Ships and Cargo Inspection Services
Reducing commodity cargo trading risks with independent inspection and testing.
Southwood Shipping helps protect high value bulk commodity cargos, significantly reducing risk of loss exposure to the trading parties involved. Inspection occurs during critical transportation, custody transfer and storage operations. With a long track record of experience and success, SMG has provided professional cargo inspection services since inception, having started under the group as Overseas Marine. Southwood is a member of IFIA/IMCA/IMO/RINA/IIMS and performs inspection services to global industry standards and other recognized criteria.
Measuring cargo quantity and quality:
High value bulk commodities like crude oil, chemicals, fuels, grains, edible oils and many other products are measured, analyzed and verified for shipment and inventory quantity and quality. Inspector’s survey and sample representative product from bulk storage tanks, tankers, cargo ships, barges, shore storage and transfer facilities, railcars, and warehouses. Intertek chemists follow accepted industry and regulatory methods and practices to obtain accurate, reliable, and repeatable results.
Commodity cargos inspected and tested:
Petroleum Cargo Inspection, Petro-Chemical Cargo Inspection, Agricultural Cargo Inspection, Minerals Inspection and Surveying, Marine Surveying, Liquid Storage Terminal Services, Cargo Additive Treatment Services, Cargo Additive Treatment, Exporter and Importer Services, Marine Insurance Services
Ship Inspection Services
Southwood Shipping offers a broad list of maritime inspection services. Our thorough inspections ensure that our clients know the status of their marine vessel’s safety, performance, and efficiency.
Hull Inspection, Ultrasonic Thickness Testing, Coating Condition Assessment, Steel Renewal Weld Inspection, Piping Survey, ABS Special Survey.
Hull Inspection
The hull is one primary area of the vessel that should be inspected regularly due to its susceptibility to developing cracks, holes, dents, corrosion, and other types of defects. Even small flaws can deteriorate over time if left undiscovered. Our NDT experts have years of experience in performing hull inspections according to the applicable standards.
Thickness Measurements
Due to their constant exposure to salt-water and other natural elements, marine vessels can fall victim to corrosion (rust, for example). Corrosion creates an issue when it eats away at the ship’s metallic components, causing material loss.
To measure if the vessel has in fact endured any material loss, our NDT technicians perform ultrasonic thickness testing. Southwood harnesses ultrasound technology to send high-frequency sound waves directly into the test material. The signal then reflects back into our probe device, delivering an accurate thickness measurement that we can compare to the manufacturer’s original specification.
Coating Condition Assessment
The vessel’s paint coating – aside from improving appearances – acts as a protective barrier for the metal underneath. Oxygen, temperature, and pH can all cause coating degradation, among other environmental and operating conditions. For maximum protection, paint coatings should have a certain level of thickness. The protective role of the coating makes it an important component our technicians check during a maritime inspection service.
Periodic inspections are essential for maintaining ship safety, assessing maintenance needs, and complying with applicable maritime standards. If you need maritime inspection services performed on your marine vessel, contacting us today will be greatly appreciated.