Mini-Forum on Ship Repair in Tuzla, Turkey

Kalimbassieris holds second annual Mini-Forum on Ship Repair in Tuzla, Turkey 25-27 May and 1-3 June 2010

Kalimbassieris Maritime hosted its second annual mini-forum on ship repair in Tuzla, Turkey from 25-27 May and 1-3 June. The event brings together international insurance claims executives and provides an opportunity for them to don a hard hat and board vessels in dry-dock to see damage repairs up close. The visits provide an insight into the operation of a ship repair yard, with the chance to view facilities, see repair work in progress and hear from key yard personnel on how they manage logistics, quoting etc. There is also a strong emphasis on technical and practical issues related to ship repair, with input from Kalimbassieris surveyors and yard project managers.

The mini-forum provides an opportunity for members of the major international insurance markets to gather to discuss and debate issues related to ship repair, claims handling and the different approaches in the various markets. This year Charlotte Warr of Sarnia Training presided over the forum session, running a discussion on the use of tendering across the markets and the appetite of insurance claims executives and brokers to become involved/proactive in the claims process.

The technical and practical aspects are tied together in presentations at the beginning and close of the event. Sasha Dobra of Kalimbassieris gave presentations this year on demand and pricing at Tuzla shipyards and how technical issues seen during the yard visits, such as prefabrication, dry-docking procedures etc can have an impact upon handling of a claim.

Christina Kalimbassiers, Managing Director of Kalimbassieris Maritime says “The objective of the mini-forum is to give a practical, ‘hands on’ view of the mechanics and business model of a shipyard. We deal with the practical issues around handling repairs in yards every day, and we have found over the years that there is great value in making the realities of this come alive for the insurance community.

“Our goal is to share our insights and experience so that claims handlers can make informed choices around how they deal with the issues that they face. The feedback we get is that actually visiting a yard and seeing first hand how things work makes the theoretical come powerfully to life.”

One attendee from the London market wrote this year: "The knowledge I've gained will be invaluable to me back in the office and it was very informative to understand how markets other than London function." The event draws claims people from a wide range of experience - some will have had years of experience at sea and dealing with marine claims, whilst for others this will be their first time stepping onboard a vessel in dry-dock. The programme is designed to offer information for all levels of experience and also to allow participants to draw on each other's knowledge and expertise.

For further information on the mini-forum on ship repair in Tuzla, Turkey please contact Sasha Dobra at s.dobra@kalimbassieris.com or by telephone at +30 210 4294444.