Syros and Ermoupoli: Hull Gauging for Ships Visiting the Island Shipyard

Inspection services for ships at Syros

Each service has its own page with the method, the class requirements and what the report contains.

Where gauging is done at Syros

The most practical setting is the shipyard itself, either afloat at a repair berth or in a floating dock. Docked ships can have bottom shell, sea chests, rudder and propeller area gauged while the hull is dry, and tanks opened for the docking survey can be measured at the same time. Afloat repair is common for ferries, and gauging then concentrates on decks, vehicle decks, side shell and ballast tanks that are accessible. We coordinate the order of work with the yard so that gauging does not hold up other trades.

Outside the yard, the harbour quays at Ermoupoli handle ferries and cargo ships on short calls. Gauging alongside is possible within the port authority's rules, though stays are brief and tank entry needs advance preparation. The yard's current dock sizes and scheduling should be confirmed with the yard directly, since they change with its programme. For ships bound elsewhere, Syros can also serve as a checkpoint: readings taken on the way to Perama or another repair centre give the technical manager a measured basis for quotations.

• ONEX Syros Shipyards at Neorion — floating dock and repair berths, with bottom shell, sea chest and tank gauging during docking surveys
• Yard repair quays — afloat gauging of decks, ramps, side shell and ballast tanks while other repairs proceed
• Ermoupoli ferry and cargo quays — short-call readings on deck and vehicle deck plating, arranged through the agent
• Pre-docking readings on ships entering the yard — scope agreed so steel estimates are ready on arrival
• Post-repair verification — re-measurement of renewed plate and adjacent areas before the ship leaves

Port state control and yard-driven regulation

Greek port state control under the Paris MoU is the responsibility of the Hellenic Coast Guard, which also supervises passenger ship safety on the Cyclades routes. Ferries on domestic services are surveyed regularly, so a docking or refit at Syros often coincides with a class or flag survey. The Mediterranean sulphur emission control area, in force since 1 May 2025, applies in the Aegean. EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime affect voyages calling at Syros as at any other EU port.

Because Syros is a yard location, the regulatory context also includes the yard's own requirements. Contractors working on ships in dock follow the yard's safety rules, permit-to-work systems and access controls, and our team follows them as well. Where steel renewal is carried out under the supervision of class or flag, our readings may need to match the format the surveyor expects, so we agree the report layout with the superintendent in advance. Ships called to Greek yards are also expected to carry an up-to-date Inventory of Hazardous Materials.

Since 1 May 2025 the whole Mediterranean has been a sulphur emission control area, so ships calling at Syros burn 0.10% sulphur fuel or run a scrubber. Scrubber wash-water piping, the overboard discharge and the hull penetration around it corrode quickly in service and are worth adding to the gauging scope at every docking.

How a thickness measurement job runs at Syros

Most of the work on a Syros job happens before the team boards: scope, plan and access are settled first, so the time on board goes on measurement.

Syros has a small airport with limited services, so the team usually flies to Athens and continues to the island by ferry from Piraeus or Rafina, or by a short domestic flight when schedules allow. Port and yard passes under ISPS are arranged by the ship's agent and the yard, using crew lists and technician certificates we send ahead. The Schengen rules apply in Greece, so each technician must hold a Schengen visa issued in India. Because ferry crossings and yard slots both fix dates early, confirm the job as soon as the docking is booked.

• Send the vessel name or IMO number, ship type, class society, the survey due (annual, intermediate, renewal survey number, CAP or owner's condition survey), the port and dates, and the scope you expect.
• We confirm the scope against the class rules for that survey, prepare the thickness measurement plan with frame and section references, and say whether the measurement will be credited to a class survey.
• Mobilisation is planned around visa lead times and the vessel's schedule; the ship's agent arranges port access, and the yard or ship arranges staging, lighting, ventilation and gas-free certificates.
• Gauging with calibrated ultrasonic thickness gauges: through sound coatings only where the gauge's through-coating mode has been verified on a coated reference, otherwise on cleaned bare steel, with every reading tied to its frame, strake and location on the sketch.
• Readings are compared with original thicknesses as work proceeds; substantial and excessive corrosion and any cracks are reported to the attending surveyor and the superintendent the same day.
• The final report is issued on the class thickness-measurement formats with sketches, a summary of locations exceeding the allowable margins, piping tables where piping was in scope, and the gauge calibration and technician certificates.

Related