Answers about MaeWest cargo, blending, and audit workflows.

How do independent cargo expeditors and marine surveyors reduce voyage-report turnaround?

Independent cargo expeditors and marine surveyors reduce voyage-report turnaround by capturing operational data at the point of work and moving it into the office record set as a signed, verifiable bundle. MaeWest Cargo Operations does this with a Field application that runs on the surveyor's Windows laptop and produces content-hashed transfer bundles that are accepted by the Office application without a live network connection. Loading, Outturn and Ship-to-Ship (STS) inspections, deficiency records, and QHSE forms are all captured against the same shared data model used by the Office, so no re-keying is required when the bundle is imported.

What is a signed transfer bundle and why does it matter for cargo work?

A signed transfer bundle is a content-hashed file that carries a set of operational records from one MaeWest installation to another. In MaeWest Cargo Operations it moves Field submissions into the Office database; in MaeWest Blending it carries a shore Trader instruction to the vessel FSO, and a signed ROB / execution report back to shore. Each bundle is verified by the receiving side before any record is written, so a manipulated or replayed bundle is rejected. The design allows offline handover by USB, email, or network share while preserving a SHA-256 audit chain across the boundary.

How does MaeWest Blending help a shore Trader avoid off-specification marine-fuel blends?

MaeWest Blending includes a first-class ISO 8217 marine-fuel blend calculator built for VLSFO, HSFO, ULSFO and MGO. Kinematic viscosity uses the Refutas / ASTM D341 (MacCoull–Walther) blend number on a mass basis with an ASTM D7152 temperature-corrected variant; flash point uses the Chevron / API flash blending index (Nelson form); pour point uses the Chevron / Riazi pour-point index. Sulphur, density at 15 °C, water, sediment, ash and metals are mass-weighted on ISO 8217 bases. The blender then runs a pass/fail check against the chosen grade (RMG 380, RMK 500, DMA, DMB, VLSFO 0.50 %S, ULSFO 0.10 %S…) and flags IMO 2020 and ECA (SECA) sulphur-cap breaches for the intended voyage.

How do shore Trader and vessel FSO stay in sync without a live network?

The shore Trader and vessel FSO applications never require a live network connection. The Trader authors a blend or transfer instruction, signs it, and exports a bundle file. That file is delivered to the vessel by whatever route the operator chooses. The FSO app verifies the signature, warns if the bundle has been tampered with, and shows the Trader's own wording alongside the tanks and components requested. After execution, the FSO returns a signed ROB snapshot and execution report as a return bundle, chained to the original instruction. Nothing is transmitted automatically — the trust model is the signed content, not the pipe.

What audit trail does MaeWest keep for cargo records and blend operations?

MaeWest applications maintain a tamper-evident audit trail using SHA-256 content hashing over accepted records and imported bundles. In Cargo Operations, every accepted Field submission is chained to its bundle envelope hash, so an auditor can filter the audit log and see the complete import context. In Blending, every instruction, execution record, and ROB snapshot carries an envelope hash over its full payload; the receiving side recomputes the hash on import as part of a formal reception ceremony that also enforces chain continuity. The audit chain is independently re-verifiable at charter close-out, during a dispute, or under a third-party inspection.

How does MaeWest support QHSE management for petroleum cargo operations?

MaeWest Cargo Operations includes a turnkey Quality, Health, Safety and Environmental (QHSE) Management System aimed at day-to-day terminal, survey and marine work. It ships with Codes of Practice, HSE and operational procedures, structured forms, live saving to user-machine folders, retrievable and editable record history, and report templates for Loading, Outturn, STS, Tank Cleaning and Suitability inspections. QHSE material lives in the same working environment as the cargo analytics, so operational discipline, internal review and supervised third-party audit activity can be handled without switching tools. The QHSE material supports certification workflows but does not replace the customer's own certification responsibilities.

What units and databases does MaeWest use for cargo measurement?

MaeWest Cargo Operations uses a multi-unit database designed for petroleum and petrochemical cargo work. Three measurement families are supported: US Barrels with API gravity, cubic metres with density, and cubic metres with Specific Gravity (SG). Choice of family is a per-tab setting, and the runtime backing tables are switched to match, so unit consistency is preserved across voyage records, deficiency analysis, and reporting.

Which MaeWest tier fits a single independent cargo consultant, and which fits a connected office team?

A single independent cargo consultant is typically served by one of the Desktop tiers of MaeWest Cargo Operations: Desktop Essentials (£750 perpetual) for core voyage performance records, Desktop Professional (£1,000 perpetual) for stronger multi-voyage statistics and comparison, or Desktop Compliance (£1,500 perpetual) for the full inspection and QHSE reporting set. A connected office team moves to the Office tiers: Office Starter (£2,500/year, 1+3), Office Professional (£3,500/year, 2+5), or Enterprise QHSE Management (£5,000/year, 3+10 with a full QHSE MS). MaeWest Blending (FSO & Trader) is a separate product line currently in pre-release development; pricing will be announced at release.

Do MaeWest applications require a cloud service or shared server?

No. MaeWest Cargo Operations Desktop tiers are single-user Windows installations. Connected Office tiers use a shared SQL Server database that the customer owns and hosts, not a MaeWest cloud service. Field-to-Office traffic is carried in signed transfer bundles that are moved by USB, email or network share, and do not require a live network connection between the Field user and the Office server. MaeWest Blending has no shared server at all: Trader and FSO exchange signed bundle files by whatever transfer route the operator chooses.