General Cargo Master

The officer commanding a general-cargo or multipurpose vessel, holding an STCW Regulation II/2 Master certificate. The role centers on stowage planning for mixed parcels: breakbulk, bagged, palletized, project, and heavy-lift cargo loaded by the ship’s own derricks or cranes. The master calculates stability and the loading sequence so the vessel stays within permissible shear forces and bending moments, supervises dunnage and lashing under the Cargo Securing Manual (SOLAS VI/5), and resolves the broken-stowage and overstow problems that multipurpose trades produce. Smaller general-cargo ships often run with a compact deck-officer complement.