At the end of 2014, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted amendments to the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS) that will require every packed export container to have a verified container weight as a condition for loading aboard a vessel. This requirement will become legally binding on July 1, 2016.

All parties involved in the international transportation of maritime containers – including shippers, freight forwarders, packers, NVOCCs, carriers, and marine terminal operators – will need to take measures to ensure that they are prepared to fulfill the new SOLAS regulatory requirement before the implementation date arrives. There currently is more than a year to get ready. That time should not be wasted. All parties should use the time that is available to understand what will be required of them, and to prepare to be able to meet those requirements before July 1, 2016.

In order to help promote an understanding of these SOLAS amendments, the World Shipping Council has released a three page synopsis of what the SOLAS requirement containers. That synopsis, along with the text of the SOLAS requirements, can be found on http://www.worldshipping.org/industry-issues/safety/cargo-weight