and help the crew close gaps before a PSC inspection or vetting.
Regulatory requirements and standards
- SOLAS regulation II-1/3-8, as amended by MSC.474(102), entered into force on 1 January 2024. For all ships, mooring equipment including lines must be inspected and maintained in a suitable condition for its intended purpose. Procedures for mooring operations and for inspection and maintenance of mooring equipment must be available on board, and records kept.
- MSC.1/Circ.1620 – Guidelines for inspection and maintenance of mooring equipment including lines. It covers periodic inspection of lines, tails and attachments within the onboard maintenance plan, identification and control of each line, and retirement before failure using the manufacturer’s criteria.
- MSC.1/Circ.1619 – Guidelines on the design of mooring arrangements and selection of equipment and fittings, applied with MSC.1/Circ.1175/Rev.1 to new ships of 3,000 GT and above contracted on or after 1 January 2024. It introduces the ship design minimum breaking load (MBLSD) and line design break force concepts.
- OCIMF Mooring Equipment Guidelines (MEG4) – the industry reference for tankers and gas carriers, widely applied elsewhere, including the line management plan and a recommended brake render setting of 60% of SDMBL.
Ships with keels laid on or after 1 January 2007 should have fittings marked with their operational limitations. Class rules also govern the strength of fittings and supporting structure.
Inspection and servicing intervals
| Item | Requirement | Interval | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mooring lines, tails, attachments | Periodic inspection, identification and records | Per onboard maintenance plan; before and after use | SOLAS II-1/3-8, MSC.1/Circ.1620 |
| Line retirement | Remove from service before failure | Manufacturer’s criteria | MSC.1/Circ.1620 |
| Winch brakes | Brake holding / render test | At delivery, typically annually, after brake work | OCIMF MEG4 |
| Fittings and seatings | Visual inspection for wear, grooves, cracks, corrosion | Per maintenance plan and at class hull surveys | MSC.1/Circ.1620, class rules |
| Mooring procedures and records | Available and kept up to date on board | Ongoing | SOLAS II-1/3-8 |
What the service includes
- Gap analysis of onboard procedures, line records and the maintenance plan against SOLAS II-1/3-8 and MSC.1/Circ.1620
- Development or review of a line management plan in MEG4 style, including line identification and retirement criteria
- Inspection of mooring lines and tails, including synthetic, HMPE and wire lines, against the manufacturer’s criteria
- Brake holding and render tests on mooring winches, with brake adjustment and relining
- Inspection of fairleads, rollers, chocks, bitts and bollards for grooving, seized rollers, cracks and wastage
- Checking SWL markings on fittings and consistency with the towing and mooring arrangements plan
- Thickness gauging or crack detection of fittings and seatings where required
- Supply and certification support for replacement lines, tails and connecting shackles
Equipment types covered
Mooring winches and capstans, panama and closed chocks, universal and pedestal fairleads, roller fairleads, bitts and bollards, towing brackets, emergency towing arrangements, synthetic ropes (polyester, polypropylene, nylon mixes), HMPE lines, steel wire mooring ropes and synthetic tails. Winch overhaul is covered under winch and deck machinery services, while steel wire rope inspection and terminations are covered under wire rope and rigging services.
Common defects and PSC deficiencies
- No mooring inspection and maintenance procedures on board, or procedures that do not reference MSC.1/Circ.1620
- Lines without identification, certificates or service history, making retirement decisions impossible
- Lines of different materials or sizes on the same lead
- Seized pedestal rollers, grooved fairleads and sharp edges that cut lines
- Fittings without SWL marking, and doubler plates with corrosion or cracking
- Brakes never tested, or render settings not known
- Unmarked snap-back zones or poor housekeeping on mooring decks
Certificates and documents you receive
An inspection report for fittings, lines and winches with photos and a prioritised defect list; brake test certificates recording holding load and method; a line inventory or updated line management records; and where requested, draft procedures or maintenance plan entries that the company can adopt into its SMS. Line certificates are provided with any replacement lines supplied.
How to prepare the vessel
- Have the towing and mooring arrangements plan, line certificates and inspection records available
- Identify each line and tail with its position and hours or operations in service
- Schedule brake testing where one winch at a time can be released from mooring duty
- Allow access to all fittings, including those behind stores or under lines stowed on deck
- Brief the crew who will run the winches and assist with testing
Information needed for a quotation
- Vessel name, IMO number, type, flag and class, and keel-laying or contract date
- Port, berth or anchorage, ETA and ETD
- Number and type of mooring winches, and their maker and model
- Number of lines and tails, material, diameter and certificates available
- Scope: fittings inspection, brake tests, line audit, procedures or a combination
- Any upcoming vetting, PSC or class survey driving the work
vslSafety coordinates a suitable mooring specialist at the vessel’s port and aligns the attendance with cargo operations.
Frequently asked questions
What changed for mooring equipment on 1 January 2024?
Amended SOLAS regulation II-1/3-8 entered into force. All ships must now inspect and maintain mooring equipment, including lines, in a suitable condition and have procedures for mooring operations, inspection and maintenance on board, taking into account MSC.1/Circ.1620. New ships of 3,000 GT and above contracted from that date must also follow the design guidance in MSC.1/Circ.1619 and MSC.1/Circ.1175/Rev.1.
When should a mooring line be replaced?
MSC.1/Circ.1620 says lines should be retired before they fail, using the manufacturer’s retirement criteria. These normally consider abrasion, cut strands, fused or glazed fibres, hockles, contamination and time or operations in service. A line without identification or certificate history cannot be assessed properly, which is why each line and tail needs to be tracked individually.
What is a line management plan?
A line management plan, described in OCIMF MEG4, records every line and tail on board with its specification, certificate, position, inspection history and retirement criteria. It is standard for tankers and gas carriers subject to vetting and is a practical way to meet the record-keeping expectations of MSC.1/Circ.1620 on other ship types.
Why are winch brakes set to render at 60% of SDMBL?
The render point is the main protection for the mooring system. If an excessive load occurs, the brake should slip before the line or fittings fail. MEG4 recommends 60% of the ship design minimum breaking load on the first layer, so that the brake yields above the line’s working load but well below its breaking strength.
Are mooring fittings inspected by class?
Fittings and their supporting structure are examined during class hull surveys, but day-to-day inspection is the ship’s responsibility under its maintenance plan. Grooved fairleads, seized rollers and cracked seatings should be reported and repaired promptly, often with welding and steel work approved by class.
