A new standard for crew readiness

RightShip’s updated Inspection Ship Questionnaire, RISQ 3.2, came into force on 25 February 2026. For ship managers and training teams across the dry bulk sectors, this marks a significant update. RightShip is one of maritime industry’s leading third-party vetting platforms, used by charterers, terminal operators, and financiers to assess whether a vessel meets the standards required for commercial engagement.

The RISQ guided inspection is a core part of that process with its results feeding directly into each vessel’s RightShip Safety Score. This, in turn, influences access to charters, terminals, and financing. A strong inspection outcome demonstrates compliance and directly strengthens a vessel’s commercial position in the market.

The release of RISQ 3.2 emphasises crew familiarity with safety procedures and practical implementation of the ship’s Safety Management System. The shift is toward demonstrable competence alongside documented compliance, which means the records that matter most are those that show crew have been trained to the current standard and can apply that knowledge in practice.

Discover the RightShip Inspection Questionnaire Knowledge Base

What has changed in RISQ 3.2

RISQ 3.2 was developed through extensive industry engagement, incorporating insights from maritime associations, shipowners, managers, inspectors, and technical experts across the sector. In total, more than 150 adjustments were made throughout the questionnaire, with RightShip estimating a reduction in average inspection time of around 2 hours and improving the clarity and usability of the framework as a whole.

The commercial urgency around these updates is compounded by the ongoing Age Trigger expansion. From 1 April 2026, vessels aged 12 years or older without a valid RightShip Inspection will have their Safety Score downgraded to 2 out of 5 and will require a valid inspection to pass a RightShip vetting nomination. This requirement extends to vessels 11 years and older from 1 July 2026, and to vessels 10 years and older from 1 January 2027.

The benefit of mapping your training to RISQ 3.2

The questionnaire spans 17 sections and covers competencies ranging from maritime English proficiency and ECDIS type-specific training to mooring operations, mental health, polar code, and cyber security. For training managers working across a diverse fleet, understanding which courses are relevant to which sections is a significant task, and one that carries real consequences. Gaps in training coverage identified during an inspection directly affect Safety Scores, chartering eligibility, and the time and cost of remediation.

Having a clear view of where your training provision stands against each RISQ section means preparation becomes a managed, continuous process rather than something that begins when an inspection is scheduled. Training managers can prioritise purposefully, allocate budget where it is genuinely needed, and arrive at an inspection with documented evidence already in place.

To provide exactly that, OneOcean has developed the RightShip RISQ 3.2 Knowledge Base, a free tool available on the OneOcean website. The tool maps approximately 250 Ocean Learning Platform courses directly to each RISQ 3.2 section and competency area.

Users can search by RISQ section number, for example “4.5”, or by keyword such as “enclosed space”, “grain”, or “cyber”, and the tool returns the relevant e-learning courses, films, and certified courses for that requirement. Results are categorised by content type, making it straightforward to distinguish between supporting e-learning, recommended films, and full certification courses that provide direct evidence of compliance.

For the sections where a certified course provides the most direct answer to an inspection requirement, the mapping makes that explicit. Key examples across the 17 sections include:

  • RISQ 2.3 (Communication and English Proficiency): Marlins English Language Testing and a suite of maritime English e-learning titles
  • RISQ 2.14 (ECDIS): Generic ECDIS e-learning plus 22 type-specific certified courses covering the most widely deployed ECDIS systems in the fleet
  • RISQ 4.2 (Safety Officer): Certified Safety Officer Training Course 6340
  • RISQ 7.2 (IGF Code): Certified STCW Basic Training for Service on Ships Subject to the IGF Code 6370
  • RISQ 9.2 (Hatch Covers): Certified courses 6270 and 6277, covering generic and type-specific hatch cover inspection and maintenance
  • RISQ 12.2 (Security): Ship Security Officer certified courses 6122 and 6322, plus designated security duties and security awareness courses
  • RISQ 15.10 (Mental Health and Wellbeing): Certified Mental Health and Wellbeing Training Course 6274

The tool also identifies areas where OLP has supporting content but not a dedicated certification course, enabling training managers to make informed decisions about where additional provision may be needed.

Recognition on the RightShip platform

As a member of RightShip’s Zero Harm Innovation Partners Programme, OneOcean has a formal relationship with RightShip that extends beyond the mapping tool. Customers using the Ocean Learning Platform are eligible for recognition on the RightShip platform, providing visible evidence to charterers, owners, and auditing partners that their investment in crew training meets the standards that underpin the Zero Harm mission.

Inspection readiness is built over time, through consistent training and documented crew competence. Preparation is an ongoing operational practice, and the evidence it generates is precisely what modern RightShip inspections are designed to assess. Operators who proactively engage with these changes ensure compliance and strengthen their competitive position in a market that increasingly values measurable safety performance.

The RISQ 3.2 Knowledge Base is live now on the OneOcean website – RISQ 3.2 Knowledge Base | Ocean Learning Platform. Discover the Ocean Learning Platform here.