A spokesman for RINA said, 'Coatings are a major issue for ship owners today. They want and need higher standards of coatings to maintain their ships in the correct condition, and it is part of our role as class to provide them with a verifiable platform to ensure that their staff, and the yard staff who work on their ships, fully understand how best to manage coating application and inspection. We are very pleased to join forces with Bodycote, which has a worldwide network of testing laboratories and many years of experience in the field of coatings testing and inspection. We will contribute our skills in training, verification and assessment, ensuring that our clients get training and certification with the highest technical standards and a consistent high standard everywhere in the world.'

The first courses will be launched in Korea in January 2008, with further courses in China beginning in March. Thereafter courses will be run world wide, as part of RINA’s services to owners that go beyond classification.

The first coating testing facility approved in accordance with IMO PSPC requirements and IACS PR34 has been established in the Bodycote Laboratory in Manchester, UK and further facilities worldwide are planned in the coming months.

RINA has taken a lead on coatings, and its UK manager, Andy Alderson, has chaired the IACS & Industry working groups on coatings as well as working closely with IMO.