Small craft. Owner's manual
1Key Takeaways
This document specifies requirements and information for inclusion in the owner’s manual of small craft to enable the owner/operator to use the craft safely.
2Expert Interpretation
A comprehensive analysis of the BS EN ISO 10240:2024 international standard for small vessel owners' manual, covering design classification, safety requirements, EU regulatory compliance, etc., to help ship manufacturers and ship owners understand the latest safety regulations.
Analysis of the core content of the standard
BS EN ISO 10240:2024, as the benchmark document for small vessel safety management, replaces the 2020 version of the standard. The standard applies to leisure vessels with a hull length of ≤24 meters and imposes mandatory requirements on the owner's manual provided by the manufacturer.
Design classification system
| Design category | Wind force limitation | Wave height limitation | Typical application scenario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class A | Below Class 10 | No clear upper limit | Transoceanic navigation |
| Class B | Below Class 8 | ≤4 meters | Coastal navigation |
| Class C | Below Class 6 | ≤2m | Inland/coastal waters |
| Class D | Below Level 4 | ≤0.3m | Sheltered waters |
Key safety elements
1. Manual format requirements
Standard mandatory requirements: Multi-language support, Printable electronic version, Table of contents index required for pages over 4. Graphic symbols shall adopt ISO 8999:2001 and ISO 11192:2005 specifications.
2. Builder's nameplate information
Must include: manufacturer information, design category, maximum number of passengers, maximum load (kg), engine power (kW) and other core parameters. See Figure 1 and Figure 2 in the standard for the legend.
EU Regulatory Compliance
The correspondence with EU Directive 2013/53/EU is clarified through Appendix ZA, mainly involving:
- Owner's Manual Content Requirements (Clause 4, 5)
- Version Correspondence of 22 Related Standards
- UKCA Marking Transition Plan after Brexit
Implementation Recommendations
- Conduct a gap analysis on the existing manual, focusing on checking the completeness of the content of chapters 5.3-5.12
- Establish a multi-language version control process to ensure that versions of various countries are updated synchronously
- Develop a PDF automatic generation function for the electronic manual to meet the requirements of Article 4.2 of the standard
- Train the after-sales team to master the stability calculation method (ISO 12217 series)