Korean Register (KR) has signed a five-year agreement with German ship management company Held, to provide ISO 9001 Certification, ISM Company Audit (DOC), ISM Ship Audits (SMC) and ISPS and MLC compliance services for the company’s fleet of more than 30 vessels.

Held Shipping said it classed its first vessel the “Maria Francisca” IMO 9235361 with KR in 2018. Since then it has grown, with five more vessels being transferred to KR since then - “ABB Bentje” IMO 9283954, “BBC Newcastle” IMO 9484209, “BBC Nagasaki” IMO 9559872, “Elke” IMO 9283966 and “UML Veronica” IMO 9500089.

In 2019, Held Shipping also signed a contract for KR to provide IHM Verification Services for the company’s entire fleet.

Held Shipping noted that it is one of the first shipping companies in Northern Europe to consistently use KR for classification alongside a range of other services. 

It added that two more vessels now being prepared for Transfer of Class to join KR’s classed fleet shortly.

"We are very pleased to announce this next step of cooperation with the Korean Register, and we believe that KR has the potential to become our leading partner in the future," said Captains Jan Held and Bernhard Held,  joint managing directors of Held Shipping. 

Michael Suhr, regional director Northern Europe, Korean Register, added: "We appreciate the trust shown by Held Shipping and look forward to further close cooperation. With our new office set up for North Europe, we are well-positioned to improve our first-class service and customer-oriented support even further.