Staff
Profile
 |
Chris
(right) and Raj (left) with
Arthur C. Sparks
(author of
'Steel Preshipment Surveys'
and 'Steel
Carriage by Sea'). |
An extremely experienced and dedicated Marine Cargo Surveyor since 1980,
Chris commenced his surveying career with Tech-Mar Marine Services Pte
Ltd (formerly known as Tech-Mar Consultants & Surveyors) and carried
out cargo surveys for a diversified number of Cargo Underwriters, P&I
Clubs, Insurance Agents, Brokers and lawyers.
Having attained a Diploma from the Australian Insurance Institute, Chris'
career not only involved surveying but also included Management of the
Insurance / Cargo Division in 1994 with the merger of Tech-Mar Marine
Services and OMIC (S) Pte Ltd.
Chris later joined Seawise Maritime Services (Pte) Ltd in 1997, undertaking
pre-loading, discharge, outturn surveys of various steel cargoes, G.P.
/ reefer containers and transhipment cargo.
In 1998, he joined Insight Marine Services Pte Ltd as Manager before
moving on to establish CJA Marine Services Pte Ltd a year later.
His extensive career has invariably brought about a plethora of expertise
gained through his experiences as well as his extensive travels to Malaysia,
Indonesia, The Philippines and Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Chris' specialised fields of competency includes:-
 |
Pre-shipment
inspections of heavy equipment; |
|
On-hire & off-hire surveys of various types of cranes,
machinery and heavy lift equipment; |
|
Surveys of an investigative nature, i.e. tracing missing
cargo and looking into the cause of the loss and/or
damage. |
Membership in Professional Societies
Chris is an Affiliate of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of
Insurance and Finance.
SOME INTERESTING
EXPERIENCES:
Cargo survey
on board the vessel "ARAL" at Chongjin and
Pyongyang, Democratic People's Republic of Korea
Chris was privileged to have represented the World Food Programme based
in Rome, Italy to ascertain the nature, cause and extent of damage to
the cargo of yellow corn in bulk, worth approximately USD 400,000.00 which
was found wet prior to discharge.
Before Chris could proceed with the investigation, he had to overcome
the socio-political problems inherent within the country. Due to the bureaucracy
involved, it took three weeks to process the visa for entry into the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea, by which time, the subject vessel had completed
part discharge in Pyongyang and bound for Chongjin around the Korean Peninsular.
The only possible mode of travel for foreigners was via train to Chongjin
since this was the only route and mode of travel permitted by the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea. However, due to the urgency of the situation
and with the aid of a translator as a companion, Chris had managed, albeit
with great difficulty, to earn the distinction of possibly being the first
foreigner to be granted permission to travel completely cross-country
from Pyongyang to Chongjin. The entire journey via land on a land rover
took two days with winter temperature of -15°C.
However, Chris' travel unfortunately did not end there. As there was
doubt and dispute over the subject cargo's quality, in particular, whether
it was fit for human consumption, part of the cargo was distributed and
trucked out to the stores and farms in various parts of Nampo and Pyongyang.
As a result, Chris was faced with the laborious task of obtaining samplings
of the subject cargo for analysis from about 20 various animal farms.
Reefer cargo survey of frozen fish from the vessel
"AKADEMIKIS HOHLOVS" at Navotas, Metro Manila,
Philippines
This was yet another challenging task undertaken by Chris. The consignees
had alleged that the consignment of frozen fish, estimated to be worth
USD 350,000.00, were unfit for human consumption upon discharge and that
the carrier should be held responsible for the loss / damaged shipment.
Since the subject cargo had already been discharged and trucked out to
the consignee's cold store, Chris' survey was more of an investigative
nature. This involved careful scrutiny of the stowage plan, physical defects
of both cargo and ambient temperature, handling procedures, temperature
charts, data logs, analysis results of the samplings taken and several
interviews with various parties involved.
Chris' investigations revealed that the vessel had maintained the required
carrying temperature throughout the voyage and that the unsatisfactory
condition of the consignment was of a pre-loading nature.
As a result of Chris' thorough investigations, the consignees were advised
to refer their claim to their supplier / shipper and the carriers were
spared of a hefty claim from the consignees.
An extremely resourceful and seasoned surveyor, Rajesh commenced his
career in the marine industry as a Deck Officer with Neptune Shipping
Management Pte Ltd back in 1989 having served on board foreign-going containers
and general cargo vessels as well as product tankers.
He attained his Diploma in Nautical Studies from Singapore Polytechnic
and achieved his Certificate in Competency (Deck Officer) Class 3, together
with Chief Mate Home Trade & Dangerous Cargo Endorsement.
An avid believer that the attainment of knowledge and opportunities for
self-improvement is infinite, he recently added to his academic credentials
by achieving a Diploma in Marine Surveying with Merit awarded by North
West Kent College (UK), which is an Associate College of the University
of Greenwich (UK), in conjunction with the International Institute of
Marine Surveyors (IIMS) as well as the National Sea Training Centre (UK).
Rajesh joined Wisdom Alpha & Associates as a Marine Surveyor in 1995
whereby his duties included general and container damage surveys. In addition,
he has carried out bunker transfer operations on behalf of Det Norske
Veritas (DNV) to ensure full compliance with DNV and Singapore Standard
Bunkering Procedures.
In 1996, he joined Vine Gordon & Union Inspection, Singapore, a division
of Relugas Plc as a Cargo / Marine Surveyor which assisted him in advancing
his knowledge and expertise. Amongst the wide-ranging and numerous duties,
expertise as well as invaluable exposure was mainly gained in the following
areas:-
| The carrying
out of offshore valuation surveys; |
|
Towage inspections & operations; |
|
P&I Club surveys; |
|
On/off hire barge surveys; |
|
General & refrigerated cargo & container damage
inspections; |
|
Pre-discharge hatch surveys of steel cargoes; |
|
Attendance at a major salvage operation to monitor cargo
operations, including subsequent joint surveys and appraisal
(PATRAIKOS II); |
|
Bunker surveys and assistance with cargo/chemical contamination
investigations. |
Rajesh then joined Seawise Maritime Services (Pte) Ltd as a Cargo/Marine
Surveyor for three and a half years before unifying with CJA Marine Services
Pte Ltd.
Membership in Professional Societies
Rajesh is an Associate Member of the International Institute of Marine
Surveyors.
SOME INTERESTING
EXPERIENCES:
Refrigerated Cargoes & Machineries
We are proud to proclaim that Rajesh not only has vast knowledge and
extensive experience in surveying reefer products and machineries whilst
with Vine Gordon - Singapore as well as Seawise Maritime Services (Pte)
Ltd, but is also officially certified by Maersk Sea-Land for the inspection
of reefer containers.
In 1999, he attended a reefer seminar / training course conducted by
Maersk Training Centre at Svendborg, Denmark. Amongst the topics explored
within the course included:-
various aspects
of reefer container / cargo inspection & survey;
commodity inspection;
machinery inspection;
temperature profiles and sensor points;
P&I concerns and liabilities; and
loss control and risk management.
Along with the expertise gained in the inspection of reefer containers,
Rajesh also has extensive knowledge of the hazards and diseases which
affects perishable goods during shipment.
Grounding of Barge "LIMIN IV" in Anambas
Island, South China Sea
During his employment with Seawise Maritime Services (Pte) Ltd, Rajesh
was called upon to represent the interest of two major Underwriters, both
based in USA, to undertake the task of ascertaining the cause, nature
and extent of damage to the cargoes (oil rig equipment & supplies)
laden on board the grounded barge.
What made this particular assignment interesting as well as challenging
was not only the remote location of the island where the casualty had
taken place but the lack of resources and appropriate equipments in order
to carry out the survey itself. Owners of the grounded barge, whom were
Indonesians, were not contactable and the barge did not have any P&I
cover nor were the same insured with any Hull & Machinery insurers.
Due to the absence of salvors, Rajesh had to undertake the task of a
Salvage Master in order to salve the cargoes remaining on board as well
as in the waters. Being quite proficient in Bahasa Indonesia, he relied
on his ingenuity by engaging the local villagers to assist him in recovering
the cargoes on board and in the surrounding waters with whatever tools
and facilities available at hand under his supervision.
The entire assignment lasted for almost a month but Rajesh was gratified
with the rewarding outcome in managing not only to perform the given task
but also in saving more than a total of USD 400,000.00 for both of the
Principals concerned.
Grounding
of "PATRAIKOS II" in Singapore waters
During his employment under Vine Gordon - Singapore, Rajesh attended
on board the "PATRAIKOS II" on behalf of salvors,
Smit International, in order to monitor the cargo condition
during the salvage operation. The entire survey, together
with cargo appraisal along with numerous follow-up and
joint surveys was stretched to almost a year. Cargo
on board was valued in excess of USD 70 million.
