Operations Vocabulary
Shipping Terms
Complete maritime shipping vocabulary reference with searchable terms used in operations, compliance, and port logistics.
Showing 25 of 392 terms
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| HELM | A tiller or a wheel generally installed on the bridge or wheelhouse of a ship to turn the rudder during manoeuvering and navigation. It is in fact the steering wheel of the ship. |
| HIRE | T/C remuneration |
| HOISTING ROPE | Special flexible wire rope for lifting purposes, generally being of six strands with 19 wires in each strand and in most cases having a hemp rope at the center. |
| HOLD | A general name for the spaces below the main deck designated for stowage of general cargo. A hold on a tanker is usually just forward of #1 cargo tank. Some newer tankers have no hold. |
| HOVERCRAFT | A vessel used for the transportation of passengers and cargo riding on a cushion of air formed under it. It is very maneuverable and is also amphibious. |
| HULL | Shell or body of a ship. |
| HYDROFOIL | A craft more or less similar to the Hovercraft insofar as it flies over water and thus eliminates friction between the water and the hull. Under acceleration it rises above water but remains in contact with the surface through supporting legs. |
| ILO | International Labor Organization; Based in Geneva, it is one of the oldest components of the UN system of specialized agencies and has been involved over the years in appraising and seeking to improve and regulate conditions for seafarers. In its unusual tripartite way, involving official representatives of government, employer and employee interests, its joint Maritime Commission have had in hand moves on the employment of foreign seafarers to urge the application of minimum labor standards, on crew accommodation, accident prevention, medical examination and medical care, food and catering and officers competency. |
| IMDG | International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code |
| IMF | International Monetary Fund. |
| IMO | International Maritime Organization: Formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO), was established in 1958 through the United Nations to coordinate international maritime safety and related practices. |
| INERT GAS SYSTEM | A system of preventing any explosion in the cargo tanks of a tanker by replacing the cargo, as it is pumped out, by an inert gas, often the exhaust of the ship's engine. Gas-freeing must be carried out subsequently if worker have to enter the empty tanks. |
| INFLAMMABLE LIQUIDS | Liquids liable to spontaneous combustion which give off inflammable vapors at or below 80 degrees F. For example, ether, ethyl, benzine, gasoline, paints, enamels, carbon disulfide, etc. |
| INLAND WATERS | Term referring to lakes, streams, rivers, canals, waterways, inlets, bays and the like. |
| INMARSAT | International Maritime Satellite System. |
| INTEGRATED TUG BARGE | A large barge of about 600 feet and 22,000 tons cargo capacity, integrated from the rear on to the bow of a tug purposely constructed to push the barge. |
| INTERCOASTAL | Domestic shipping routes serving more than one coast. |
| INTERMODALISM | The concept of transportation as a door-to-door service rather than port-to-port. Thus efficiency is enhanced by having a single carrier coordinating the movement and documentation among different modes of transportation. |
| INTERNATIONAL LOAD LINE CERTIFICATE | A certificate which gives details of a ship's freeboards and states that the ship has been surveyed and the appropriate load lines marked on her sides. This certificate is issued by a classification society or the Coast Guard. |
| INTERNATIONAL OIL POLLUTION COMPENSATION FUND | An inter-governmental agency designed to pay compensation for oil pollution damage, exceeding the shipowner's liability. It was created by an IMO Convention in 1971 and started its operations in October 1978. Contributions come mainly from the oil companies of member states. |
| INTERNATIONAL TONNAGE CERTIFICATE | A certificate issued to a shipowner by a government department in the case of a ship whose gross and net tonnages have been determined in accordance with the International Convention of Tonnage Measurement of Ships. The certificate states the gross and net tonnages together with details of the spaces attributed to each. |
| INTERNATIONAL WATERWAYS | Consist of international straits, inland and interocean canals and rivers where they separate the territories of two or more nations. Provided no treaty is enforced both merchant ships and warships have the right of free and unrestricted navigation through these waterways. |
| INTERTANKO | An association of independent tanker owners whose aims are to represent the views of its members internationally. |
| INTRACOASTAL | Domestic shipping routes along a single coast |
| ITF | International Transport Workers Federation (Trade Unions) |