Circular Letter
MSC/Circ.1114

GUIDELINES FOR PERIODIC TESTING OF IMMERSION SUIT AND ANTI-EXPOSURE SUIT SEAMS AND CLOSURES

(25 May 2004)

1. The Maritime Safety Committee, at its seventy-eighth session (12 to 21 May 2004), recognizing that shipboard inspections of immersion suits and anti-exposure suits carried out in accordance with SOLAS regulation III/20.7 and MSC/Circ.1047 may not be adequate to detect deterioration of seams and closures of the suits due to adhesive ageing, and having considered the recommendation made by the Sub-Committee on Ship Design and Equipment at its forty-sixth session, approved the Guidelines for periodic testing of immersion suit and anti-exposure suit seams and closures, as set out in the annex.

2. Member Governments are invited to bring the annexed Guidelines to the attention of all parties concerned.

ANNEX.

GUIDELINES FOR PERIODIC TESTING OF IMMERSION SUIT AND ANTI-EXPOSURE SUIT SEAMS AND CLOSURES

1. Research performed by several Member Governments has demonstrated that the seams and closures of immersion suits and anti-exposure suits experience deterioration over time. The rate and severity of deterioration may vary widely, depending upon the specific components and procedures employed in the manufacture of the suit and the conditions under which the suit is stored. However, even under ideal conditions, the materials and adhesives used have a finite service life and will inevitably experience a reduction in strength and/or loss of watertightness with age.

2. The Guidelines for monthly shipboard inspection of immersion suits and anti-exposure suits (MSC/Circ.1047) are very helpful in identifying obvious problems with a suit, but do not adequately address deterioration of seams and closures (zippers, etc.) which may not be readily apparent by visual inspection. Such deterioration can be detected by pressurization of the suit with air, and testing of the seams and closures for leaks with a soapy water solution.