NVIC 07-01: Inspecting and repairing riveted hull vessels

Last reviewed: October 14, 2026

This circular is Coast Guard guidance on inspecting and repairing older steel vessels with riveted hulls. It says repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines in enclosures (1) and (2). It also says improper repairs, such as drilling plates and injecting epoxy between them, will not be accepted.

Applies toThe circular is intended for marine inspectors, surveyors and vessel owner/operators working on older, riveted hull, steel vessels.

What it says

  1. The circular is guidance on best practices for marine inspectors, surveyors and vessel owner/operators who inspect older, riveted hull, steel vessels.

    “This circular is intended to provide marine inspectors, surveyors and vessel owner/operators with best practice guidance to use while conducting inspections on older, riveted hull, steel vessels.”

  2. Officers in Charge, Marine Inspection, should help ensure the widest dissemination of this information.

    “Officers in Charge, Marine Inspection, should help ensure widest dissemination of”

  3. Coast Guard inspectors and U.S. vessel owners/operators are encouraged to use the guidance in this NVIC for inspections and repairs on vessels built using riveted construction.

    “Coast Guard inspectors and U.S. vessel owners/operators are encouraged to use the guidance found in this NVIC to assist them in conducting inspections and repairs”

  4. Repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines offered in enclosures (1) and (2).

    “Repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines offered in enclosures (1) and (2).”

  5. The Coast Guard will not accept improper repairs, such as drilling plates and injecting epoxy between those plates.

    “Improper repairs, such as, drilling plates and injecting epoxy between these plates will not be accepted.”

Common questions

Can I drill plates and inject epoxy to repair a riveted hull?

No. The circular says improper repairs, such as drilling plates and injecting epoxy between them, will not be accepted.

“Improper repairs, such as, drilling plates and injecting epoxy between these plates will not be accepted.”

What guidelines should riveted hull repairs follow?

Repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines in enclosures (1) and (2) of the circular.

“Repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines offered in enclosures (1) and (2).”

Why did the Coast Guard issue this circular on riveted vessels?

Recent riveted vessel repair jobs showed a shortage of good generally available information on rivet repairs.

“Several recent riveted vessel repair jobs have highlighted a shortage of good”

The text of NVIC 07-01

U.S. Coast Guard, NVIC 07-01 (main body; enclosures not shown)

Procedures for hull inspection and repair on vessels built of riveted construction.

U.S. Department of Transportation United States Coast Guard Commandant United States Coast Guard 2100 Second Street SW Washington, DC 20593-0001 Staff Symbol: (G-MOC) Phone: 202-267-2978 COMDTPUB P16700.4 9 OCTOBER 2001 NAVIGATION AND VESSEL INSPECTION CIRCULAR NO. 7 01 Subj: PROCEDURES FOR HULL INSPECTION AND REPAIR ON VESSELS BUILT OF RIVETED CONSTRUCTION Ref: (a) Navigation and Inspection Circular (NVIC) 7-68, Notes on Inspection and Repair Of Steel Hulls (b) Navigation and Inspection Circular (NVIC) 3-68, Tensile Fasteners

Procedures for hull inspection and repair on vessels built of riveted construction. — PURPOSE. Several recent riveted vessel repair jobs have highlighted a shortage of good

information generally available on rivet repairs. This circular is intended to provide marine inspectors, surveyors and vessel owner/operators with best practice guidance to use while conducting inspections on older, riveted hull, steel vessels.

Procedures for hull inspection and repair on vessels built of riveted construction. — ACTION. Officers in Charge, Marine Inspection, should help ensure widest dissemination of

this information. Coast Guard inspectors and U.S. vessel owners/operators are encouraged to use the guidance found in this NVIC to assist them in conducting inspections and repairs on vessels built using riveted construction.

Procedures for hull inspection and repair on vessels built of riveted construction. — DIRECTIVES AFFECTED. None.

DIRECTIVES AFFECTED. None.

Procedures for hull inspection and repair on vessels built of riveted construction. — DISCUSSION. The need to inspect a riveted hull vessel is an infrequent event for most

marine inspectors. However, some riveted hull vessels remain a part of the operational U.S. fleet and need to be examined and repaired. Repairs to rivets or riveted plates should follow the guidelines offered in enclosures (1) and (2). These guidelines will assist in producing Distribution SDL No. 139 results that are acceptable to the Coast Guard. Many shipyards have very limited capability to conduct adequate rivet repairs. In addition, costs have become relatively high to repair a riveted hull vessel. This leads some vessel operators to conduct improper repairs. Improper repairs, such as, drilling plates and injecting epoxy between these plates will not be accepted. PAUL J. PLUTA ASSISTANT COMMANDANT FOR MARINE SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Encl: (1) Riveted Hull Repair and Replacement Procedures (2) Drawings of cross section examples of rivet deterioration

Sections it refers to

  • NVIC 7-68
  • NVIC 3-68

The plain-English explanation on this page was written with AI from the regulation text above and checked automatically before publishing: every quote appears in the text, every number comes from it, and a second model confirmed each statement adds nothing the text doesn't say. The regulation text governs. RegKnot is not affiliated with the U.S. Coast Guard.