Leading classification society, the Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), recently celebrated the opening of its Bangladesh office with an inauguration event.
The event, held at Hotel Agrabad, was attended by members of the regional shipping fraternity including shipping companies, shipyards, ship recycling units, ship design companies, flag administration and various service suppliers. Representatives from the Indian High Commission were also present to grace the occasion. IRClass now has an office in Dhaka and representative office in Chittagong with both offices having qualified local surveyors to provide value added services to Bangladesh based clients.
In his opening address, Mr. Amit Bhatnagar, Senior Principal Surveyor & Vice President, IRClass, extolled the close relationship between classification societies and the industry. “IRClass will continue to work closely with the industry to help our clients develop practical and cost-effective solutions that meet their requirements”, said Mr. Bhatnagar. “We are excited to be a part of the vibrant maritime ecosystem in Bangladesh and we look forward to forging new relationships and renewing existing ones. We also look forward to working with ship recycling yards that have approached IRClass for certification under the Hong Kong Convention.”
Mr Bhatnagar’s views were echoed by eminent industry stalwarts including Mr. Shakhawat Hossain, Former MD, Western Marine Shipyard, who urged the local industry to work closely with classification societies for quality and cost-effective outcomes as he shared anecdotes of his project collaborations with IRClass. Capt. Muhammad Anam Chowdhury, an esteemed maritime personality in Bangladesh, opined that IRClass’ presence in Bangladesh will bring about more opportunities for knowledge-sharing and long-term growth for the local industry.
Prior to the office inauguration, IRClass delivered a guest lecture at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Dhaka. Mr. S Ranganathan, Head – Plan Approval Centre, IRClass, delivered a lecture on plan approval process to budding naval architects and representatives from ship design houses. He also unveiled IRHULL software, which is an excellent tool to self-verify the prepared hull plans and can be downloaded free of cost from IRClass website.