ABS

Christopher Wiernicki

ABS is one of the world’s largest classifi cation societies, with thousands of employees worldwide driven by a mission to promote the security of life and property and preserve the natural environment. A founding member of IACS, the organization serves both the global marine and offshore sectors. ABS offers technical support during the design, construction and operation of commercial marine assets, providing the tools and services that can extend their operational lifecycles. The strong global safety record of the ABS-classed fl eet illustrates the group’s commitment to protecting people; as an organization, consistently setting industry benchmarks for class safety. Globally, ABS says it continues to develop the innovative products and services that safely address the key challenges associated with digitization and connectivity, cyber-security, performance optimization, reducing operating costs, and environmental compliance.

For the U.S.-based brown-water fl eet, the past several years saw the implementation of the most comprehensive safety and environmental legislation in the sector’s history, the U.S. Coast Guard’s (USCG) Subchapter M regulations. ABS has been at the forefront of independent technical support for that important regulatory rollout, with oversight of about a third of the vessels affected by Sub M. In fact, the fi rst vessel owners to receive USCG COI’s demonstrating SubM compliance, on all three U.S. coasts were ABS clients. ABS has been contracted to verify the Sub-M compliance of more than 2,200 vessels since the start of that important regulatory rollout.