For over 25 years, CWA has provided a first-class consultancy service to a substantial clientele concerned with international trade, shipping, insurance and reinsurance (particularly the marine and energy sectors) and their legal counterparts.

Many of our Principals are involved in the risk management of the production, handling, storage, marine transportation and distribution of bulk commodities that dominate global trade.

CWA is a specialist consultancy, unique in the depth of expertise it offers for the technical investigation of loss and damage incidents and the analysis of claims. This means that CWA is equipped to deal with problems concerning shipments of food, dry commodities, metals, minerals, oil, gases and chemicals, all with equal proficiency.

The CWA service is accomplished through a sophisticated operation involving the co-ordination of small, integrated, expert teams, each controlled by a nucleus of experienced directors and staff.

The company employs well-qualified and highly experienced staff, including chemical and mining engineers, petroleum chemists, food scientists, risk analysts, master mariners and cargo surveyors.

Each unit or department possesses a detailed knowledge of the industry risk factors associated with each class of commodity and the means available for loss prevention and risk reduction.

CWA is a leading provider of risk analysis tools to the energy reinsurance sector, for application in the risk management of high capital, high hazard plants. CWA is also regularly engaged in the allied areas of risk assessment, safety, and environmental studies.

The firm has extensive experience of all categories of incident, including major casualty, loss and damage incidents affecting production plant, marine facilities, the ship or the cargo.

The types of incident regularly dealt with by the firm include fire and explosion, product contamination, business interruption and related economic losses, spillage of dangerous goods, oil pollution and other environmental impacts including safety hazards and risk assessment.

The company is ISO registered (since 1995) and operates on a 24/7 basis; specialist advice is swiftly made available to assist clients exposed to high damage incidents or facing situations with the potential for costly escalation. Our services are called on to make prompt attendance worldwide, typically to investigate the nature, extent and cause of an incident, or to assist with loss prevention and loss mitigation.

The company is expert in the assessment of damage to commodities and is frequently engaged to assist Principals in devising the most cost-effective route for cargo remediation or disposal.

Problems in international trade often give rise to complex claims which require careful analysis. CWA is thoroughly proficient in this, and the related need to prepare expert reports in a depth and format suitable for litigation. CWA's senior staff of consultants possess extensive court experience and are well versed in the demands of Expert Witness service. Our work in this area is supported by the firm's investment in extensive database management of the accrued information from over 5,000 case studies.

Over the past 10 years the company has accumulated extensive experience of major litigation, providing the key expert evidence over a wide range of issues. In a number of prominent cases we have also been retained by the legal team to provide additional comprehensive support services to deal with large-scale data management, the development of bespoke databases and in-depth forensic data analysis. In these areas the firm has established an excellent reputation. When instructed on major assignments CWA is adept at identifying the key determinants to match client requirements.

When necessary, we put together small teams with the precise mix of experience and multi-disciplinary skills. The company maintains close links with relevant professional institutes, research organisations and laboratories in the UK and worldwide; not being tied to any vested interest ensures that CWA provides a completely independent service.