When transporting cargo on a vessel, draft surveys are conducted to ensure optimized trading of commodities. Surveyors utilize draft surveys to measure draft marks before and after the loading or unloading of shipments. By calculating the displacement of water against the marker and its resulting difference, this concludes the total weight of the cargo. During this process, however, several key factors must be considered, including how sea conditions (such as pitch and swell) can affect the accuracy of this calculation.
To mitigate the risk of discrepancies, we at SGS invented and globally patented a unique system for draft reading measurements: the SGS Draft Survey Tool.
The Draft Survey Tool
Exclusively used by our experts, this unique market solution reduces the margin of error, improving the accuracy of draft mark readings, and supporting you to meet your contractual requirements.
Once measured, our draft surveyors feed the raw data from their readings into our draft survey software which calculates the weight loaded (or discharged) using the internationally standardized draft survey protocol. The results are then compiled into a draft survey report which you can use as the basis for your cargo’s quantity certification.
