Joining IMCA » Membership Categories

Membership is open to companies and organisations active in the offshore, marine and/or underwater engineering industries.

IMCA has a number of categories for the various types of membership, as follows:

• Contractor (Co)

  Contractor members are supported by the Association in terms of production/dissemination of industry best practice guidance, work on topics of common interest, briefing and lobbying.

  IMCA exists to represent its contractor members and the Association's work programme is directed to serve them. If your company undertakes marine, offshore or underwater engineering activities, it should apply to join in this category and can expect to benefit from the full range of IMCA's work and guidance in relevant areas.

  Generally, companies who wish to join IMCA as diving contractor members need to demonstrate their ability to operate in accordance with the IMCA International Code of Practice for Offshore Diving, through an assessment of the applicant's documentation and operational procedures followed by an on-site audit. Please contact the secretariat for full details and advice on the criteria and assessment process.

  • International Contractor (ICO)

    International Contractor - 'ICO' members join in a similar way to Contractor members, but on a world-wide basis, supporting all aspects of the Association's work and with representation on IMCA's Council, which provides political direction and support.

    ICO membership is for those wishing to undertake a heightened commitment to the Association, demonstrated through active participation in the ongoing work through IMCA Council, the various committees and regional sections, plus promotion and support of the Association to a wider audience. Such membership is open and promoted to major international contractors. Please contact Hugh Williams, IMCA Chief Executive, to discuss this option in more detail before applying in this category. Companies may wish to join in the Contractor category outlined below initially to discover IMCA close-up before progressing through to the ICO category.

• Supplier

  Those companies supplying IMCA's contractor members can benefit from the Association's work in their areas of expertise and interest; they also provide additional expert input to assist in IMCA's ongoing work programme, including development of industry guidance. Members join in one of the following sub-categories:

  • Suppliers of Equipment and Services (S)
  • Personnel Agencies (S*)
  • Training Establishments (S*)

  Supplier members are eligible to advertise in the quarterly IMCA newsletter, distributed in printed form to around 10,000 industry contacts world-wide and/or to have a stand at the exhibition associated with the IMCA annual seminar. Consultancy members are also given the opportunity of tendering to carry out technical studies, draft reports and guidance documents for IMCA in their areas of expertise. The subscription rates for this category are lower than for the contractor member category, as IMCA exists primarily to support its contractor members, who nevertheless value the input of such suppliers into the Association's work and the key role they can play in achieving its objectives.

• Corresponding (C)

  Non-voting, corresponding membership is open to companies and organisations with an interest in the work of the Association, but which IMCA does not directly represent, such as clients (oil companies, etc.), regulators (governments and other bodies) and other associations/professional bodies working in the offshore sector.

Corresponding membership appeals to such companies because of the range of guidance based on our members' cumulative experience, which can avoid the need for extensive work on similar topics when specifying ways of working for their projects. Equally, it provides a forum for such companies to raise any specific issues with a wide range of contractors and other members. Many corresponding members choose to join all four technical divisions, benefiting from the whole range of technical guidance and briefing produced by IMCA.

To see the list of current members, which may assist you in identifying the appropriate category for your own company, please visit our Member Directory, which also contains links to members' websites where requested, helping to promote them and showing the range of activities undertaken by IMCA members.

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