• 2023-Jun-20

TALKING POINT on IBI

Both manufacturers and CE-certifiers in our industry sector would do well to apply the harmonised standards of ISO TC 188.

During our inspections, we see a few mistakes again and again that, for whatever reason and regardless of the manufacturer, keep popping up.

HERE ARE THE 5 MOST IMPORTANT NON-COMPLIANCES 

a) with regard to electrical installations:

1. more than four conductor connections on one terminal stud.
2. when multiple conductors are connected to one terminal stud, the smallest conductor is stacked first.
3. the location of the main shore power inlet circuit breaker exceeds 3 m, measured along the conductor, from the shore power inlet connection or the. electrical attachment point of a permanently installed shore power cable.
4. the contents of the warning label at the shore power inlet connection do not meet the requirements.
5. the distances of the cable supports are too wide.

b) with regard to the stability of watercraft

1. not all flooding points are identified and recorded.
2. individual weights are added to the craft and not to the equipment.
3. the type of the decking or covering is not correctly recognised and therefore the wrong stability option is chosen.
4. the practical stability measurement is not chosen but the theoretical stability calculation, which, because it is very conservative, can lead to a lower category.
5. the recess calculations are faulty.

When calculating the structure of boat hulls, it is often noticed that primary and secondary stiffeners are mixed up with each other.

There is also a recurring error in the calculation of boat cockpits. It seems to be very difficult to distinguish a multilevel cockpit from a cockpit with footwell.

Navigation lights are not mounted at the correct angle to the craft’s longitudinal axis resp. to the water surface.

The question remains, why do these faults occur again and again?
Our industry employs well-trained boat and component designers and solving or following the above points should not be a problem for them.

Are the ISO TC 188 standards unclear?