"Participation in the SIRE programme comes with clear responsibilities – chief among them is protecting the integrity and confidentiality of inspection data. SIRE reports and associated digital files must not be shared outside authorised channels."
Director's Log
This month, I want to take a moment to reinforce the importance of safeguarding SIRE data.
Participation in the SIRE programme comes with clear responsibilities – chief among them is protecting the integrity and confidentiality of inspection data. SIRE reports and associated digital files must not be shared outside authorised channels. This restriction is a core condition of participation in the SIRE programme and is designed to protect stakeholder data and prevent breaches of anti-trust and competition law.
Each completed SIRE report is jointly owned by OCIMF and the commissioning member company as it contains their respective intellectual property in the form of the inspection questionnaire and responses. The vessel operator expects that reports will only be accessed by OCIMF, the commissioning member and approved SIRE recipients via the official database.
SIRE recipients – such as charterers, terminal operators, and Port State Control authorities – must apply for access through OCIMF. Reports are available at a nominal cost and include the full inspection package (SIRE Report, VPQ, Crew Matrix).
Unauthorised sharing of SIRE data, including PDF, XML or JSON reports, images and other digital files, poses significant legal and reputational risks. All personnel are reminded to strictly adhere to data governance protocols.
For access or queries, please contact:
Thank you for your continued commitment to safe and responsible data stewardship.
Karen Davis
Director OCIMF
OCIMF's Karen Davis wins WISTA UK Woman of the Year
OCIMF is proud to share that OCIMF's Managing Director, Karen Davis, was awarded the WISTA UK Woman of the Year 2025 in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the maritime industry.
Karen is honoured to have received this accolade, which highlights the importance of collaboration and inclusion across the global shipping and maritime community. She also wishes to thank the IMO for hosting the ceremony on 2 July.
She joins an esteemed list of previous recipients, including last year’s winner, the Rt Hon. Nusrat Ghani, MP. Both are pictured here alongside Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the IMO.
OCIMF extends warm congratulations to Karen and thanks WISTA UK for championing excellence, inclusion, and leadership in the maritime sector.
POMEX25 looks to the future
OCIMF was invited to speak at the Port and Maritime Exchange (POMEX) conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 15 July as part of Malaysia Maritime Week 2025.
OCIMF's Managing Director Karen Davis joined a panel entitled 'Empowering Maritime Workforce for Sustainable Future' alongside Mr. M Denny M Isa, Vice President (Marine Services), MISC Berhad; Dr. Phillip Belcher, Marine Director, INTERTANKO; Mr. Iain Grainger, CEO, IMCA; and Capt. Manivannan Subramaniam, CEO, ALAM.
The speeches and discussions tackled critical topics shaping the industry, including digitalisation, sustainability, policy transformation, and human capital.
The next day, Karen and Sashidaran Gopala (OCIMF's SIRE 2.0 Technical Adviser) joined the IMO Secretary General Arsenio Dominguez, MISC President and CEO Zahid Osman and Manivannan Subramaniam on a visit to the Malaysia Maritime Academy (ALAM), where they had the opportunity to engage with the cadets and faculty and tour their impressive training facility.
New participants join enclosed space entry fatalities workshop
As part of the ongoing work that OCIMF is facilitating to develop and implement measures to eliminate enclosed space entry fatalities in the marine environment, OCIMF hosted a virtual workshop of more than 30 maritime industry stakeholder organisations on 16 July 2025.
New joining participants, Royal Institute of Naval Architects (RINA), International Cargo Handling Coordination Association (ICHCA) and Dry Bulk Terminals Group (DBTG) provided an overview of their respective organisations and where their organisation might fit in addressing the issue. Together in Safety, ICS and others provided updates on progress that has been made in their respective focus areas.
OCIMF shared analysis of responses to the current SIRE inspection core question related to enclosed space entry procedures. This found that approximately 7% of inspections resulted in a negative response related to the Human Response Tool and approximately 4% of inspections resulted in a negative response related to the Process Response Tool. OCIMF is committed to working with its members and industry stakeholders to identify and develop strategic initiatives that have the potential to significantly reduce or eliminate this risk in a sustained long-term manner.
For additional information please contact Javed Bhombal, OCIMF Nautical Adviser
Engaging with members in Tokyo and Singapore
OCIMF was pleased to be able to conduct several member engagements in Tokyo and Singapore in the last week of June.
Engaging with members allows OCIMF to share progress on its strategic priorities and provide updates related to ongoing initiatives. It also provides the opportunity to give Programmes-related updates, and on this occasion, to share best practices and lessons learned nine months after the launch of SIRE 2.0.
Aaron Cooper, Programmes Director and Sashidaran Gopala, SIRE 2.0 Technical Adviser, would like to thank ENEOS, Idemitsu, PIMA, Chevron, Koch, and Ampol for their time and for their continued support driving safety in the maritime industry.
Korean Register European Committee
On 14 July 2025, Darron L. Biddle, OCIMF Publications and Advocacy Director, attended the 20th Korean Register European Committee (KREC) meeting in London.
Darron provided an overview of the role that onshore power supply can play in improving local air quality and reducing GHG emissions of the shipping sector and promoting OCIMF’s recently released information paper, Onshore Power Supply Systems: Recommendations for Tankers and Terminals.
Since 2004, KREC has been bringing together key stakeholders from the European maritime industry to provide a platform for Korean Register and maritime industry member organisations to share perspectives on the current maritime issues and foster technical exchange for sustainable shipping.
For further information please contact Darron L. Biddle, OCIMF Publications and Advocacy Director,
New Programmes Director joins OCIMF
OCIMF is pleased to announce that Dave Cudbertson joined as Programmes Director in July on secondment from Shell.
Dave sailed onboard a variety of tankers before coming ashore 21 years ago. His most recent role was Global Manager for Downstream Assurance activities. Dave has been involved in introducing new technology into operations, such as the world’s first hydrogen tanker and liquefied CO2 shipping.
He has represented his company on various OCIMF bodies, including the Maritime Security Committee supporting the development of the first three editions of BMP. Dave has also served as Chair of the Programmes Governance Expert Group, is a member of the Programmes Committee and a member of the VIP (SIRE 2.0) Steering Group.
Please join us in wishing Dave all the best in his new role at OCIMF.
Publications news
OCIMF is pleased to share it was a contributing organisation to the recently released publication, Unified Approach to Verification, Validation and Assurance of Single Fault Tolerance in Dynamic Positioning Systems.
This document, jointly produced with IMCA and MTS, provides a transparent framework that describes the relationships and responsibilities between stakeholders involved in the design, verification, validation and assurance processes for dynamic positioning (DP) systems. It describes the Evidence Based Comprehensive Verification and Validation (EBCV2) process that can provide an improved level of confidence that a DP vessel is able to deliver predictable, incident free DP operations.
This guidance is intended to be of use to all stakeholders involved in DP new buildings and major conversions; additionally selected elements may be applied to existing DP vessels.
The paper is available here: https://www.ocimf.org/publications/information-papers/unified-approach-to-verification,-validation-and-assurance-of-single-fault-tolerance-in-dynamic-positioning-systems.
The OCIMF information paper Recommendation for Converting Inland Tank-barges from Open to Closed Cargo Operations in South and Central America has been updated and is now available here: https://www.ocimf.org/publications/information-papers/recommendation-for-converting-inland-tank-barges-from-open-to-closed-cargo-operations-in-south-and-central-america
Meeting reports
North, South and Central America barging members
In the week of 14 to 18 July, regional members from North America and South/Central America held their first ever joint working group.
Over 25 member representatives collaborated on the Global Barge Guide, discussing the concept of the guide and methods of working to develop global best practice for barging. The five days of meetings were hosted by ExxonMobil at its campus in Spring Texas. The group also visited a degassing facility and the week closed with virtual reality familiarisation training on barges.
OCIMF would like to thank the members for their participation and ExxonMobil for their hospitality.
For more information, contact Ton Mol, OCIMF Barge Adviser,
Inspection Processes Expert Group
13th meeting: 15 July 2025 (virtual)
Lead: Fred Adolfsen (TotalEnergies)
Co-leads: Amar Chopra (INEOS), Apak Ali (Chevron)
Secretary: Fahmi Tarmizi (OCIMF Programmes Technical Manager)
The agenda of the Inspection Processes Expert Group (IPEG) focused on updating members on ongoing OCIMF initiatives impacting inspection processes.
Key highlights included the recent launch of the Offshore Vessel Inspection Questionnaire 4 (OVIQ4) inspection programme for members, programme recipients and the wider offshore industry. Members were also briefed on the ongoing development of the Barges Inspection Questionnaire, tailored for use in South, Central and North America.
In addition, OCIMF’s Offshore Adviser provided an update on the progress of the Offshore Vessel Management Self-Assessment (OVMSA) document review.
For further enquiries, please contact Fahmi Tarmizi, OCIMF Programmes Technical Manager,
Engineering Expert Group
14th meeting: 26 June 2025 (virtual)
Lead: Dave Deltano (Marathon)
Co-lead: Kevin Lappage (BP)
Secretary: Lexy Nielsen (OCIMF Engineering Adviser)
The 14th meeting of the Engineering Expert Group (EEG) convened to discuss its periodic review of the information paper The Supply and Use of 0.50%-Sulphur Marine Fuel. Upcoming workstreams on regulatory barriers and gaps for alternative fuels at the IMO were also reviewed, to plan for participation in upcoming Correspondence Groups. The EEG continues its work on the revision of the information paper Safety Critical Equipment and Spare Parts Guidance and will complete the review of Recommendation on Engineering Watch/Duty Period Handover and Inspection Routines.
For enquiries, contact Lexy Nielsen, OCIMF Engineering Adviser,
IMO news
134th session of the IMO Council (C 134)
C 134 was held at the IMO headquarters from 7–11 July 2025, with the following developments of relevance to OCIMF members taking place.
Promoting multilingualism
Committed to using its six official languages for effective communication, the IMO website (www.imo.org) is now also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish.
World Maritime Day theme for 2026-2027
To reflect the IMO’s commitment towards assisting member states implement IMO instruments within their national legislation, ‘From policy to practice: Powering maritime excellence’ is the theme chosen for 2026 and 2027.
IMO awards
- The 2025 IMO Awards for Exceptional Bravery at Sea will be presented to Mr. Lee Tae-young from the Republic of Korea in recognition of his actions in saving 12 fellow crew members when the fishing vessel he was assigned to sank off the coast of Jeju Island off the coast of Republic of Korea.
- The 2024 International Maritime Prize will be awarded to Dr. Rosalie Balkin, Secretary-General of the NGO Comité Maritime International (CMI) in recognition of her contributions to the maritime community.
The awards ceremony is to take place at the IMO headquarters on Monday 24 November, 2025.
11th Subcommittee on Implementation of IMO Instruments (III 11)
III 11 was held at the IMO headquarters from 21–25 July 2025, with the following developments of relevance to OCIMF members taking place.
Casualty investigation
- Falls, enclosed spaces and survival craft related incidents, among others, were raised as ongoing challenges that needed to be addressed.
- Development of a new data-driven casualty analysis process to inform policy development on safety issues identified from casualty reports was agreed, pending approval at MSC 111 in 2026.
Survey guidelines under the Harmonised System of Survey and Certification (HSSC)
- It was agreed that all survey items under the Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention need to be reviewed ahead of adoption of the revised BWM Code.
- Guidance on application of remote surveys, International Safety Management Code audits and International Ship and Port Facility Security Code finalised as an MSC-MEPC Circular, subject to consideration by the respective Committees at a future date.
Port State Control (PSC) guidelines
- Significant discussions on safe manning levels and rest hour compliance: the role of Flag states and companies was recognised, in addition to the limited role of PSC officers. The Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping (HTW) subcommittee may be tasked with considering this matter with a view to developing future guidance.
A summary report for III 11 will be released in due course. For enquiries regarding IMO matters, contact Risk and Regulatory Affairs Adviser, Abhijit Aul