2008
LOOKING AHEAD
The year got off to a busy start with damaged cargo survey to refined sugar in Montenegro over the New Year. Followed shortly after by a Port Captaincy job in Brazil for a chartered vessel loading cargo of bagged refined sugar for West Africa. Towage warranty survey undertaken for a vessel with a lost rudder, together with many other not so exotic surveys, filled the first quarter of the calender year.

2007
Grain cargo claims in the Yemen and India, together with the catastrophic failiure of four out of four cranes on a ship built in 2002, provided a diverse international flavour to the year. Arbitration (CP Disputes) and High Court Hearings (Personal Injury) kept the UK based aspects our work busy.

2006
THE CURATE'S EGG OF A YEAR
A ship taking 9 months to travel from Brazil to the North African coast with a cargo of bagged
sugar. Discharged at a Mediterranean port under survey. It's not often you find a purpose built paddling pool in every hold.

Experience gained as an augmentee in the Defence Transport Movement Agency added to the knowledge set of our staff.

A mixture of other cases:

Christmas and into the New Year, surveying 66,000 tonnes of Canadian Wheat rejected in North West India as mouldy. Cargo eventually accepted for discharge.

2005
THE YEAR 2005 HAS BEEN MOST 'INTERESTING', NOT TOTALLY IN THE CHINESE INTERPRETATION OF THE WORD...

Our Associates have undertaken many surveys on containerised cargoes, throughout the year. Refrigerated cargoes have ranged from meat, through lychees and mangoes, to tree ferns.
Non-refrigerated container cargoes have included bulk rice, reels of paper and machinery.

Bulk carrier cargo surveys: have been undertaken in various ports in Africa and the Middle
East and several earlier cases now form the subject of arbitrations.

Air and road freighted consignments: have included high value lead shielding windows for nuclear facilities, USD 2 Million of stolen molybdenum and mouldy roses for Mother's Day.

International investigation work; into thefts: from air, road and sea haulage involving values in excess of USD 3 Million featured high during the year, with a marked success in identifying the culprits for the authorities to deal with.

Personal accident work for solicitors: in the UK courts has been varied but in the main
involved around work boat incidents and high speed leisure craft.

The pure maritime 'heavy metal' work: has been slow but steady; involving stevedore
damage claims, both physical surveys and arbitration disputes. We have undertaken a number
of On and Off Hire surveys, together with bunker oil surveys throughout the year.

Not a good year; due to the recession in the survey industry, but hopefully signs of
improvements to come!