SOLAS Regulation II-1/3-8: Towing and Mooring Equipment
SOLAS II-1/3-8 as amended by MSC.474(102): what each paragraph requires, its phased applicability, and why anchoring falls outside its scope.
SOLAS regulation II-1/3-8 requires ships to be provided with arrangements, equipment and fittings of sufficient safe working load for the safe conduct of towing and mooring operations. It was replaced by resolution MSC.474(102), adopted on 11 November 2020, with the amendments entering into force on 1 January 2024.
The full article will work through the regulation paragraph by paragraph, because its applicability is layered rather than governed by a single threshold. Some paragraphs apply to ships constructed on or after 1 January 2007 with no tonnage floor, the design and selection duty is keyed to ships of 3,000 gross tonnage and above, a further paragraph reaches ships below that figure on a reasonably practicable basis, and the inspection and maintenance duty applies to all ships.
It will also state the scope boundary plainly, since it is a common source of error: the regulation does not mention anchoring, and the anchoring outfit is a classification requirement under IACS UR A1 rather than a SOLAS one. See ship anchoring equipment .