Solas Chapters for Beginners | Summary, Parts, Regulations Explained
Introduction
There are many dangers to life at sea. Fire, flooding, collision, grounding, heavy weather and drowning are some of the major ones. But there are many more minor dangers that can jeopardise the safety of life.
The collision and subsequent sinking of the Titanic was one of the major incidents that shook the world. It was a horrible tragedy. When it occurred, we realized that there were not enough life-saving appliances and arrangements on the ship for the emergency evacuation of passengers.
We could have saved many more lives had the Titanic been designed keeping emergency situations in mind. SOLAS came into existence as a result of the foundering of the Titanic. It was first adopted on 20th January, 1914 with the aim of entering it into force by July 2015.
The primary objective at this time was to ensure that all sea-going vessels are supplied with enough life-saving appliances and arrangements for emergencies.
Over time, it has grown significantly and today it accounts for not only passenger vessels, but also cargo-carrying vessels of all types. It covers all major and most minor causes that endanger life at sea.
What is SOLAS?
The SOLAS convention is an instrument of the IMO. It lays down regulations for the safe construction, operation and maintenance of passenger and cargo ships. It also specifies the regulations for the equipment to be used on the ship.
Today, 164 flag states that register 99% of merchant ships sailing at sea are following SOLAS. All of these states must follow the minimum standards mentioned in SOLAS.
Compliance with SOLAS regulations ensures that working at sea is much safer than before. As an extension, SOLAS also ensures the safety of ships and the environment.
SOLAS, along with the MARPOL and the STCW convention forms the three most important pillars to ensure maritime safety and pollution prevention.
SOLAS Chapters
All the SOLAS safety regulations are well-segregated into 14 chapters that are based on specific niches in the shipping industry.
The SOLAS chapters list is as follows:
Chapter I: General Provisions
Chapter II-1: Construction – Structure, Subdivision and Stability, Machinery and Electrical Installations
Chapter II-2: Construction – Fire Protection, Fire Detection and Fire Extinction
Chapter III: Life-saving Appliances and Arrangements
Chapter IV: Radiocommunications
Chapter V: Safety of Navigation
Chapter VI: Carriage of Cargoes and Oil Fuels
Chapter VII: Carriage of Dangerous Goods
Chapter VIII: Nuclear ships
Chapter IX: Management for the Safe Operation of Ships
Chapter X: Safety Measures for High-Speed Craft
Chapter XI-1: Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Safety
Chapter XI-2: Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Security
Chapter XII: Additional Safety Measures for Bulk Carriers
Chapter XIII: Verification of Compliance
Chapter XIV: Safety Measures for Ships Operating in Polar Waters
Let us look at each of the chapters briefly and what regulations they have.
Summary of SOLAS chapters
Chapter I: General Provisions
This chapter has 21 regulations that specify what and how surveys are to be carried out on merchant vessels.
It also addresses the issuance and endorsement of certificates, their validity durations and availability onboard.
It has the following three parts.
- Part A – Application, definitions, etc.
- Part B – Surveys and certificates
- Part C – Casualties
Chapter II-1: Construction – Structure, Subdivision and Stability, Machinery and Electrical Installations
Chapter II-1 addresses construction standards for ships.
It has 57 regulations that dictate how the construction must be carried out to ensure that the ship does not sink should a compartment get flooded.
It is divided into the following 7 parts:
- Part A – General
- Part B – Subdivision and stability
- Part C – Machinery installations
- Part D – Electrical installations
- Part E – Additional requirements for periodically unattended machinery spaces
- Part F – Alternative design and arrangements
- Part G – Ships using low-flash point fuels
Solas Chapter 2 provides instructions on how the subdivision of vessels is to be carried out without compromising safe access to the different locations.
The instructions cover all the different types of vessels.
Chapter II-2: Construction – Fire Protection, Fire Detection and Fire Extinction
Chapter II-2 covers fire protection standards. It has 23 regulations that are divided into the following seven parts.
- Part A – General
- Part B – Prevention of fire and explosion
- Part C – Suppression of fire
- Part D – Escape
- Part E – Operational requirements
- Part F – Alternative design and arrangements
- Part G – Special requirements (Helicopter facilities, carriage of dangerous goods, etc.)
The aim of this chapter is to provide complete end-to-end guidance on how to reduce the occurrence of fire on ships.
Considering the possibility of fires, the chapter also guides on how to design a ship to suppress the fire while facilitating the escape of those onboard.
Chapter III: Life-saving Appliances and Arrangements
Solas Chapter 3 outlines the arrangement and other specifications for the life-saving appliances on ships.
It has 41 regulations that cover all the different life-saving appliances for all vessel sizes and types
The chapter has three main parts. These are:
- Part A – General
- Part B – Requirements for ships and life-saving appliances. It has the following five sections.
- Section I – Passenger ships and cargo ships
- Section II – Passenger ships (Additional requirements)
- Section III – Cargo ships (Additional requirements)
- Section IV – Life-Saving appliances and arrangement requirements
- Section V – Miscellaneous
- Part C – Alternative design and arrangements
Chapter IV: Radiocommunications
This chapter has a total of 18 regulations covering radio equipment and installations. It covers various topics such as their sources of energy, performance standards, and maintenance requirements.
The chapter has three main parts.
- Part A – General
- Part B – Undertakings by contracting governments
- Part C – Ship requirements
Chapter V: Safety of Navigation
Solas chapter 5 has a total of 35 regulations. It details the various navigation principles along with the design, arrangement and maintenance of navigation equipment.
It covers a lot of other topics as well such as ship routeing, pilot transfer arrangements, steering gear testing and drills, distress signals and actions to be taken in distress situations.
Chapter VI: Carriage of Cargoes and Oil Fuels
Solas Chapter 6 comprises of 9 regulations that cover the loading, unloading, stowage and securing of different cargoes. It has three parts.
- Part A – General Provisions
- Part B – Special provisions for solid bulk cargoes
- Part C – Carriage of grain
The chapter covers the requirements that the vessels must adhere to in order to carry the abovementioned cargoes.
Chapter VII: Carriage of Dangerous Goods
When the cargo is dangerous, Solas Chapter 7 regulations need to be followed. There are a total of 16 regulations in this chapter. It has the following three parts.
- Part A – Carriage of Dangerous Goods in Packaged Form
- Part B – Construction and equipment of ships carrying dangerous liquid chemicals in bulk
- Part C – Construction and equipment of ships carrying liquefied gases in bulk
Chapter VIII: Nuclear ships
SOLAS Chapter 8 has a total of 11 regulations that cover aspects such as application, reactor selection, radiation safety, surveys, certificates, and special controls for nuclear ships.
The Code of Safety for Nuclear Merchant Ships supplements the requirements of this chapter (resolution A.491(XII)).
Chapter IX: Management for the Safe Operation of Ships
Solas Chapter 9 consists of six regulations and stresses the importance of complying with the International Safety Management (ISM) Code.
It is mandatory for all ships to comply with the ISM code to comply with SOLAS Chapter 9.
The ship must also be operated by a company that holds a valid Document of Compliance (DOC) and a robust safety management system.
The Chapter also lays down regulations for verification and control of compliance with the code.
Chapter X: Safety Measures for High-Speed Craft
Chapter 10 of SOLAS features three regulations that define and state the requirements for a high-speed craft.
It also states that the crafts must comply with IMO’s International Code of Safety for High-Speed Craft (HSC Code) adopted in 1994.
A comprehensive set of requirements for high-speed crafts are a part of the HSC code.
These requirements allow manufactured crafts to attain a level of safety equivalent to the safety requirements in SOLAS.
Chapter XI-1: Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Safety
This chapter consists of 7 regulations meant to improve maritime safety.
The chapter stresses the importance of complying with the Code for Recognized Organizations (RO Code) and how it is to be done for the code’s different parts (mandatory/recommendatory).
It also reiterates the roles of these recognized organizations such as port control. The chapter also specifies how safety records are to be maintained and shared with relevant organizations and systems such as the Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS).
Chapter XI-2: Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Security
This chapter focuses on maritime security and contains 13 regulations.
It lays down the requirements for companies, ships and port facilities to manage security on ships. It enumerates the threats to ships and their control and compliance measures.
It also defines what a Ship Security Alert System (SSAS) is and how it must function.
The chapter also reiterates the master’s overriding authority in making professional calls that relate to the safety and security of the vessel.
He is not to be pressurised by the company, owner or the charterer when making these calls.
It also regulates how communication of information is to take place among all the parties.
It also states that the vessel must comply with the mandatory requirements provided in the part A of the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. Part B provisions are recommendatory.
Chapter XII: Additional Safety Measures for Bulk Carriers
Chapter 12 of SOLAS lists additional safety measures for bulk carriers. It has a total of 14 regulations.
It specifies the structural strength and damage stability requirements for bulk carriers. It also explains the survey and maintenance of bulk carriers.
It also provides the regulations for water ingress alarms for hold, ballast and dry spaces and the availability of pumping systems for these areas.
Chapter XIII: Verification of Compliance
SOLAS chapter 13 is one of the shortest chapters in SOLAS with only three regulations.
These regulations explain how the compliance of contracting governments regarding the implementation of SOLAS on its vessels shall be checked by the IMO.
It lays down the procedure for the audits and the responsibility of the contracting government in facilitating a smooth audit.
Chapter XIV: Safety Measures for Ships Operating in Polar Waters
The 14th Chapter in SOLAS has 4 regulations for ships that intend to operate in polar waters.
Polar waters refer to the Arctic area (north of 60 degree latitude) and the Antarctic area (south of 60 degree latitude).
The goal of the chapter is to define the scope and the type of ship to which these regulations apply.
It is also to provide alternative design and arrangement methodology for structure, machinery and electrical installations, fire safety and life-saving appliances and arrangements.
Frequently Asked Questions
SOLAS full form
SOLAS stands for Safety of Life at Sea. The full name of the SOLAS convention is ‘The International convention for the safety of life at sea (SOLAS).
How many chapters in SOLAS?
There are a total of 14 chapters in SOLAS.
Which ships does SOLAS apply to?
The present regulations apply to ships engaged on international voyages unless expressly provided otherwise. These include passenger ships (>12 passengers) and cargo ships (all ships that are not passenger ships).
If a vessel that does not normally do international voyages must undertake one international voyage, it may be allowed to do so without complying with the current SOLAS regulations provided that the safety requirements are adequate in the opinion of the flag state for the voyage to be undertaken by the ship.
Which ships does SOLAS not apply to?
Unless expressly mentioned otherwise, the present SOLAS regulations do not apply to:
- Ships of war and troopships
- Cargo ships of less than 500 tons gross tonnage
- Ships not propelled by mechanical means
- Wooden ships of primitive build
- Pleasure yachts not engaged in trade
- Fishing vessels
SOLAS also does not apply to vessels sailing only in the Great Lakes of North America and the River St. Lawrence as far east as a straight line drawn from Cap des Rosiers to West Point, Anticosti Island and, on the north side of Anticosti Island, the 63rd Meridian.
Where is SOLAS training manual located?
As per SOLAS chapter III, regulation 35, a training manual must be located in each crew mess room and recreation room or in each crew cabin.
Most vessels hold three controlled copies, one in each of the two mess rooms and one in the Master’s office. A DPA also holds a controlled copy.
No more unauthorised or uncontrolled copies of the training manual are to be created or circulated without prior written permission.
