The requirement of loading instrument for bulk carriers

is governed by SOLAS chapter XII, regulation 11. Even

though there is no statutory requirement for loading

computer onboard other ships, classification societies

require all tankers of more than 100 meters to have

type approved loading instrument. even otherwise so,

Loadicator has rather been a necessity onboard ships.

And once we have something onboard, it is duty of ship

staff to ensure that it complies with its testing and

record keeping procedures.

There are two parts of the question. First relates to the

documents and certificates a ship is required to have

onboard with respect to loadicators and second the

testing requirement of the loadicator.

Documents required for Loadicator

There are three main documents ship should have for it

to be actually complying with Loadicator requirements.

These are
Class certificate for loadicator: This certificate is

issued by the class and gives the details of the

loadicator software as well as the hardware on which it

is installed, including the details of the Make, model and

serial number of the computer. Master and chief officer

must ensure that the approved loading computer’s

details matches with the details in this certificate. The

certificate may even sometimes have the printer’s detail

that is connected with the approved loadicator.

If you do not find this certificate onboard, you should

check in the class survey status report if the loading

computer is included in the list. If yes, the certificate

can be asked from the class through your office. If No,

then shipping office need to consult ship’s classification

society for approval of loading computer.

Class approved Loadicator Manual: This is the user

manual of the loadicator which is from the maker of the

loadicator software. A class approved copy of the user

manual should be onboard. If there was ever a class

change associated with the ship, it is important to

ensure that approval stamp of the current classification

society is endorsed on the manual.

Class approved loadicator test conditions: To be

very clear, these are not the conditions in the stability

booklet of the ship. The stability conditions in the

stability booklet are made by the yard and these are not

the print outs from the loadicator software. These are

also not the test conditions stamped by the class during

annual class surveys. These are usually in the form of a

booklet specifically titled “ test conditions for loadicator”

with class stamp. These are usually provided during

yard delivery of the vessel or after the loadicator is

installed for the first time and approved by the class.

Once you have these three documents / certificates, you

are OK with the certification part.

Testing requirements for the Loadicator

Testing by ship staff: The Loadicator is required to be

tested periodically ( interval to be as per SMS of the

vessel) by ship staff for its accuracy. The test procedure

includes choosing a text condition from the approved

test conditions, entering the exact same data in the

loadicator and comparing the results with the approved

test conditions. The important point to note is that the

data need to be manually entered and not opened from

a pre-saved file as it is not acceptable to classification

society as well as OCIMF to simply retrieve a stored test

condition and comparing it with approved test condition.

Annual testing of Loadicator in presence of

Class : During annual class surveys, loadicator need to

be tested for its accuracy in presence of a class

surveyor. The procedure of testing is same as the

quarterly testing but in here the class surveyor would

ask for the print out of the test condition and he would

stamp it and give it to the ship for ship’s records.