ICOMIA – the International Council of Marine Industry Associations – is aiming to move beyond being an organisation that connects its members. It wants to provide the collective intelligence, influence and common frameworks that allow the global leisure marine industry to develop more effectively.
Under CEO Joe Lynch, three priorities have been identified: collaboration, data and harmonised standards.
A unified voice for global leisure marine?
Lynch joined the organisation just over three years ago. Since then he’s been sharpening its purpose, concentrating on where it can add the greatest value and bringing together the industry to address shared challenges.
He believes that one of ICOMIA’s most important roles is to give the global leisure marine industry a collective voice when engaging with regulators, policymakers and international organisations.
“We’re not a consultancy business. We’re a small team of people who bring together the experts,” he notes.
He believes that the organisation’s strength lies in bringing together national associations, manufacturers and other industry specialists to establish common positions and priorities. Rather than acting as a consultancy or imposing its own views, ICOMIA provides the structure through which industry expertise can be consolidated and represented.
Developing harmonised standards
Its consultative status with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) also gives it an important route into international regulatory discussions, allowing it to represent the interests of the wider leisure marine sector.
Developing harmonised international standards is another important part of ICOMIA’s work, with implications for manufacturers, boatbuilders, exporters and operators.
The organisation’s technical committees work across areas including boat safety, emissions measurement and yacht profiling. The objective is not simply to establish technical benchmarks, but to make it easier for businesses to operate across international markets.
“We have a great team of technicians who work together to harmonise boat safety standards and emissions standards,” Lynch explains. “We want to make sure that boats are safe, but importantly, that they can be built in one country and exported to another without hitting any obstacles.”
Best practice approaches to be documented
Beyond technical specifications, ICOMIA is also looking at common approaches to industry practices, including marina design and management, superyacht refit contracts and risk assessment.
He says standards aren’t just physical, they’re ways of working as well. “We’re always trying to create case studies of best practice in marina design, marina management and contracts for superyacht refits. We’re working on risk assessment and the best approach to risk assessment.”
Lynch notes that because ICOMIA is a not-for-profit membership organisation, it gives it the opportunity to gather commercially sensitive information from across the sector and make that intelligence available to support better-informed decisions.
He calculates that members represent approximately 90 per cent of the value of the global leisure boating industry. That means ICOMIA has access to a substantial network of industry participants and fosters an ambition to turn that reach into a valuable source of market insight.
Shanghai to focus on marina’s wider contributions
ICOMIA also wants the conversation around marina development to extend beyond the practicalities of running an efficient operation. Its forthcoming World Marina Conference in Shanghai will focus on the wider economic and social contribution marinas can make to their host communities. Information about the event is available on its website.
The intention is to bring together all stakeholders, reflecting an understanding that marina development is closely connected to local economies and their wider infrastructure.
There is also a growing investment dimension. Lynch points to significant transaction activity in the marina sector and wants the conference to provide a platform for investors and operators to share their perspectives on the market.
The post ICOMIA podcast: What is ICOMIA really trying to achieve? appeared first on Marine Industry News.