BIMCO has taken the decision to revise and update SHIPMAN 2009 and CREWMAN A and B 2009 – the ship management sector’s “go to” standard agreements.
In recent years, these industry stalwarts have spawned several other standard third-party management agreements such as LAYUPMAN and SUPERMAN. Work has recently begun on another hybrid of SHIPMAN – a management agreement for autonomous ships – AUTOSHIPMAN. There are key management principles and provisions that lie at the heart of all these agreements and it is essential that they remain consistent across the entire suite of BIMCO third-party management agreements.
There have been numerous changes and developments in ship management practice in the 12 years since SHIPMAN was last updated. This has led to an increasing number of additional clauses being added to the agreement along with a growing number of amendments. The revision work will include a review of commonly added clauses and amendments to ensure SHIPMAN and its companion documents continue to provide a comprehensive contractual platform for management services.
BIMCO has many ship management companies of all sizes among its membership and it will be looking to recruit their expertise to assist with developing the new editions alongside shipowner representatives and legal and insurance experts.
BIMCO will welcome industry input once a complete revised draft has been produced. Work is due to start on this project in March.
