The class society has reduced the size of its board from eight to five members, effective 10th March, 2014.
Following the slimming down, Noboru Ueda will continue to serve as chairman and president, as well as a representative director of the society.
Current executive vice president, Yasushi Nakamura, will continue in his present role, but has additionally been named a representative director.
They will be joined by Koichi Fujiwara, who will continue in his current role as executive vice president, as well as Tetsushi Agata and Tetsuya Kinoshita, who have both been promoted from managing director to executive vice president.
Previous executive vice presidents, Toshitomo Matsui, Shosuke Kakubari and Dr Takuya Yoneya, have been appointed as advisors to the organisation.
Coinciding with the changes on the board, ClassNK has appointed two new operating officers. They are Toshio Kurashiki, newly appointed regional manager of South Asia and Oceania, and Dr M Abdul Rahim, regional manager of Europe and Africa. Dr Rahim is the first non-Japanese member of the society to be appointed an operating officer.
These appointments will be effective 1st April, 2014.
ClassNK also announced the expansion of its survey department into a new survey operations headquarters effective 1st April, 2014. As part of this expansion, thye class society will place two new general managers in Europe and North America, respectively, to oversee survey operations in those regions.
In addition, ClassNK has announced that it has classed its first US-flagged vessel.
The 7,895 dwt, 2008-built tanker ‘SLNC PAX’, owned by Schuyler Line Navigation Co (SLNC), is an IMO type II & III type and will be operating in the US-flag cargo preference service.
Russell Paret, SLNC president said, "We are very pleased to be working with ClassNK as they have been knowledgeable and diligent in issuing class certificates for the ‘SLNC PAX’ in the US registry. Schuyler Line looks forward to continuing our relationship with ClassNK."
ClassNK was granted the authorisation to carry out statutory survey for US-flagged ships from the US Coast Guard (USCG) in 2011 for the first time for the Load Line (LL) and Tonnage (TM69).
It was granted extended authorisation on December 2012, enabling ClassNK to render a full range of services for survey and certification for the SOLAS, MARPOL and AFS conventions, as well as to perform ISM audits on behalf of the US flag administration.
This service commenced with the classification of the ‘SLNC PAX’.