Every vessel is built from thousands of materials, items of equipment and components whose performance matters to safety and reliability. From engine parts and piping to pumps, valves and pressure-tested products, these items may need to be inspected and certified before they enter service. This is the work of the LR Materials, Equipment and Components (MEC) team, a global network combining specialist knowledge with broader expertise in new construction and ships in service.
“MEC is closely connected to new construction. Where a ship is being built to LR class, its specified materials and components must meet the applicable requirements. In other cases, manufacturers can choose LR because of the service, technical relationship and confidence associated with its certification,” says Eleonora Landi, LR’s MEC Product Manager. “Either way, the requirement is the same. Evidence must support the surveyor’s decision and the level of assurance must not be diluted.”
Global reach
LR delivers MEC services through a team of specialists and surveyors whose expertise spans new construction and ships in service. In Korea, around 20 surveyors focus exclusively on MEC, supported by a further 20 who combine MEC with in-service work. Italy has five dedicated MEC specialists, while Japan’s team of some 24 surveyors works across all service areas. This mix reflects local demand and brings experience from different stages of a vessel’s lifecycle to materials and components.
Remote surveys offer another way to deliver that assurance, carried out by the same surveyors who might attend a manufacturer’s premises. Where the circumstances are suitable, surveys can be remote, using documents, photographs, video, livestreaming and production or test data.
“Globally, remote delivery represents a minority of MEC activity, but it is an increasingly valuable option within a wider service model,” notes MJ Chae, LR’s Area Service Delivery Manager for Northeast Asia, adding that MEC remote surveys are carried out by a separate team to LR’s Global Digital Survey Centre based in Chennai and Miami that is solely focussed on ships in service.
One digital journey
The MEC Digital Workbench is the backbone of the process. A manufacturer submits a request, identifies what is needed and when, and includes any specific requirements. LR’s planning and scheduling team then matches the job with a surveyor who has the correct authorisation, competence and availability.
The surveyor then accesses the same job in the Workbench, where they can also communicate with the client, complete the required checklist, and record the evidence from tests or inspections before generating certificates or invoices. When the survey is remote, the main change is not the process but the means of attendance: instead of travelling to the site, the surveyor observes and verifies the relevant activity through an agreed remote method.
“The Workbench gives our clients and colleagues one place to manage the activity, from the initial request through to certification,” says Landi. “We continue to develop it using feedback from clients and internal users. Remote delivery fits within that same end-to-end process.”
Flexibility without compromising assurance
The most immediate benefit is access. A manufacturer needing a valve or engine component certified at short notice may not have to wait for the nearest suitable surveyor to become available and travel to the facility. Subject to the survey being appropriate for remote delivery, an authorised surveyor in another location can offer the service. This reduces waiting time and makes scheduling easier around production, improving the use of LR’s global technical capacity.
There are important safety and efficiency benefits too. Reducing travel lowers exposure to travel-related risks, allowing surveyors to spend more time on technical work. For clients located far from LR offices, remote delivery also removes some unnecessary delay and disruption.
But remote does not mean automatic. LR guidance requires each MEC case to be considered individually, and the surveyor must be satisfied that remote methods give the same level of assurance as physical attendance.
Here clients have practical responsibilities, including preparing documentation, operating cameras and supporting the survey in real time, including suitable connectivity so that videos can be live streamed effectively.
Landi notes that many clients that were initially hesitant but have often become more positive after seeing a remote survey delivered efficiently and robustly. “But they certainly see the value, which is delivered through faster certification, less waiting and greater flexibility,” she says.
“The objective is not to increase remote surveys for the sake of it. It is to select the right delivery method for each job.”
Japan: adoption built on trust
Japan is a good example of this balanced approach. LR data for the 2025/26 financial year shows that remote activity in the country reached around 40%, compared with around 20% globally. The underlying volume is smaller than in the largest MEC markets, but the proportion illustrates how strongly remote delivery has been adopted.
LR Japan covers a large geography through a limited number of offices, so reducing travel can deliver clear practical value. “Adoption, however, has depended equally on disciplined customer engagement,” says Chae.
LR’s surveyors have been central to creating opportunities for remote MEC surveys, he notes, adding that they have proactively identified suitable opportunities and demonstrated to clients that the process remains technically robust.
“Japan’s experience has been driven by trust, communication and practical experience,” says Chae. “Once customers complete a successful remote survey and see that it is efficient and technically sound, confidence grows. Our surveyors have been central to that.”
Remote surveys sit within a broader evolution in how LR can offers MEC assurance. Through its Quality Assurance Engineering Scheme (QAES), eligible manufacturers with mature quality systems and a trusted track record can be approved to certify defined materials or components themselves. QAES is not a remote survey. LR first assesses eligibility and continues to monitor performance through regular audits. The certificate carries the same assurance and is issued in line with LR policy.
“The scheme can reduce repetitive attendance while preserving oversight, helping manufacturers move efficiently and enabling surveyors to focus their expertise where it adds most value,” notes Chae.
A hybrid future
The next phase for LR’s MEC service delivery lies in a hybrid operating model, where straightforward inspections may be completed remotely, with more complex work requiring a surveyor on site. Some quality-assured manufacturers may use an approved scheme for defined certification activity.
“The common thread across all of our current and potential new ways is judgement,” notes Landi.
LR will continue to improve the customer experience, the Workbench, connectivity and the commercial model, while learning from regions such as Japan. Success should not be measured by how much work is made remote, but by whether each client receives the right survey through the right method.
