Maritime C-IED Services
Legislation
Security in the maritime industry is primarily directed by mandatory international and national legislation or military doctrine and principals. HMS maritime experts have extensive experience in the the development of maritime policy and doctrine; this knowledge fundamental when supporting clients in setting their security processes and systems.
Maritime security legislation is enshrined in the International Ship and Port Facilities Security Code (ISPS Code) as issued by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The ISPS Code is a complete set of measures to enhance the security of ships and port facilities, developed in response to the perceived threats to ships and port facilities. All ships above 500GT, ports and offshore rigs must comply with the legislation in addition to any other national maritime laws and regulations.The EU has taken the ISPS Code and without modification of the core legislation extended mandatory compliance beyond the requirements of the code.
Military
The military is currently not required to comply with the ISPS Code as it is deemed to exceed the requirements. The military does, however, have to follow regulations and procedures for security and by comparison will have to fulfil many of the requirements of the Code.
If a ship does not have a valid certificate pertaining to the Code then it may be detained in port, and the port state has various other options available in such circumstances. It may expel the ship from port, refuse it entry into the port or curtail its operations. In effect, the measures have been designed to ensure that those ships which do not have certificates find themselves out of the market in the shortest possible time.
The consequences of initially failing to comply or not maintaining continuous compliance with IMO's measures to enhance maritime security will be serious and far reaching.
HMS maritime experts are able to guide, assist and advise commercial and military clients to ensure their security measures meet the requirements of the current legislation.
For further information please contact our Maritime Consultants, click here.