N – Shipping Terms

National Strategy for Maritime Security
In December 2004 the President directed the Secretaries of the Department of Defense and Home­land Security to lead the Federal effort to develop a comprehensive National Strategy for Maritime Security, to better integrate and synchronize the existing Department–level strategies and ensure their effective and efficient implementation. The strategy includes eight supporting plans to address the specific threats and challenges of the maritime environment and combined they present a compre­hensive national effort to promote global economic stability and protect legitimate activities while preventing hostile or illegal acts within the maritime domain.

National Plan to Achieve Maritime Domain Awareness
Lays the foundation for an effective understanding of anything associated with the Maritime Domain and identify­ing threats as early and as distant from our shores as possible.

Naval Cooperation and Guidance for Shipping (NCAGS)It
is a naval organization with members who are trained to establish and provide advice for safe pas­sage of merchant ships worldwide, during times of peace, tension, crisis and war. NCAGS personnel act as a liaison between military commanders and the civil authorities. During war, the NCAGS orga­nization may be responsible for establishing a convoy.

NCB
National Cargo Bureau, established in 1952 as a non-profit marine surveying organization that in­spects and surveys ships and cargoes incidental to loading and discharging. It issues certificates as evidence of compliance with the provisions of the Dangerous Cargo Act and the Rules and Regula­tions for Bulk Grain Cargo.

N.C.I.T.D.
National Committee on International Trade Documentation.

NEC
Abbreviation for “Not Elsewhere Classified.”

Negotiable Instruments
A document of title (such as a draft, promissory note, check, or bill of lading) transferable from one person to another in good faith for a consideration. Non–negotiable bills of lading are known as “straight consignment.” Negotiable bills are known as “order b/l’s.”

NES
Abbreviation for “Not Elsewhere Specified.”

Nested
Articles packed so that one rests partially or entirely within another, thereby reducing the cubic–foot displacement.

Net Tare Weight
The weight of an empty cargo–carrying piece of equipment plus any fixtures permanently attached.

Net Tonnage (NT)The replacement, since 1994, for “Net Register Tonnage.”
Theoretically the cargo capacity of the ship. Sometimes used to charge fees or taxes on a vessel.The formula is(0.2+0.02 log10(Vc)) Vc (4d/3D)2, for passenger ships the following formula is added: 1.25 (GT+10000)/10000 (N1+(N2/10)), where Vc is the volume of cargo holds, D is the distance between ship’s bottom and the uppermost deck, d is the draught, N1 is the number of cabin passengers, and N2 is the number of deck passen­gers.) “Ton” is figured as a 100 cubic foot ton. An approximate conversion ratio is 1NT = 1.7GT and 1GT = 1.5DWT.

Net Weight
Weight of the goods alone without any immediate wrappings, e.g., the weight of the contents of a tin can without the weight of the can.

Neutral Body
An organization established by the members of an ocean conference acts as a self–policing force with broad authority to investigate tariff violations, including authority to scrutinize all documents kept by the carriers and their personnel. Violations are reported to the membership and significant penalties are assessed.

Nippon
Kaiji Kyokai (NK)
A Japanese classification society which certifies seagoing vessels for compliance to standardized rules regarding construction and maintenance.

N.M.F.C.
National Motor Freight Classification.

NOI
Abbreviation for “Not Otherwise Indexed.”

NOIBN
Abbreviation for “Not Otherwise Indexed By Name.”

Nomenclature of the Customs Cooperation Council
The Customs tariff used by most countries worldwide.
It was formerly known as the Brussels Tariff Nomenclature and is the basis of the commodity coding system known as the Harmonized System.

Non–Dumping Certificate
Required by some countries for protection against the dumping of certain types of merchandise or products.

Non–Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC)A
cargo consolidator in ocean trades who will buy space from a carrier and sub–sell it to smaller ship­pers. The NVOCC issues bills of lading, publishes tariffs and otherwise conducts itself as an ocean common carrier, except that it will not provide the actual ocean or intermodal service.

NOR
Notice of Readiness (when the ship is ready to load.)

NOS
Abbreviation for “Not Otherwise Specified.”

Nose
Front of a container or trailer–opposite the tail.

No–show
Cargo which has been booked but does not arrive in time to be loaded before the vessel sails. See also “Windy Booking.”

N.P.C.F.B.
North Pacific Coast
Freight Bureau.

NRT –Net Register Tons see “Net Tonnage
“Theoretically the cargo capacity of the ship. Sometimes used to charge fees or taxes on a vessel.