With 47,000 visitors from all over the world and 1,800 exhibitors, SMM Hamburg is with no doubt the main event of the year for the shipping community in Hamburg. Shipping is very much a person-to-person business, and SMM serves as an excellent meeting place to network and make business.

With DNV’s strong presence in the German market, it was only natural to make DNV’s services offered from our Hamburg office the main story in our magazine this time. An important strategic focus for DNV has been to enhance local competence and thereby to provide local services to the German shipping market from our Hamburg office.

German owners are renowned for their leading position as container ship charter owners. But analysis of the new-build market reveals that an increasing number of German owners are following global trends and have been placing orders for bulk carrier over the last years. During the first six months of 2008 German owners placed orders for 45 new bulk carriers. Over 70 per cent of those were ordered to DNV class, a really strong recognition of DNV’s strong position in the German market in general, and in the bulk carrier market in particular.

E.R. Schiffahrt serves as a typical example of a German owner with whom DNV has formed solid business relations. E.R. Schiffahrt has ordered all their Bulk Carriers to be classed by DNV – an impressive order volume of 20 Capesize- and Handysize Bulk Carriers in South Korea and Vietnam.
Following up on the topic introduced in last issue of DNV Bulk Carrier Update – logistics chain for coal and iron ore transportation and transformation – I this time wanted to share with you some of DNV’s experience with and knowledge about the dedicated Ore Carriers. These days we are seeing a renaissance for this type of ships, which are characterised as large transporters of huge cargo volumes on one keel. Although ore carriers are widely considered to be sturdy work horses, their safe construction and efficient operation provide challenges which should not be ignored.

The unrest in the US capital markets has created some clouds over the sky over the last months, also resulting in falling freight rates. As usual, the last pages in our magazine are reserved for market analyst Jarle Hammer, who presents the latest market outlook for the dry bulk market.
Happy reading, and look forward to see you at the DNV stand at SMM 2008 in Hamburg!