Following close consultation and cooperation with key stakeholders, including shipyards and shipowners, BV said it had established these new standards.

Biorisk Managed focuses on the design and execution of an outbreak management strategy, following the core principles of the Restart Your Business (RYB) protocols of Bureau Veritas, the first such guidelines available for shipping, implemented for the cruise and ferry sectors in April 2020.

This includes on-board duties and resource management, supply specifications, including PPE and medical supplies, protocols, behavioral and operational recommendations, appropriate crew training, as well as the renovation or rearrangement or alteration of spaces and systems, such as heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC).

"The MSC Virtuosa is the first cruise vessel in the world to receive this important new notation and this is something that we are all extremely proud of. It is testimony to the unique and rigorous nature of the health and safety protocol that we have developed in response to the pandemic situation the world is facing and that has allowed us to restart since August in the Mediterranean and safely and responsibly host nearly 40,000 guests thus far," said Emilio La Scala, President of MSC Cruises Management.

At Chantiers de l'Atlantique, MSC Cruises took delivery of the new MSC Virtuosa, the first ship to receive the Biorisk Secured notation worldwide.

Maritime Business World