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Superintendent weekly report template
Most weekly reports answer “what happened?”. The office actually needs “what is about to happen, and what do you need from me?”. This template is built around that difference: numbers with baselines instead of adjectives, trends instead of status lines, and a final paragraph that captures the weak signal before it becomes a breakdown — the paragraph most reporting formats leave out.
1 · Header
Vessel / Period (Mon–Sun) / Prepared by Voyage & route this week · Weather summary (worst day, effect on performance)
2 · Executive summary — 3 lines, written LAST
Overall status: [green / amber / red] because [one fact] Top risk this week: [item] — [cost or consequence if ignored] Decision needed from office: [decision] by [date] (write "none" only if true)
3 · Machinery performance — numbers, not adjectives
Main engine: avg RPM / load % · FOC [t/day] vs baseline [t/day] · deviation % Exhaust temp spread at [load]: [min–max °C] · trend vs last week [↑↓→] ME LO consumption [l/day] vs 4-week average · trend Aux engines: running hours per unit · load sharing balanced? [Y/N + why] Boiler / economizer: [status + any abnormal firing or soot signal]
4 · Defects & abnormalities — the heart of the report
NEW this week: [item] — impact · action taken · ETA to close · support needed ONGOING: [item] — age in weeks · trend [↑ worsening / → stable / ↓ improving] CLOSED: [item] — verified how Rule: an item repeating 3+ weeks gets a root-cause line, not another status line.
5 · PMS status
Overdue: [n] total → safety-critical [n] · class-related [n] · routine [n] Postponed with approval: [items + approval ref] Coming due next 2 weeks that need parts or shore support: [items]
6 · Spares & requisitions
Critical spares below minimum: [item · ROB · minimum · on order? ETA] Requisitions pending office approval > 7 days: [ref + operational impact of delay] Delivery risk next port: [item + alternative plan]
7 · Bunkers, LO & consumables (ROB)
Fuel [t] · Gas oil [t] · ME cyl oil [l] · ME system oil [l] · AE oil [l] · FW [t] Consumption vs plan: [within / over by X% — reason] Days of safe consumption remaining at current burn: [n]
8 · Certificates & surveys — 90-day window
Expiring within 90 days: [certificate · date · action status] Class conditions / memoranda open: [item · due date]
9 · Inspection readiness
Open PSC deficiencies: [n — oldest age] · Open SIRE/RISQ observations: [n] Next port: [port] — known focus areas for this ship type: [1–2 lines] RightShip / vetting status change this week: [none / what changed]
10 · Crew — technical side
Engine department changes: [on/off signers + handover quality note] Familiarization gaps: [item] · Near-miss or toolbox topics this week: [n + theme]
11 · Budget signal
Period spend vs plan: [figure or % — flag if > 10% deviation] Big-ticket items visible on the horizon (not yet requisitioned): [item + rough cost]
12 · What worries me this week — one honest paragraph
The weak signal that has not become a defect yet: a sound, a trend, a crew remark, a pattern across reports. This paragraph is why the office reads the report. Never write "nothing to report" — write the smallest true concern instead.
Discipline rules: every number carries a unit and a comparison — baseline, last week or the 4-week average. Trends are arrows [↑ ↓ →]. “Normal” without a figure is not a report line.
Questions
Why does the executive summary come first but get written last?
Because it is a conclusion, not an introduction. Write the twelve sections, then compress them into three lines: status with the fact that justifies it, the top risk with its cost, and the decision you need. A fleet director who reads only those three lines should still act correctly.
What makes section 12 different from the defect list?
Defects are things that already happened. Section 12 is the weak signal that has not become a defect yet — a trend, a sound, a remark from a fitter. Most breakdowns and most detentions are visible there weeks earlier. It is the single highest-value paragraph a superintendent can write, and the one most templates leave out.
Can I feed this report to an AI for a fleet summary?
Yes — that is one reason the template insists on units, baselines and trends: structured numbers are what AI summarises reliably. Redact vessel identifiers if you use a public tool. Ready-made prompts for exactly this job are in our Maritime AI Prompt Pack.
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