Trade involves the buying and selling of a commodity on the basis of its qualitative and quantitative properties which are to be determined in a way which is mutually acceptable to both parties to the contract. When it comes to the quantitative determination of the bulk material, this is more easily controlled by different methods involving measurement of weight, volume or length. With the possible exception of grains and their derivatives, the majority of trade in bulk solid across the world is quantified by reference not to its weight, but to the amount of water it displaces when contained in a vessel.

Despite the progress and innovation made in the field of the weighing technology such as certified weighing installations and weighing scales, draught surveys have been and remain the basis on which shipping documents have been based over a century and the use of draught surveys still commands a large following in the bulk trade. This is due to the fact that a whole industry has developed to supply a service to traders over a long period of time, and the independent cargo surveyor is a respected member of the community of traders. The nomination of the surveyor or inspection company may be made by either party in agreement with the other but the degree of inspection is mainly a commercial decision that is influenced by the buyer/trader’s evaluation of the seller.

The parties agree in most commercial transactions that quality and quantity are determined "final at loading", draught surveys are therefore frequently used to reduce trade risks and avoid frauds, abuses of trade incentives and other situations or events which are likely to, or potentially may, give rise to a claim that could have serious financial consequences.

They have been accepted to be reasonably accurate and convenient means of establishing the weight of the cargo shipped on board vessels in bulk form. However, to obtain a certain reasonable degree of accuracy in the draught survey it is important that careful attention be paid to the details during this process.

Any unusual circumstances that may arise should be handled in a proper and diligent manner and although it is difficult to quantify the extent of errors likely to occur in a draught survey, the reliability of the results depends entirely upon the care, skill, and devotion exercised by the attending surveyor.

It is the intention of this course to extend the student’s knowledge and understanding of the Cargo surveying field and make you a properly qualified expert in draught surveying able to deal with the most critical aspects of draught survey techniques and procedures.