L

Letter of Credit

A slip of e.g. paper or metal attached to an object to indicate the nature, ownership, destination, contents and/or other particulars of the object.

A means of climbing between levels aboard ship; various types (accommodation, pilot, embarkation, vertical) are subject to construction and safety requirements.

See Loaden Vessel

A voyage made with cargo aboard, as opposed to a ballast (empty) voyage.

Insulating material applied around pipes, boilers, and vessels to reduce heat loss, with a protective outer covering.

Ships taken out of active service and laid up, usually because of poor market conditions.

A vessel built for and trading on the Great Lakes, of dimensions suited to the lakes and their locks.

Smooth, orderly fluid flow in parallel layers without mixing, as opposed to turbulent flow; relevant to the flow over the forward part of a hull.

A flaw in rolled steel plate consisting of an internal separation parallel to the surface, detected by ultrasonic testing.

Overland transport between following and/or preceding sea transport of goods and/or containers

Conspicuous features ashore used by mariners to fix position and aid navigation.

A method of measuring the space capacity of Ro/Ro ships whereby each unit of space (Linear Meter) is represented by an area of deck 1.0 meter in length x 2.0 meters in width.

A joint in which one member overlaps another, the two being welded along the edge of the overlap.

To hold goods in position by use of Ropes, Wires, Chains or Straps etc. See Lighter Aboard Ship.

A barge-carrier system in which loaded lighters (barges) are lifted aboard a mother ship for ocean carriage and floated off at destination.

The securing of cargo or equipment with ropes, wires, chains, or straps to prevent movement in a seaway.

A raised athwartship structure on a container ship from which containers stowed on deck are lashed, giving access to higher tiers.

Point on a means of transport to which wires, chains, ropes or straps, which are used to hold goods in position, are attached.

A method of which the assumption is that the most recently received (last in) is the first to be used or sold (first out).

Latitude. The distance north or south of the equator measured and expressed in degrees.

The heat absorbed or released when a substance changes state, such as from liquid to vapour, without a change in temperature.

High-lift stacking truck capable of stacking and retrieving loads ahead and on either or both sides of the driving direction.

Sideways instability of a structural member under load, in which it bows out of its plane.

A water-based dispersion of polymer particles used as a binder in some paints and coatings.

The angular distance of a position on its meridian north or south from the equator, measured in degrees (‘a vessel at 25 degrees north latitude’).

Term coined by Mohanbir Sawhney and Steven Kaplan to describe how vertical and functional markets intersect and partner.

To put a newly built ship into the water for the first time; also a small powered boat.

The equipment used to deploy and retrieve an underwater vehicle, diving bell, or tool from a vessel, controlling it through the splash zone.

The deployment of a ship into the water on completion of building, or of survival craft from a ship.

The davits, falls, and gear used to lower a survival craft to the water in a controlled manner; required and regulated under SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The supporting cradle on which a vessel is held and slides during a launch.

The angle of the ramp from which a free-fall lifeboat is launched, a factor in the boat's certification and safe water entry. IMO-grounded

The length of the ramp down which a free-fall lifeboat slides during launching, affecting its entry into the water.

The number of days allowed in a charter party for the loading and discharging of cargo. Lay days may be indicated in different ways e.g. consecutive days, working days, weather working days.

Temporary cessation of trading of a vessel by the shipowner.

Laycan (Layday Cancelling Date)

The arrangement of spaces, equipment, and systems within the ship or a part of it.

See United Nations Layout Key.

The time allowed under a charter party for loading or discharging the cargo, beyond which demurrage may be payable.

See Less than Container Load.

Lowest Current Rate

The amount of time between the request of a service and the actual provision of this service. A span of time required to perform an activity. In a logistics context, the time between the initiation of a process and its completion.

A pair of navigational marks or lights aligned to indicate a safe line of approach when kept in line (a transit).

The escape of fluid through a defect or imperfect seal.

A gas or dual-fuel engine that burns a fuel-air mixture with excess air, lowering combustion temperature and reducing nitrogen-oxide emissions.

A contract by which one party gives to another party the use of property or equipment, e.g. containers, for a specified time against fixed payments.

The company from which property or equipment is taken on lease.

A contract for the leasing of property or equipment.

The side sheltered from the wind.

The direction away from the wind. Opposite of windward.

The sideways movement of the ship caused by either wind or current.

The defined length of a ship used for regulatory and design purposes, which under several conventions is taken as a percentage of the waterline length or the length between perpendiculars. IMO-grounded

The length of the hull measured along the design waterline, from the forward to the after end of the immersed form.

The greatest length of the ship measured from the foremost to the aftermost point of the hull.

A general reference for identifying cargo in any quantity intended for carriage in a container, where the Carrier is responsible for packing and/or unpacking the container.

A term used if the quantity or volume of one or more consignment(s) does not fill a standard truck. For operational purposes a LCL (Less than full container load) container is considered a container in which multiple consignments or parts thereof are shipped.

The party to whom the possession of specified property has been conveyed for a period of time in return for rental payments.

The party who conveys specified property to another for a period of time in return for the receipt of rent.

A written undertaking by a bank (issuing bank) given to the seller (beneficiary) at the request, and on the instructions of the buyer (applicant) to pay at sight or at a determinable future date up to a stated sum of money, within a prescribed time limit and against stipulated documents.

Load Factor. Percentage of cargo or passengers carries e.g. 4,000 tons carried on a vessel of 10,000 capacity has a load factor of 40%.

Retention of property until outstanding debt is paid. A legal claim upon real or personal property to pay a debt or duty.

Encompasses all costs associated with the product’s life cycle. These include all costs involved in acquisition (research & development, design, production & construction, and phase-in), operation, support and disposal of the product.

The equipment provided to save and preserve life in an emergency, such as lifeboats, liferafts, lifejackets, and lifebuoys; their standards are set by SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The complete arrangement of life-saving appliances and their launching and support equipment provided aboard a ship under SOLAS. IMO-grounded

A rigid survival craft capable of sustaining the lives of persons in distress from the time of abandoning ship; its construction, capacity, and equipment are regulated by SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The davits that hold, swing out, and lower a lifeboat; their design and operation are governed by SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The on-load and off-load release gear by which a lifeboat is disconnected from its falls when launched and reconnected for recovery. Following accidents during drills, SOLAS and associated requirements were tightened to improve the safety and maintenance of these systems. IMO-grounded

The designated deck position from which a lifeboat is boarded and launched.

A buoyant ring thrown to a person in the water to keep them afloat; required numbers, locations, and fittings (lights, lines) are set by SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

A buoyant personal device worn to keep a person afloat with the head clear of the water; required for all persons aboard under SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

An inflatable or rigid survival craft that deploys to carry survivors; its construction, equipment, and stowage (including float-free arrangements) are regulated by SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The survival equipment carried in a liferaft, such as paddles, bailers, signals, and rations, specified by the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

The line connecting a liferaft to the ship that, on a float-free raft, both deploys and inflates it and then releases it as the ship sinks. IMO-grounded

See Last In First Out. See Liner In Free Out

A hatch cover that is lifted clear of its seating and then rolled aside to open the hatch.

Hatch covers in which one panel is lifted and stacked onto an adjacent panel (piggy-back) to open the hatch.

A hatch cover that is lifted off entirely by crane and set aside to open the hatch.

Hatch covers removed completely by crane, rather than rolling or folding, to open the hold.

Vessel of which the loading and discharging operations are carried out by cranes and derricks.

Movable vehicle decks that can be raised or lowered to adjust clear height for different vehicles.

Cranes, derricks, and similar shipboard equipment used to lift and move loads, together with their loose gear. New SOLAS Chapter II-1 requirements adopted by resolution MSC.532(107) set safety standards for the design, construction, installation, maintenance, and operation of lifting appliances and anchor handling winches. IMO-grounded

A rigid beam used in lifting to spread a load between two or more lifting points and control the geometry of the lift.

Crude oil of low density and viscosity, which flows easily and yields a high proportion of light products.

A hole cut in a structural member to reduce weight without unduly reducing strength, also providing access and drainage.

The transfer of cargo from one ship to another, often at anchor, to reduce a vessel's draught so it can enter port; see ship-to-ship transfer.

A barge used to carry cargo between ship and shore or to transfer cargo between ships.

A vessel which carries barges.

The carriage of cargo by lighter, and the charge for it.

The loading condition with the least displacement in which a ship goes to sea, used in stability and strength assessment.

Fixed shore structures showing a powerful light to guide and warn mariners, part of the system of aids to navigation.

The provision of illumination aboard ship, including normal and emergency lighting; emergency lighting of escape routes and key spaces is required by SOLAS. IMO-grounded

The ship complete and ready for service but without cargo, fuel, stores, ballast, crew, or passengers; its weight and centre of gravity are the basis of stability calculations.

The draught of the ship in the lightship condition.

The mass of the ship in the lightship condition, determined by an inclining test or lightweight survey.

A coefficient relating the lightship mass to the ship's principal dimensions, used for estimating in early design.

The weight of the ship complete and ready for service but with no cargo, fuel, water, stores, passengers, or crew on board. It is the fixed baseline from which loaded displacement and deadweight are calculated and is established at the inclining experiment.

Moored vessels showing a light to mark a hazard or channel where a fixed lighthouse is impractical.

Weight of an empty vessel including equipment and outfit, spare parts required by the regulatory bodies, machinery in working condition and liquids in the systems, but excluding liquids in the storage tanks, stores and crew.

A survey to verify a ship's lightship weight and centre of gravity by measuring draughts and accounting for items aboard, often done in place of a full inclining test on a sister ship. IMO-grounded

A small hole in a floor or frame at the bottom of the structure that allows water to drain along to the bilge suction.

See order line.

See Flight Number.

A device that fires a light line to another ship or the shore to establish a connection, for example for rescue or towing; required as life-saving equipment under SOLAS and the LSA Code. IMO-grounded

A mathematical procedure for minimizing or maximizing a linear function of several variables, subject to a finite number of linear restrictions on these variables.

An association of liner shipping companies that agree on rates and conditions on a trade route.

A regular, scheduled cargo or passenger service operating between fixed ports, as opposed to tramp shipping.

A company transporting goods over sea in a regular service.

Condition of carriage denoting that costs for loading and unloading are borne by the carrier subject the custom of the port concerned.

Transport condition denoting that the freight rate is inclusive of the sea carriage and the cost of loading, the latter as per the custom of the port. It excludes the cost of discharging.

The drawing that defines the shape of the hull through its waterlines, buttocks, and sections, the basis for fairing the form and for all naval-architectural calculations.

A movable bridge or ramp ashore that connects to a ro-ro ship's ramp to allow vehicles to drive on and off across the changing tide.

A shaft seal using a flexible lip pressed against the shaft to retain lubricant and exclude water, used in stern tubes and other shaft seals.

The change of a gas into liquid by cooling or compression; also the process by which a solid bulk cargo with moisture can behave like a liquid and shift dangerously, a hazard addressed by the IMSBC Code. IMO-grounded

Natural gas, mainly methane, cooled to about minus 162 degrees Celsius so that it becomes liquid for transport in specialised tankers built to the IGC Code. IMO-grounded

Propane, butane, or their mixtures, liquefied by cooling or pressure for transport in gas carriers built to the IGC Code. IMO-grounded

Cargo carried in liquid form in tanks, such as oil, chemicals, or liquefied gas, governed by MARPOL and the relevant cargo codes. IMO-grounded

Waste liquid chemicals requiring controlled handling and disposal to prevent pollution, addressed under MARPOL. IMO-grounded

A non-destructive test in which a penetrating liquid reveals surface-breaking defects; see dye penetrant testing.

The loading, discharging, and internal transfer of liquids such as cargo, bunkers, and ballast, carried out under controlled procedures to prevent spills.

Volume of transactions. With enough buyers and sellers, a market has conti- nuous bidding, offers, and consummated transactions, and market liquidity is achieved. (See critical mass, network effect.)

A steady transverse inclination of a ship due to an unsymmetrical distribution of weight or to flooding.

A steady transverse inclination of a ship to one side, caused by an off-centre distribution of weight, flooding, or a loss of stability, as distinct from the temporary heel of rolling. A persistent list indicates a condition that must be investigated and corrected.

Lights or indicators showing the ship's angle of list, used during cargo and ballast operations.

Cargo consisting of live animals, such as horses, cows, sheep.

Ships fitted to carry live animals, with pens, ventilation, feeding, watering, and waste systems for the welfare of the animals.

One of the oldest classification societies, which develops rules for the design, construction, and survey of ships and offshore structures and issues class certificates. Classification societies commonly act as recognised organisations performing statutory surveys on behalf of flag States. IMO-grounded

Liquefied Natural Gas

The tank and insulation systems that hold LNG at very low temperature aboard a carrier, of membrane or self-supporting (independent-tank) types built to the IGC Code. IMO-grounded

A ship specially designed to transport liquefied natural gas at about minus 163 degrees Celsius in insulated cargo tanks. Such vessels are governed by the IGC Code, mandatory under SOLAS, which sets construction and equipment standards for ships carrying liquefied gases in bulk. IMO-grounded

A ship designed to carry liquefied natural gas in insulated low-temperature tanks, built to the IGC Code. IMO-grounded

An LNG carrier fitted to regasify its cargo aboard and deliver natural gas ashore through a connection, acting as a floating import terminal.

Length Overall of the vessel

Quantity or nature of what is being carried. This term normally refers to transport by truck

The process of maximising the utilization of the (slot) capacity of vessels and or other means of transport.

SEE PLIMSOLL LINE

The International Convention on Load Lines, which sets the minimum freeboard and related requirements limiting how deeply a ship may be loaded, marked by the load line on the ship's side. IMO-grounded

The marking on a ship's side, including the Plimsoll disc and lines, showing the maximum permitted draughts in different zones and seasons, assigned under the Load Line Convention. IMO-grounded

Vessel where cargo has been put on board. Synonym: Laden Vessel.

Equipment used to load cargo, such as a shiploader at a bulk terminal.

The operation of putting cargo aboard a ship, planned to control stability, trim, and hull stresses.

The approved manual, required under SOLAS and the Load Line Convention, giving the master information on loading the ship safely within stability and strength limits. IMO-grounded

Articulated pipe arms at a terminal that connect to a tanker's manifold to transfer liquid cargo, replacing flexible hoses.

An approved onboard computer that calculates the ship's stability and longitudinal strength for a proposed loading, required for certain ships under SOLAS. IMO-grounded

The loading of a tank from the top, with the inlet discharging above the liquid level, which can generate static electricity and is restricted on tankers for safety. IMO-grounded

The rate at which cargo is loaded, limited so that tank venting, structure, and safety arrangements are not overtaxed.

A loadcalculator designed for a vessel approved by a classification bureau for the calculation of the vessels stability.

The forces and pressures acting on a ship's structure, from cargo, the sea, and operations, which the design must withstand.

The operation of machinery directly at the equipment itself, rather than remotely from a control room.

Fixed fire-protection arrangements covering a specific high-risk area, such as a water-mist or other system protecting around boilers, incinerators, and engines, required under SOLAS. IMO-grounded

Corrosion concentrated at specific spots, such as pitting or grooving, rather than spread evenly, which can cause perforation while overall thickness loss is small.

The position of something aboard or geographically.

An enclosure with gates in a waterway or canal used to raise or lower vessels between water levels; also a securing device.

A compartment, in a shed or on board of a vessel, used as a safekeeping place to stow valuable goods, which can be secured by means of a lock

Lloyds Open Form

The full-size or scaled laying-out of a ship's lines and structural parts to develop accurate shapes for fabrication, now done largely by computer.

An instrument that measures a ship's speed and distance through the water; also a record such as the deck or engine log.

The daily report of all events and other relevant particulars of a vessel and attested by the proper authorities as a true record. Also, a device to measure speed

The official book in which the events, navigation, and operations of the ship are recorded.

The planning, execution and control: • of the movement and placement of people and/or goods • and of the supporting activities related to such movement and placement within a system organized to achieve specific objectives

All successive links involved in the logistic process.

Letter of Indemnity

See Lift-On Lift-Off Vessel.

The angular distance of a position on the equator east or west of the standard Greenwich meridian up to 180o east or west.

A hull-form coefficient relating the underwater volume to the product of the midship section area and the length, indicating how the volume is distributed along the length.

Fore-and-aft structural stiffeners attached to the shell, deck, and bottom plating that contribute to longitudinal strength in a longitudinally framed hull.

A fishing vessel that catches fish using long lines carrying many baited hooks.

Cargo-securing fittings that are not permanently attached, such as twistlocks and lashing rods, used and stowed as needed.

Motor truck used for transport of goods. Note: Motor truck is an American term. British synonym for motor truck is Heavy Goods Vehicle. This British term means any vehicle exceeding 7.5 metric tons maximum laden weight.

An arrangement of angled slats that admits air while excluding rain and spray, used in ventilation openings.

Last Open Water

Describing surface materials that resist the spread of flame across their surface, required for exposed surfaces in accommodation and other spaces under SOLAS. IMO-grounded

The net calorific value of a fuel, the heat released by combustion excluding the heat that would be recovered by condensing the water vapour produced.

Engine combustion techniques that reduce the formation of nitrogen oxides, helping to meet the limits of MARPOL Annex VI. IMO-grounded

Fire-fighting foam of low expansion ratio that flows readily over a liquid surface to form a sealing blanket, used for tank-deck and spill fires.

A hydraulic drive operating at relatively low pressure.

A large two-stroke diesel engine running at low rotational speed, coupled directly to the propeller, the dominant main engine for large merchant ships for its efficiency.

The lowest concentration of a flammable vapour in air that will ignite; below it the mixture is too lean to burn, a key value in tanker gas control. IMO-grounded

A ship designed to carry liquefied petroleum gas in bulk under pressure or refrigeration, built to the IGC Code. IMO-grounded

A SOLAS system requiring certain ships to automatically transmit their identity and position at intervals to their flag State, enabling long-range tracking for security, search and rescue, and marine environment protection. It differs from AIS in being a closed, reported data system rather than a broadcast. IMO-grounded

Lumpsum Freight. Money paid to Shipper for a charter of a ship (or portion) up to stated limit irrespective of quantity of cargo.

Lashed Secured Dunnaged

Long Ton = 1,016.05 kilogram (2,240 lbs)

Liner Terms Hook/Hook

See Less than truck load

Oil used to reduce friction and wear between moving parts and to cool, clean, and protect them.

The supply of a lubricant between moving surfaces to reduce friction, wear, and heat.

A proprietary low-friction pad used in launching or sliding arrangements.

To bring a sailing vessel's head closer to the wind; more generally, to alter course toward the wind.

A crane with which the load can be moved to or from the crane horizontally.

Travellers’ baggage, suitcases, boxes etc., normally accompanied by a passenger.

A ship designed or fitted to carry timber and packaged lumber, including substantial deck cargoes secured under the timber deck cargo code. IMO-grounded

A complete light fitting, including the lamp and its housing and controls.

The measured brightness of a surface as perceived, important in the design of displays and lighting.

An agreed sum of money, which is paid in full settlement at one time. This term is often used in connection with charter parties.

A voyage charter whereby the shipowner agrees to place the whole or a part of the vessel’s capacity at the charterer’s disposal for which a lump-sum freight is being paid.

Laycan (Layday Cancelling Date)