APL takes utmost care to ensure the safe transportation of your cargo. We are also committed to provide a safe working environment for our staff at sea and on land when guarding and transporting your goods.
What is Verified Gross Mass?
Misdeclaration of cargo weight is a major hazard, which often results in cargo claims and structural damages to vessels. It also poses a significant risk to the lives of staff.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has amended the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention under regulation 2 of chapter VI. The convention mandates the declaration of the verified gross mass (VGM) of a packed container (before loading on board vessels) to the shipping line and/or port terminal authorities within a prescribed cut-off period.
Effective 1 July 2016, the regulation stipulates the use of two approved methods to declare the VGM for every container by the shipper or his representative.
SOLAS regulation for weighing containers allows two ways for weighing packed containers to obtain the VGM for each container by the shipper or his representative.
As per the regulation, either of the two approved methods must be used to declare the VGM:
Real weight of the container including tare when cargo is packed
Addition of the whole cargo including packing and the tare weight of the container
For an overview of this regulation, please refer to some useful links below:
More information can also be found on WSC website.
VGM Submission to APL
As per SOLAS regulations, the provision of the following information is mandatory. Please note that the responsibility of obtaining and providing the VGM lies with the shipper or the party designated by the shipper for all the containers:
Shippers can provide VGM information of their containers on their Shipping Instructions (SI).
We can also accept the VGM information via our eBusiness portal, EDI and third party platforms (INTTRA, GTNexus and CargoSmart).
In exceptional cases, we accept manual submission using our template.
My APL offers efficient VGM declaration
My APL allows for electronic transmission of VGM information efficiently. The eVGM can be transmitted along with the shipping instructions or independently once the booking is confirmed.
My APL's eVGM offers a comprehensive dashboard view along with an active online verification process, ensures an error free VGM submission. Shippers can rely on our single window system for real time view to ensure compliance with SOLAS regulation.
Our eBusiness platform offers several tools to improve your productivity:
Mass VGM submissions via an Excel file upload or individual submission via an online form.
Pre-filled forms for shippers with booking / BL numbers, associated container numbers and tare.
Easy access and cross navigation from eBusiness Booking and Shipment Dashboards for proceeding with VGM submissions.
Online Verification Process
My APL will verify the data entered to limit the risk of rejections. It checks if the declared weight uses the right tare weight, and if it is within the allowed weight. The process also verifies the match between the booking number and container number.
Integrated Visibility
My APL provides a platform for shippers to follow the SOLAS compliance status of all your containers in a single view.
Maximum visibility is offered upon VGM transmission, with precise status at the container level: ‘Pending’, ‘Submitted’, ‘Validated’ or ‘Rejected’.
