ORIENT Class receives renewed Marina accreditation

ORIENT Register of Shipping, Inc. (ORIENT Class) has obtained the Certificate of Accreditation for the Classification of Ships in the Domestic Trade issued by the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina).

Manuel A. Tiuseco, president of ORIENT Class said the renewed accreditation enables them to continue the task of ensuring the safety of the domestic ships they classed.

“For the year 2021, we would like to see ourselves in the forefront to support the mandate of Marina in ensuring the safety of the domestic shipping fleet because advocating safety is not only our desire but our passion,” Tiuseco said.

In 2000, Tiuseco founded the ORIENT Class, the leading local classification society in terms of the total number and the total gross tonnage of ships classed. The local classification society has more than 20 maritime surveyors and technical experts.

“The year 2020 has provided us with great visibility to be able to see more clearly and has extolled the positive effect of collaboration with other reputable organizations that will be our strategic partners in our advocacy of safety in the domestic shipping industry,” he said.

Recently, ORIENT Class has been joined by the Integrated Seafarers of the Philippines (ISP) and the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association, Inc. (PMMAAAI) to ensure the availability of technical working teams in the classification and technical advisory services to the shipping industry.

ORIENT Class, ISP, and PMMAAAI support the Maritime Industry Development Program (MIDP) of MARINA Administrator Vice-Admiral Robert A. Empedrad, who is respected by most stakeholders for his commitment and resolute in the desire to further develop the country’s maritime industry.

ISP President Capt. Jess Morales, one of the board of trustees of ORIENT Class said ISP members have invested in shipbuilding and ship repair (SBSR) facility, the IMP Shipyard and Port Services in Leyte. “Ship classification is a vital component in ensuring that ships being built and repaired in the shipyard comply with the international and national standards of the design and construction of ships to ascertain the safety of lives and property at sea,” he said.

Morales said ORIENT Class is now collaborating with one of the member classification societies of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) for the development and improvement of classification rules, with the ongoing construction of the SBSR facility in Albuera, Leyte.

PMMAAAI President Chief Engineer Chito Majabague, also one of the board of trustees at ORIENT Class said a classification society is the best “indirect” technical consultancy services for the shipowners.

“In conducting a survey and whenever there is a deficiency or breakdown, the classification surveyors would provide the best advice as to how the ship can be restored into an efficient and good operational condition,” Majabague said.

The partnership with ISP and PMMAAAI will bolster the capability and capacity of ORIENT Class and will enhance the standards in domestic shipping while adopting the local condition and being compliant with the desire of the shipowners or ship managers.

Classification of ships automatically ensures good upkeep and maintenance, particularly in the Philippines where the shipping fleet is mostly aged. The ship undergoes mandatory annual inspection of every part and component, machinery, and equipment.