Chapter III of the International
Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 (hereinafter referred
to as “the Convention”) was amended in 1983 by the Maritime
Safety Committee by resolution MSC.6(48) to improve the standards
of safety provided by life-saving appliances and arrangements on cargo
ships and passenger ships, to make special provisions for certain
types of cargo ships and to incorporate in the Convention life-saving
appliances and arrangements which had been developed and accepted
by Contracting Governments to the Convention (hereinafter referred
to as “Contracting Governments”) since 1974.
It is recognized that the design and introduction of prototypes
of improved novel life-saving appliances and arrangements is desirable
and should be encouraged.
Prototype life-saving appliances and arrangements meeting
the requirements of chapter III of
the Convention, as amended, should be evaluated and tested in accordance
with the Recommendation on Testing of Life-Saving Appliances.footnote
Prototype life-saving appliances and arrangements not meeting
all the requirements of chapter III of
the Convention, as amended, should be evaluated and tested to ensure
that such appliances and arrangements at least comply with the provisions
of this Code of Practice before being accepted by a Contracting Government.
Subsequently, provisions for such life-saving appliances and arrangements
could be incorporated in chapter III, through the amendment procedure
prescribed in the Convention.
A Contracting Government proposing novel life-saving appliances
and arrangements for adoption in accordance with the amendment procedure
should submit full details of such appliances and arrangements and
the results of prototype tests to the Organization to indicate that
they comply with the requirements of this Code of Practice and in
particular:
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.1 provide all the functions of, and are equally
effective as, the life-saving appliances and arrangements intended
to be replaced; and
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.2 do not affect the proper operation of any other
life-saving appliance or arrangement installed on the ship.
Nothing in this Code shall be construed as derogating from
or extending the rights of Administrations under regulation I/5 of the 1974 SOLAS Convention
to allow the fitting or carriage of any prototype novel life-saving
appliance or arrangement.