KOMSA Hits Gas to Improve Small-and Mid-Size Ship Inspection Infrastructure

President Kim Jun-seok of Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA).

Small-and mid-size ship safety management is undergoing dramatic changes.

Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA) said on June 9 the corporation is expected to accelerate efforts to improve small-and mid-size ship inspection infrastructure in cooperation with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF).

KOMSA plans to expand safety inspection services in major areas, in addition to the current outreach ship inspection services.

Inspection team members have so far visited about 100,000 coastal ships, staying at 400 ports and docks across the nation.

The number of outreach ship inspection team members stood at 190 as of May 2023, each handling 1,274 inspection cases annually.

Each inspection team member is charged with conducting an average of five inspection cases per day except holidays. If free inspection services are counted except mandatory inspection, each inspection team member will see their work go up.

Each inspection team member with KOMSA traveled an average of 10,000 km to conduct an inspection into unchecked ships last year.

Inspection team members find it difficult to manage travelling time and inspection schedules to conduct outreach inspection. In particular, fishing industry circles have raised the need to build ship inspection center infrastructure so they can be made according to fishermen’s schedules.

KOMSA plans to establish a regular ship inspection regime and advance ship inspection through a digital paradigm shift, based on continued cooperation with related institutions.

This year, KOMSA will build two integrated safety management center infrastructure, catering to small- and mid-sized ships at two major ports.

A whole view of the Smart Ship Safety Support Center in the Southwest Area, dedicated in Mokpo recently.

A smart ship safety support center will be inaugurated at Mokpo and Incheon, respectively.

The center will be responsible for conducting an inspection into small- and mid-size ships.

The step is designed to reduce inspection time by introducing a regular ship inspection reservation system and offer improved service quality to shipowners through scientific inspection using advanced inspection equipment.

KOMSA also plans to implement projects to upgrade ship inspection methods to digital-based ones.

Ship inspection centers will ramp up ship safety management in island areas, lacking in access, through a remotely controlled inspection system, while a ship inspection electronic document issuance system will be built to offer electronic services, such as document storage and reissuance.

KOMSA will make preparations to launch a pilot project, which is scheduled to offer inspection services at a port nation in the second half of the year, as automobiles do at inspection sites across the nation.

The step is expected to improve users’ convenience, such as curtailing the time to handle administrative duties.

Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA) plans to make outreach tours to inspect ships and also make remotely controlled inspection.

Meanwhile, KOMSA has improved convenience for consumers by simplifying ship inspection procedures within a range of ensuring safety.

KOMSA amended the enforcement decrees of the Act on Ship Safety in cooperation of the Ministry of Ocean and Fisheries to rationalize the time and cost of inspecting light oil ships; and outboard electric power propulsion system ships with less than five tons. The decrees went into force on April 12.

KOMSA President Kim Jun-seok said, “KOMSA will lend an ear to voices of inspection sites, and if necessary, we will do our best to raise the safety of ships and customers’ conveniences by aggressively recommending matters of institutional reform matters to the government.”

KOMSA is an integrated authority of maritime safety in service of the nation. Its mission is “ensuring the safest seas in the world.” The vision is Integrated Management Authority of Maritime Transportation Safety in the Service of the Nation.

KOMSA works on reducing casualties by implementing thorough ship safety management strategies, including inspecting into 100,000 ships, safe operation management of 160 passenger ship improvement of safety systems, and maritime accident prevention activities.