(1) A person applying for accreditation to issue registers and pertinent certificates, to maintain registers and appropriate records, and to conduct initial, annual and quadrennial surveys, must not be accredited unless they are engaged in one or more of the following activities:

(a) Classification of vessels;

(b) Certification of vessels' cargo gear;

(c) Shipbuilding or ship repairing, or both insofar as related to work on vessels' cargo handling gear;

(d) Unit and loose gear testing of vessels' cargo handling gear.

(2) Applicants for accreditation under WAC 296-304-14007(1) for operations in coastal or Great Lakes ports who come within WAC 296-304-14007 (1)(b) or (d) must not be accredited unless they conduct at least 1,500 hours of cargo gear certification work per year.

(3) A person applying for accreditation to carry out tests of loose gear or wire rope, or both, or to carry out heat treatments, and to issue the related certificates, must be engaged in one or both of the following activities:

(a) Testing of loose gear or wire rope, or both;

(b) Heat treatment of chains and loose cargo gear.

(4) A person applying for accreditation must be staffed by individuals technically qualified to conduct the inspections and examinations and to conduct or supervise tests and heat treatments prescribed in this part. Any representatives, agents or surveyors acting on behalf of a person applying for accreditation in ports in which such operations are conducted must be similarly qualified.

Accreditation to conduct such nondestructive examination as may be a part of any certification activity may be granted to applicants found competent and equipped to carry out this activity.

(5) Except as noted in WAC 296-304-13001 (2)(a), and unless exemptions are granted under WAC 296-304-15001(8), a person applying for accreditation as specified in WAC 296-304-14007(1) must be prepared to carry out all of the requirements of WAC 296-304-150 through 296-304-15005, 296-304-160 through 296-304-16025, and 296-304-170 through 296-304-17023 except that loose gear and wire rope tests and heat treatments may be carried out by the manufacturer of the gear concerned or by another person accredited specifically for this purpose.

(6) A person applying for accreditation must have a satisfactory record of performance.