In global maritime operations, where time is money and downtime can cascade into millions of dollars in losses, vessel maintenance strategies must evolve to match the scale, urgency, and complexity of modern shipping. One of the most effective innovations in recent decades is the deployment of riding squads, mobile, multidisciplinary teams of technicians that board vessels mid-voyage or during port calls to execute critical repairs and upgrades.

Unlike traditional ship repair approaches that rely heavily on yard time or port-based interventions, riding squads offer a flexible, fast-response alternative that keeps vessels compliant and operational without sacrificing charter commitments or dry-docking schedules. In a commercial environment increasingly shaped by time-bound contracts, emissions restrictions, and cost control, riding squads offer a way to extend shipboard capabilities beyond the crew, without disrupting voyage continuity.

Understanding the Role of Riding Squads

A riding squad is a pre-selected team of skilled personnel, welders, fitters, electricians, engineers, automation specialists, and machinists, who travel to board a vessel (usually at a strategic port) and perform planned or emergent technical work while the vessel remains on charter.

This concept is not new, but its operational relevance has grown dramatically due to the need for:

• Faster turnaround for minor but essential repair tasks
• Limited dry-dock capacity worldwide
• Port stay durations becoming shorter
• Stringent inspections from PSCs, charterers, and oil majors
• Decarbonization retrofits and regulatory deadlines

Riding squads effectively turn vessels into mobile workspaces, bringing the workshop to the ship, rather than sending the ship to the yard.

Operational Applications and Use Cases

The scope of work handled by riding squads varies based on vessel type, trading route, and project complexity. Some common assignments include:

• Steel renewal and fabrication
• Piping system modifications
• Ballast water treatment system retrofitting
• Pump and motor overhauls
• Electrical rewiring and junction box repairs
• Insulation replacement
• Hydraulic system repairs
• Digital control panel upgrades
• Emergency damage control or leak containment

These tasks often require coordination with onboard engineers, safety officers, and superintendents, especially when hot work or confined space entry is involved.

In specialized cases, such as LNG carriers, FPSOs, or offshore rigs, riding squads may also perform class-specific maintenance, technical audits, or software patching on control systems.

Planning and Coordination

Successful riding squad deployment is not ad-hoc. It requires meticulous planning, including:

• Pre-voyage job scope agreement
• Review of class requirements (if repair touches certified areas)
• Coordination with Master and Chief Engineer
• Flag approval, if crew size temporarily exceeds safe manning level
• Visa and travel logistics, especially when boarding in controlled or geopolitically sensitive ports
• HSE documentation, including work permits, PPE, and hot work clearance
• Arrangement for tools, consumables, and spare parts to be shipped to the vessel or carried onboard

This planning often begins weeks in advance, though riding squads can also be deployed with minimal notice in emergency situations, such as after port state detentions or pre-vetting inspections.

Benefits for Shipowners and Operators

The growing preference for riding squads stems from their ability to deliver significant advantages:

1. Minimized Off-Hire: Repairs that once required yard time can now be executed during laden or ballast voyages.
2. Operational Continuity: Vessels can maintain commercial schedules, preserving charter revenues and avoiding penalties.
3. Cost Optimization: Avoiding dock fees, yard delays, and opportunistic port charges results in leaner maintenance budgets.
4. Flexible Manpower: Shipowners don’t have to permanently increase crew headcount to accommodate specialized skills.
5. Audit Preparedness: Riding squads can complete last-minute tasks before PSC, SIRE, or RightShip inspections.
6. Retrofitting Support: Regulatory upgrades, like ballast water treatment systems or emission control devices, can be partially installed en route, allowing for phased compliance.

In short, riding squads align perfectly with modern shipping's demand for speed, flexibility, and compliance.

Safety and Compliance Considerations

Working aboard an operating vessel brings with it unique safety risks, moving machinery, enclosed spaces, hazardous materials, and unfamiliar shipboard hierarchies. As a result, safety compliance for riding squads is non-negotiable.

Key best practices include:

• Strict HSE induction upon boarding
• Adherence to shipboard emergency procedures and signage
• Wearing of appropriate PPE at all times
• Compliance with onboard isolation/LOTO procedures
• Hot work permits issued and controlled by vessel management
• Real-time communication between ship crew and team leads
• Daily reporting to shore-based superintendents

Companies deploying riding squads must demonstrate a strong safety culture, supported by pre-departure training, digital documentation, and post-assignment audits. Reputation with classification societies and PSC inspectors often hinges on how professionally a riding squad conducts itself onboard.

Skills and Training

A high-functioning riding squad is more than a group of technicians, it is a specialized maritime task force. Members must be:

• Experienced in shipboard operations and marine equipment
• Trained in confined space entry, fire safety, and rigging
• Familiar with IMO conventions and class documentation
• Culturally adaptable, as they may join multinational crews
• Fluent in work reporting, digital form submission, and tool logs

In many regions, riding squad technicians are also required to hold Basic STCW certificates, travel insurance, medical fitness proofs, and seafarer’s books to satisfy immigration and manning rules.

Increasingly, technical managers are investing in their riding teams, equipping them with portable diagnostic kits, calibrated tools, and standardized reporting templates to raise professionalism and accountability.

Strategic Deployment and Global Logistics

Riding squads function as mobile extensions of technical departments. Their effectiveness depends on the company’s ability to:

• Identify the right port for embarkation (visa ease, travel cost, risk exposure)
• Match skillsets to the job scope
• Coordinate with agents for port passes and boarding clearance
• Handle customs for tools and parts carried on person
• Repatriate or reassign teams efficiently post-completion

Many technical managers maintain rosters of standby teams in key hubs, such as Singapore, Fujairah, Istanbul, and Rotterdam, to ensure rapid response. The integration of riding squad logistics with maintenance planning systems ensures that repairs are scheduled, executed, and documented as part of the vessel’s technical lifecycle.

Integration With Digital Maintenance Ecosystems

Modern riding squads increasingly operate within a digital maintenance ecosystem. This includes:

• Receiving job scopes through cloud-based platforms
• Using mobile apps to document work progress
• Uploading photos, inspection findings, and completion reports in real time
• Capturing signatures or approvals digitally
• Syncing data with PMS or class compliance databases

This digital integration reduces paperwork, improves transparency, and enables remote supervision. It also ensures that tasks performed by riding squads are seamlessly absorbed into the vessel’s long-term maintenance records, essential for audits, resale, and benchmarking.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Onboard Technical Support

As the maritime industry embraces automation, decarbonization, and regulatory tightening, riding squads will become even more critical. Anticipated developments include:

• Specialized squads for emission control tech, scrubbers, and alternative fuels
• Augmented reality support for real-time remote supervision
• Pre-boarding health diagnostics, including pandemic protocols
• Global certification programs for riding squad competence
• Enhanced focus on green repair practices and waste management during onboard work

In a world of just-in-time shipping and sustainability-linked contracts, riding squads will represent not just technical efficiency but resilience and readiness.

Conclusion

Riding squads embody a modern shipping philosophy, one that values uptime, precision, and agility. By delivering high-quality repairs and upgrades without disrupting commercial schedules, they help bridge the gap between operational demands and technical constraints.

More than outsourced labor, riding squads are strategic enablers of fleet efficiency, compliance, and competitiveness. Their presence aboard a vessel signifies a shift from reactive maintenance to proactive, performance-oriented operations.

As ships, systems, and standards evolve, the best riding squads will evolve too, becoming lean, tech-enabled, and integral to the DNA of smart shipping.