For over 40 years we have built a reputation for excellence in shipping as owners and operators of tankers, bulkers and general cargo ships trading worldwide.

Our experienced professionals, ashore and onboard, operate in accordance with the shipping industry's highest standards. We are committed foremost to every aspect of safety and protection of the environment.

Well in advance of the ISM code coming into force, Expedo was accredited by DNV with its ISM and SEP code certification. Subsequently our vessels received Green Award accreditation (www.greenaward.org) and USCG QualShip21 accreditation. Periodically, our management systems are comprehensively reviewed and vetted by major oil company charterers visiting our technical management offices in Canada. Expedo is also certified for ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) compliance by DNV.

Expedo is the second company in the world to achieve Competence Management System certification in compliance with DNV Standards of Competence Management Systems (ISM and STCW). Certification was awarded on 25h June 2007. (Click here to find out more about DNV Competence Management)

In line with our strong policies for personnel sourcing, we have our own manning offices in Taiwan (Taipei), China (Shanghai) and the Philippines (Manila).

Expedo has broad experience supervising new building construction, including basic design and drawing approval. A total of 15 ships [Bulk carriers (2), Aframax (3), LR1 Panmax Product Tankers (6), Suezmax (2) and VLCC (2)] have been delivered under our detailed and painstaking supervision from Japanese, Korean and Chinese shipyards.

Expedo has recently completed a large project supervising six 70,000 dwt coated product tanker newbuildings at New Century Shipyard in China . Expedo developed a strong relationship with the yard and significantly enhanced the design of the vessels. A 17-man supervision team was deployed to ensure exceptional building quality and timely delivery. Furthermore, in passing on its wealth of shipbuilding experience and expertise, the Expedo supervision team has enabled the yard to streamline its new building processes, improve productivity and realise exemplary quality.

In February 1996, Expedo completed the documentation of its own standard procedures and systems and received accreditation to DNV's Safety and Environmental Protection (SEP) standard. SEP extends our quality management standards beyond compliance with the International Safety Management (ISM) Code.
We have a community onboard and ashore that enthusiastically and rigorously embraces the Company's quality management systems, fostering continuous improvement and development.

Expedo was accredited with ISO 14001 compliance in 2003 by Det Norske Veritas. Meeting this standard demonstrates our commitment to face the environmental challenges of the future through dedicated resources. We see ISO 14001 as an opportunity to develop our expertise and strengthen our knowledge and skill base to meet or exceed our clients' requirements.

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On 25th June 2007 Expedo became the second company in the world to be accredited for Competence Management Systems.

Achieving Competence Management System certification demonstrates our commitment to achieve excellence in maritime safety, security and protection of the environment. It demonstrates commitment to continual improvement, excellence in customer service through professional competence and conduct, and assurance of minimizing contractual risk for our customers. It provides a foundation for establishing, maintaining and utilizing competence on board and ashore to achieve company business goals and objectives.
DNV audits the shore management and at least one of the fleet vessels each year. All fleet vessels are audited by DNV at least once within the five year renewal period of the CMS certificate. In addition, all vessels are subject to an internal CMS audit each year.

The Company has established a Competence Management System (CMS) which forms an integral part of the Company Safety Management System (SEP/ISM) and the Environment Management System under ISO 14001:2004. Competence Management System provides a foundation for establishing, maintaining and utilizing competence on board and ashore, to achieve company business goals, company objectives and desired performance levels.

The system allows for competence to be continually evaluated, developed and improved. CMS shall be fully implemented on all Company vessels in accordance with DNV Competence Management System Standard. Full support shall be extended by the shore based and ship board management teams to achieve the objectives of CMS.

Objectives of CMS are to achieve following goals:

• Improve performance towards safety, environment protection and vessel operations.

• Improve competence of individuals.

• High quality staff recruitment and retention.

• Conformity to statutory Rules and Regulations.

• Improve maintenance, vessel performance and reduce operating costs.

We recruit only from the very best maritime academies in Asia and personally select outstanding graduating cadets. All cadets undergo our Officer Training Programme for at least one year onboard. They may only be promoted as junior officers after they have passed extensive competence evaluation by ships' seniors, our Superintendent team and the Manning Department.

Company Manning Policies

The Company shall establish and maintain,

a) rigorous vetting and recruiting procedures

b) strict guidelines for educational qualifications, and

c) A Competence Management System to provide for continuous programs of assessment, training and competence development for all ranks to achieve the stated objectives and business goals.

d) The common language to be used onboard ships is English so that all crewmembers can communicate with each other, which is especially important in emergencies.

e) Manning planning workbook shall be maintained either as hardcopy or in electronic format (eg. Danaos Crew Module) and updated periodically, so that future manning needs can be met

Company Manning Objectives

The Company shall ensure that each managed Ship,

a) is operated by properly certified, qualified, trained and experienced Master and senior officers, who are competent both physically and mentally to serve the type and size of ship to which they are assigned, and

b) is manned with qualified, certificated, competent and medically fit marine personnel in accordance with national and international requirements, in numbers and with skills consistent with the trade of the ship and the workload imposed on the ship's crew, and who fully understand their roles and responsibilities and;

c) that both the Master and his crew have the required skills, motivated, familiarized and trained for the implementation of the Company's program for Safety, Quality and Environment Protection and who are capable of working as a team.

All our navigating officers undertake training for Bridge Team Management and Collision Avoidance. Senior officers undertake Ship Handling Simulator courses at the IDESS training and bridge simulation center (www.idess.com), Manila. We have contracted with Seagull (www.seagull.no) to provide on board Computer Based Training for various operational and engineering modules. Our officers attend various shore based training courses beyond mandatory requirements at approved training centers in Manila, India and China. In addition structured ship board training is provided on each vessel to improve competence and skills of our seafarers.

We have designed and provide comprehensive emergency drill plans for onboard training. Our masters follow these plans to conduct periodic training as designated by the Company. All training records are monitored by our Safety Department.

Our attending superintendents request emergency drills onboard to verify that they have been implemented properly.

We also contract with Marine Safety Services (www.threequays.com) to provide further Safety Training and an objective inspection of all safety equipment onboard each ship over an 18 month cycle. Additionally, we send all our onboard training and inspection records to Marine Safety Services for their independent review.

Our D&A random testing is well in excess of OCIMF recommendations. Our policy on alcohol prohibits consumption by any crew member for four hours before and during watch duty or work duty. No crew member may consume alcohol together with any person visiting the ship in port.

All our ships maintain a networked database (designed in cooperation with Danaos Management Consultants Ltd.) for continuous maintenance. We have the same updated Danaos database onshore, globally networked, which enables the technical director and superintendents, in all our offices, to continuously monitor the maintenance status onboard.

Our superintendents inspect each ship every 4-6 months to verify the maintenance system has been implemented properly onboard and determine maintenance priorities when necessary

A number of best practices have been developed internally on ship board systems and procedures to improve operation, handling and knowledge which benefits the fleet by improving fleet reliability. These are filtered into our shipboard training programs with the aim to achieve consistent performance across the fleet. .