HumanReported inspection question
QUESTION 2.4.1
Onboard defect reporting and shore tracking
Oil, Chemical, LPG, LNGDocumentation, Chief Engineer's Office, Anywhere
What is being checked
The inspector is checking whether officers recognise and report defects affecting structure, machinery and equipment, whether shore management acknowledges and assesses them and whether each defect remains controlled and traceable until effective closure.
Ready onboard
0/7 completePractice questions
Answer aloud, then open the preparation point.
1Show the most operationally significant open defect.
Explain failure date, consequence, risk control, notifications, repair plan, target date and continuing verification.
2When does a PMS job also require a defect report?
Use the company threshold: failure, degraded safety function, statutory or class impact, operational restriction or shore-management attention should not disappear inside routine maintenance.
3How are defects found by SIRE, PSC or internal audit entered?
Cross-reference the external finding to the defect or non-conformity system and maintain one consistent closure trail.
4Who can close a defect?
Identify vessel completion authority and required shore acknowledgement or verification under the procedure.
5How is recurrence detected?
Review equipment history, repeat symptoms, cause analysis and fleet alerts rather than treating each work order separately.
Where an observation may arise
UNREPORTED DEFECT
A visible or known reportable defect is absent from the system.
NO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Shore management has not acknowledged or evaluated a material defect.
WEAK CONTROL
An open defect lacks risk assessment, interim control, responsible person or target date.
FALSE CLOSURE
The record is closed without repair evidence, test result or required verification.
FRAGMENTED RECORD
PMS, audit, incident and defect records describe the same failure inconsistently.
REPEAT FAILURE
Recurring defects are repeatedly repaired without cause analysis.
Past observations for practice
Human
OP had not included damage to lifeboat water sprinkler line and lifeboat handrail in the defect list.
Human
The fixed tank radar COT 1P was out of order and was not reported in the defect list.
Human
One defective light located in christmas tree was not reported in the defect list.
Master's practical note
Walk one deck and one machinery area before reviewing the defect list. The decisive test is whether what is visibly degraded onboard already exists in the formal reporting system.
Questions reported during inspections
Anonymised user reports, not official OCIMF questions or a prediction of what an inspector will ask.
Equipment boundary and references
Equipment boundary: Not every minor maintenance item requires the same defect process. Apply company thresholds, but statutory, class, safety-critical or operationally limiting failures require transparent escalation.
References
- OCIMF SIRE 2.0 Question Library Part 1, Version 1.0, Question 2.4.1
- ISM Code sections 9 and 10
- IACS Recommendation No. 2001, Guide to Managing Maintenance in Accordance with the ISM Code
- IACS, Classification Societies - What, Why and How?
Last reviewed: 2026-09-09
