Diagnosing and deciding
- Diagnose machinery faults systematically, from the symptoms and the readings.
- Decide repair versus replace versus defer, weighing the risk, the spares and the operating programme.
- Plan and supervise repairs safely, with isolation and permits to work.
- Know when to seek shore assistance, order spares, or involve the class society or flag State.
Managing defects
Not every defect can be fixed at once, so the Chief manages them: recording each defect, assessing its risk, repairing what must be repaired, and deferring what can safely wait — but never quietly deferring a defect that affects the vessel's safety or seaworthiness. A defect touching safety or seaworthiness is assessed and reported through the proper channels — the Master, the company, and the class or flag State as required — not hidden to keep the vessel trading.
WARNING — Report defects that affect safety A defect touching the vessel's safety or seaworthiness must be assessed and reported, not quietly deferred to keep the vessel trading. Concealing such a defect is both unsafe and, if it leads to an incident, a serious failure of the Chief's duty.
TIP — Weigh repair, replace or defer Not every fault is fixed the same way. The Chief weighs the risk, the spares, and the operating programme to decide whether to repair now, replace, or safely defer — and records the decision.