Intercargo partners on launch of dry bulk management standards organisation

DryBMS was developed by Intercargo and digital maritime platform RightShip, with input from experts and stakeholders across the sector, as an industry tool to raise standards and best practices across safety, security, environmental performance and social welfare in the dry shipping sector. 

The partners said it intends to establish the DBCE to further evolve and disseminate the DryBMS framework.

The Centre will be run by an independent management team and will adopt a governance model convened from shipowners, managers and charterers. Intercargo said DBCE will work independently, entirely separate from its founding organisations.

The board of directors will be chaired alternatively by representatives from the community of shipowners, ship managers and charterers, and includes representatives from RightShip, Intercargo and other stakeholders.

From May 2024, DBCE will maintain a secure portal where shipowners and managers can complete digital self-assessment against the DryBMS framework. Shipowners and managers will then have the optional ability to share the results of their self-assessments with their charterer customers. 

Intercargo chairman Dimitris Fafalios said, “We are collaborating in a scheme that is being developed by the industry and for the industry, which will administer a truly robust standard with the help and expertise of those that the industry relies upon to implement and support it. DBCE’s independence is crucial, ensuring the organisation always works for the benefit of the dry bulk industry as a whole.”

DBCE will establish an independent self-assessment audit verification process for evaluating and verifying actual performance against self-assessments. Independent auditors will be accredit its defined standard, whom companies may engage to perform audits of their self-assessments in their respective ship management offices.

“It is exciting to be part of a such an important endeavour in lifting standards across dry bulk shipping. DBCE is more than just an administrator for the DryBMS standard; it is a catalyst for collaboration and proactive engagement across the sector. This launch can’t come at a more crucial time – shipowners and managers must be given the resources they need to achieve excellence and strive for zero harm” said RightShip chief executive Steen Lund.

The Centre will be led by newly appointed managing director, Ian McLeod, who commented, “I am delighted to be driving this new initiative. The launch of the DBCE is the next step for the industry in going beyond compliance and achieving excellence, with the support of the DryBMS framework. The welfare of crew, protection of the environment, and sustainable operation of assets form the bedrock of this initiative, all of which encourage companies towards better operational practices.