Dry Dock Entry Planning
Dry-dock planning starts from statutory and class due dates, ship condition and yard capability; timing, scope and contingencies must be built for the specific project.
Operational Explanation
A docking coordinates statutory inspections, class surveys and maintenance. The programme follows the ship’s due dates, known condition, recommendations and yard capability. There is no universal 6–12 month lead time or standard contingency percentage.
The repair specification should separate firm work, options and extras; the approved docking plan must reflect the ship’s configuration and modifications. Bearing areas must be checked against structure, appendages, sea inlets and available UTM results.
Planning also means making work and system availability compatible. Ship, Company and yard establish who coordinates activities, who hands over a system and who accepts its return; surveyors and suppliers attend the agreed points. A dock booking and commercial schedule do not establish that the ship is ready to enter.
Regulatory Reference
SOLAS I/10 and A.1207(34) HSSC 2025 for cargo-ship bottom inspections; SOLAS I/7 and A.1207(34) for the passenger-ship annual regime; IACS UR Z3 and Society Rules for class bottom/docking survey. Check the docking plan against class Rules, the approved arrangement and applicable statutory construction-drawing requirements.
Link each job to the relevant survey, document to update and party authorised to accept it. Agree hold points before closing access or covering surfaces: the Company’s commercial acceptance does not replace the survey outcome. IMO: surveys and certification.
Prepare a ship/yard sequence for handing over and returning systems: responsibilities, isolations, temporary services, tests and residual defects. Before return to service verify restoration of safety functions affected by the work and record any limitations. IMO: ISM safety management.
HSSC 2025 distinguishes cargo bottom inspection and the passenger regime; check the ship’s branch without inferring that every survey must be out of water. A.1207(34), General 4.6 and 5.10; IACS Z3 Rev.8. MSC.1/Circ.1223, annex 1–4 addresses pre-planning for non-ESP ships: status, previous reports, damage, repairs, measurements and items to examine. It is not a fixed lead time for every project.
Scope of Application
Ships with a bottom inspection, docking survey or work requiring out-of-water access. Regime, window and method depend on ship type, age, certificates, class and approvals; cargo and passenger ships are not one uniform case.
Procedure / How to Complete It
- Build the calendar. Record statutory and class due dates, windows and the survey concerned; distinguish cargo/passenger, bottom inspection, Special Survey and statutory renewals. Agree with the competent parties what must be completed in dock.
- Define the work. Use defects, previous reports and maintenance to separate firm work, options and extras. For each item identify equipment/area, preparation, criteria, tests and acceptance; consider spares, suppliers and access.
- Prepare entry. Review the docking plan, modifications and structural information with the yard and competent personnel. Agree information on ship condition and arrangement, onboard loads/liquids, supports and spaces to make available under the plan. This card provides no calculation or sequence to achieve that condition.
- Coordinate handovers and activities. Define responsibilities, communications, isolations, temporary services and prescribed safe conditions. Establish which tasks can coexist, when attendance is needed and which hold points precede closure, coating or return.
- Manage changes. A new finding or extra requires review of scope, authorisation, resources, time and acceptance. Update the programme and keep outstanding work visible, without converting the commercial schedule into a survey extension.
- Prepare return. Link actual work and tests with system restoration, updated documents and outstanding items. Ship, yard and accepting parties follow assigned checks; record final condition, limitations and follow-up responsibility before the prescribed handback.
Practical Example
For a cargo ship the Company starts from the SOLAS I/10 window and class programme, checks the docking plan, and prepares base scope, steel-renewal options and extra rates. A passenger ship is planned under the distinct I/7/HSSC regime and applicable approvals.
During docking, examination of a sea connection identifies a repair outside the specification. The team identifies the finding, the party accepting the work and the hold point before closure. Company and yard update the extra and programme; the report links repair, verification and outstanding-item status. The departure date is reassessed against those conditions, rather than taken as proof of close-out.
What Typically Goes Wrong
Common Mistakes Mistake Library
| Mistake | Consequence | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Cargo regime used for passenger ship | Wrong due date or method | Separate I/10 from I/7/HSSC |
| Fixed project timeline | Preparation not proportionate | Derive programme from due dates, risk and market |
| Closing or coating an area before the agreed inspection | The survey may require reopening or repeating work | Connect each job to its hold point and the party accepting its outcome |
| Handing back a system without final status and follow-up | Isolations or remaining defects may be hidden from the ship | Record tests, restoration, limitations and responsibility for the outstanding item |
What the PSCO Checks
Operational Tips
- Use one matrix for requirements, work, owners and hold points.
- Freeze a baseline and manage each extra for cost and critical-path impact.
- Send the yard only approved revisions of technical documents.
Preparation checklist
- Cargo/passenger regime identified
- Statutory and class due dates checked
- Current docking plan available
- Scope and acceptance criteria defined
- Extras and contingencies based on risk
- Entry condition and ship/yard information agreed with competent personnel
- Handovers, temporary services, hold points and return with traceable results/outstanding items
FAQ
Related Topics
Certified substantive revision: 12 October 2026 · page fingerprint 99bb84fe8cdc