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First wave of commercial vessel standards to enter legislation
The National Marine Safety Committee today announced the upcoming implementation of its National Standard for Commercial Vessels (NSCV) into legislation.
The first wave of implementation will take full effect in the construction section of NSCV from 1 October 2008. The legislation will apply to new vessels, however, marine safety agencies may require existing vessels which are upgraded or modified to comply with the NSCV provisions.
The NSCV is a technical standard for the design, construction and operation of domestic commercial vessels. It replaces the Uniform Shipping Laws (USL) Code and is a major move towards a common national safety standard for the regulation of commercial vessels. From October, completed NSCV standards for design and construction will formally replace existing USL Code requirements.
National Marine Safety Committee (NMSC)’s CEO Maurene Horder said the implementation will ensure the latest standards apply as well as introduce new standards into legislation on a six month or yearly basis as they develop.
“The national implementation of the NSCV will affect boat designers and builders and will at the same time bring added flexibility” Ms Horder said.
“For instance, vessels built throughout Australia will now be able to legally apply the performance-based and less prescriptive aspects of the NSCV to meet construction safety standard requirements”.
The raft of construction standards poised to enter national legislation from October includes:
- Fire safety requirements of NSCV Part C, Section 4 (with some differences in South Australia and Queensland)
- Engineering requirements of Part C, Section 5, and
- The safety equipment standards of Section 7A (except in Queensland and with some differences in South Australia)
- Fast Craft requirements of Part F, Section 1
It will be legally required from 1 October 2008 that all new vessels comply with the specified completed and approved NSCV standards. However, where a vessel submits an application prior to October, that vessel is not required to comply with the NSCV provided construction work begins within a three-year period.
“This allows a transitional period for vessel builders over the next six months,” Ms Horder added.
The standards applying to new vessels can be found on the NMSC website: www.nmsc.gov.au, click on the ‘Legislated standards 2008’ icon on the homepage.
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Media enquiries: CEO Maurene Horder or communications officer Rosemary Pryor on 02 9247 2124
