Concentrated Inspection Campaign (CIC) Preparation Checklist

This template is used to prepare a vessel for an announced Concentrated Inspection Campaign by turning the campaign questionnaire into a crew-ready checklist. It helps the team verify each item, collect supporting evidence, and assign a DRI before port state control officers board. The goal is to surface gaps while there is still time to correct them. It is not a generic ship inspection form; it is built around CIC readiness.

Run it whenever a CIC is announced for the vessel’s trading area or flag/port region. Many operators also use it once during the pre-arrival window and again after any corrective actions are completed. If the campaign spans multiple ports, repeat it before each boarding opportunity. The recurrence should match the campaign timeline, not a fixed calendar habit.

The master, chief officer, or designated compliance DRI usually owns the checklist, but the work should be distributed to the crew members who control the evidence. For example, safety equipment checks may sit with deck officers, while records and certificates may sit with the master’s office. The best setup is one owner with clear task types and named verification steps. That keeps the checklist from becoming a vague shared responsibility.

Attach or reference the documents, logs, photos, and certificates that prove each checklist item is satisfied. Use evidence that an inspector can review quickly, such as current certificates, drill records, maintenance logs, and visible condition photos. Avoid attaching unrelated files or long narrative notes that do not map to the checklist item. If a finding is corrected, include the before-and-after proof and the date of the verification step.

An ad-hoc pre-arrival inspection is often informal and depends on whoever remembers what to check. This template is structured around the CIC questionnaire so every announced item is covered, assigned, and verified. It also creates a repeatable record of what was checked, what was missing, and what was fixed. That makes it easier to brief the crew and show readiness consistently across voyages.

The most common mistake is treating the checklist as a document review only and skipping physical verification of equipment or onboard conditions. Another pitfall is combining multiple checks into one item, which makes it hard to answer yes, no, or N/A cleanly. Teams also sometimes mark everything critical, which hides the items that truly affect safety or compliance. Finally, failing to assign a DRI for each item can leave gaps unresolved until the last minute.

Yes, and you should. Keep the campaign questions intact, then add vessel-specific sub-items for cargo type, trading area, or equipment layout. For example, a tanker, bulk carrier, and container vessel may need different evidence references even when the CIC topic is the same. Customization should preserve the original inspection intent while making the checklist usable by your crew.

It works well alongside corrective action tracking, document control, and pre-arrival readiness workflows. You can link each checklist item to a follow-up task, a defect log, or a runbook for closing findings. It also fits a Kanban-style process if you want to limit WIP on open deficiencies before arrival. The useful pattern is one checklist item leading to one clear next action.

Start with one vessel and map the announced CIC questionnaire into the checklist item structure. Have the master or compliance lead run a dry run, then refine wording so each item is independently verifiable and easy to assign. After that, standardize the template across similar vessel classes and keep a version tied to the campaign. A short rollout works best when the crew can see exactly what changed and why.