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State Control Inspector. Unless the defect is rectified with suitable root cause analysis, the issue could happen again and require the manufacturer to recall the product from the mar- ket. Similarly, if root cause analysis of issues – such as oil leakages in the bilge of engine rooms or an accident caused by improper communications between the deck and engine room – is not carried out, similar incidents will keep happen- ing. This is why companies must communicate about inci- dents, non-conformances and best practices observed on their vessels or in other office locations.

AUDITS: MEANINGFUL CHANGE,

ADDING REAL VALUE

The audit process can bring about meaningful changes that can add real value to an organization. Key metrics to employ when preparing for an audit can include: • Be open to your auditors. They are there to help your organization – your organization’s success is their success as well. • Procedures should be brief and should address the basic process just enough to explain the process to the process owner. Write what you intend; do what you have written. • Have suitable reviews and re-reviews of your quality documents at scheduled intervals to monitor effectiveness. • Master’s reviews/management meetings should include review of Safety alerts and other information received from the office. Maintain a record of these reviews. It shows involvement of crew as well as management commitment. • Encourage the crew members to read out safety- and environment-related articles during the meetings and get them involved. Maintain a record of doing so. • Have an effective system of taking corrective and pre- ventive actions. Involve everyone and ensure that the effec- tiveness of your corrective and preventive actions is moni- tored. • Encourage and motivate crewmembers who are adaptive to change and volunteer to improve the system.

The Author

Gurvinder Chopra is the Manager of Americas Marine Management

Systems for Lloyd's Register North America, Inc., a member of the

Lloyd’s Register Group of entities. The Group enhances the safety of life, property and the environment by helping its clients to ensure the quality construction and operation of critical infrastructure. The con- tent of this article is the opinion of the author and does not reflect the opinion of, or acceptance by, Lloyd’s Register North America, Inc.