Ship sale and purchase negotiations move quickly. Owners present clean certificate records, satisfactory class status, and maintenance histories that look credible on paper. Brokers are motivated to close. Buyers under commercial pressure to secure tonnage can find themselves signing a Memorandum of Agreement with limited technical information about what they are actually acquiring.
The pre-purchase survey exists to fill that information gap — independently, before money changes hands. At Green Ship Technologies, our surveyors approach every pre-purchase inspection as if they were buying the vessel themselves: systematically, sceptically, and with specific attention to the deficiencies that sellers reliably omit from disclosure.
What a Pre-Purchase Survey Covers in Practice
Hull Structure and Steel Condition
Ultrasonic thickness gauging at representative locations across the hull plating, frames, and structural members is the core of any hull survey. We compare measured thicknesses against the vessel's original scantlings and the class society's allowable diminution limits. Areas with significant wastage — particularly internal tank surfaces, void spaces, and horizontal structure prone to water retention — are gauged more extensively. We document findings photographically and produce a thickness report that buyers can use in price negotiations or to plan steel renewal in the first dry-dock.
Main Engine and Auxiliary Machinery
Running hours, crankshaft deflection readings, cylinder pressure records, and the last overhaul dates for main engine components tell us more about engine condition than a sea trial alone. We review the engineer's log, examine turbocharger condition, check the fuel and lube oil analysis records, and verify that planned maintenance is current. Generators, steering gear, bilge and ballast pumps, and cargo handling equipment are also tested and inspected.
Class Status and Outstanding Conditions
A vessel's class extract is not the same as its true class status. Recommendations, conditions of class, and memoranda can represent significant deferred expenditure that does not appear in the headline class status. We obtain and review the full class history report, identify any outstanding items, and assess their cost and urgency. A vessel approaching a Special Survey with known structural issues may require dry-docking and substantial steel renewal — expenditure that the buyer needs to price into their offer.
The Deficiencies That Sellers Reliably Do Not Disclose
- Temporary cosmetic repairs to internal tank coatings covering active corrosion underneath
- Main engine or generator running hours reset or under-reported in maintenance logs
- Class conditions accepted by the previous flag state that are not visible in a standard class extract
- Cargo hold or tank hatch cover seal deterioration causing water ingress — a major issue for bulk carriers
- Crew accommodation systems (air conditioning, hot water, sanitation) in disrepair — creating MLC exposure for the new owner
- Outstanding PSC deficiency notices that have been "cleared" on paper but not physically rectified
Dry-Dock Survey: When It Is Worth Insisting On
For vessels over 15 years of age, or where the last dry-docking was more than 18 months ago, we recommend insisting on an underwater inspection as part of the pre-purchase process. Propeller blade condition, rudder pintle wear, sea chest and anti-fouling coating condition, and underwater hull plating that cannot be accessed afloat can conceal significant repair costs. Some sellers will resist dry-docking as a condition of inspection — that resistance itself is worth noting.
Green Ship Technologies conducts pre-purchase surveys independently of brokers, sellers, and classification societies. Our surveyors' sole obligation is to the buyer — and our reports are written to say clearly what we found, not to smooth the path to a transaction.
Using the Survey Report in Negotiations
A thorough survey report is a negotiating document as much as a technical one. Identified deficiencies can support a price reduction request, a requirement for specific repairs before delivery, or a buyer's decision to walk away from a vessel that looks acceptable on paper but is not at the price being asked. We are available to advise buyers on how to present survey findings in negotiations and what remediation costs are realistic for deficiencies identified.
