A dry-docking programme succeeds when the ship returns to service in a known condition, with required surveys completed and repair evidence available. Finishing individual jobs is only part of that result. Poorly defined scope, late materials and unclear acceptance criteria can create uncertainty even when the vessel leaves the dock on schedule.
Planning should connect the owner, ship, technical manager, classification society, flag requirements and yard. The following checklist helps organise those interfaces. It does not replace vessel-specific engineering or survey instructions. Owners can use it when preparing the scope for ship repair and shore-based maintenance.
1. Establish the docking objectives and constraints
List the statutory and classification surveys due, the condition issues to resolve and the operational improvements being considered. Separate mandatory work from discretionary projects so that priorities remain visible if time or budget changes. Confirm the certification and survey programme directly with the relevant parties rather than relying on an old docking list.
Identify constraints such as vessel dimensions, docking arrangement, cargo residues, access, location and the proposed return-to-service date. Consider how the ship will arrive in a condition suitable for the planned work. Cleaning, gas-freeing, tank entry or waste handling may require significant preparation before the yard can begin.
2. Build a specification that can be priced and verified
Use clear equipment references, drawings, dimensions, material requirements and the observed condition. Describe the required work and the evidence needed at completion. A line item reading only ‘overhaul pump’ leaves room for different assumptions about dismantling, measurements, replacement parts, testing and reinstatement.
Define acceptance before work starts
State the inspection points, measurements, test methods and approval responsibilities relevant to each critical job. Identify work requiring class attendance or specialist support. An acceptance criterion should allow the ship and yard to agree whether the outcome is satisfactory. Avoid postponing that discussion until equipment has been assembled and access removed.
3. Review the ship’s evidence and crew input
Ask the vessel to provide defect histories, operating observations, photographs and measurements. Review recurring failures and temporary repairs alongside the planned maintenance records. Crew knowledge can identify an intermittent condition that a brief yard inspection would miss, but observations should be distinguished from an unverified diagnosis.
Check whether related jobs should be grouped. Opening an area for one repair may provide an opportunity for another required inspection. Equally, adding a convenient project can create interference or an unmanageable workload. Evaluate the benefit against time, safety, access and the ability to supervise the additional scope.
4. Compare yard offers on a common basis
Issue the same controlled specification to suitable yards and clarify exclusions. Compare labour, docking services, utilities, subcontracting, waste handling, testing and possible extras. A low headline price is difficult to interpret when important supporting activities have been omitted or left as undefined rates.
Review capacity, relevant facilities, safety arrangements and the ability to meet the survey programme. Agree how additional work is identified, quoted and authorised. Define commercial and technical approval roles separately where needed. Written change control protects the schedule and helps prevent uncertainty about which repairs have actually been accepted.
5. Secure long-lead materials and specialist attendance
Create a procurement list linked to the specification and required delivery dates. Verify equipment identity, part numbers and compatibility before ordering. Include gaskets, fasteners, consumables and installation materials that are easily overlooked. Identify items requiring certification, preservation or special storage.
Arrange service engineers, riding teams and survey attendance against realistic access dates. Confirm travel and site requirements early. Build contingencies for delayed materials or findings that emerge after opening machinery. A spare delivered to the port may still be unavailable for installation if customs, transport or documentation has not been addressed.
6. Coordinate safety and simultaneous operations
At the yard interface, establish responsibilities for permits, isolations, fire precautions, confined spaces, lifting and emergency response. Ship and yard procedures must work together. Identify who controls each system and how changes in status are communicated across shifts and subcontractors.
Review the work sequence for conflicting activities, such as hot work near coatings or lifting above occupied work areas. Maintain safe access and escape routes as staging changes. The vessel’s crew may be supporting repairs while also maintaining essential services; account for that workload rather than treating them as an unlimited supervision resource.
7. Control progress and additional findings
Use a daily coordination process with a current work list, critical path and decisions required. Track physical progress, inspections, materials and testing separately. A job reported as nearly complete may still depend on an unavailable specialist or a test that could reveal further work.
When additional defects appear, assess technical consequence, statutory implications, cost and schedule together. Obtain required approvals before proceeding, except where immediate action is necessary to make a condition safe. Preserve photographs and measurements of significant findings. Good records make later decisions more reliable than an informal recollection of what was found.
8. Plan commissioning and redelivery as a programme
Allow time for reinstatement, functional testing and integrated checks. Confirm valve positions, guards, alarms, interlocks and temporary connections. Equipment that passes an isolated workshop test may still need verification within the ship’s system. Define who witnesses tests and signs off the outcome.
Compile survey reports, service records, calibration information and updated drawings. Resolve outstanding items or record clear limitations and approved follow-up arrangements. Brief the master and departments on changed equipment and procedures. Sea trials or other operational tests should follow an agreed plan appropriate to the work and statutory requirements.
9. Close the loop after the first operating period
Review the repaired equipment during service and capture warranty or performance issues promptly. Update the planned maintenance system, spare-parts inventory and technical records. Compare the final scope with the original specification to identify lessons for the next docking.
A useful dry-dock record explains the vessel’s condition, not simply what was invoiced. That clarity supports future maintenance and a safer return to routine operations. Explore Lilly Maritime’s repair and maintenance services when defining the supervision and technical support required for your next programme.
