In an exclusive interview to SAFETY4SEA, Geir Jørgensen, SVP Global Head of Loss Prevention in Skuld P&I Club, underscores the pivotal role of the human element both ashore and aboard ships. Emphasizing the need for the industry to broaden its perspective beyond onboard factors, he advocates for a comprehensive approach to address the entire life of a seafarer, considering the myriad challenges that can impact their physical and mental well-being.
Geir applauds the industry’s collaborative efforts and wishes that certain procedures would become more time-efficient. He notes, for example, that the SOLAS and STCW conventions frequently lag behind current developments. Additionally, he highlights the industry’s need to further promote seagoing careers and the valuable opportunities they can offer.
SAFETY4SEA: What are the top priorities in your agenda for the next five years?
Geir Jorgensen: The top priority for Skuld Loss Prevention department is to continue to work closely with our members. We want to be seen as an extended arm of their organisation and help them to reduce operational risk. This is a continuous journey where our learnings from more than 125 years of claims handling experience will add value.
S4S: What will be the biggest challenge regarding Loss Prevention up to 2030? How will this affect the industry, and how are you preparing to face this?
G.J.: I will not call it challenges, but rather opportunities. With the decarbonisation and the transition our members will have to go through, we will be there to support them. We are preparing for it by educating ourselves in learning new equipment, new technologies, new commodities and their risks, and the governance that comes with the new IMO regulations. It is important for us to understand our members’ challenges, and we must be in the forefront. What we know today might not be good enough tomorrow. It is a continuous learning process which also makes it interesting and motivating to work with.
S4S: In your view, has the industry successfully enhanced its safety performance? Where should ship operators focus on to further enhance the safety culture onboard?
G.J.: The short answer is yes, but if we give it some more thought, one might say that more could have been done. Statistically, life at sea is getting safer. Our industry sees less major pollution cases and less casualties, but every year there are fatalities and major injuries among seafarers. We cannot be satisfied if this is occurring, but we must at the same time appreciate all the good work that is being done to make life at sea safer. To enhance the safety culture, you first must ensure the fundamentals are in place. MLC deficiencies should off course be avoidable. Treat your crew well, and they will deliver the service you require onboard safely and efficiently. It should not be necessary to mention this, but we do, unfortunately, still see breaches of these fundamentals.
S4S: Has the industry been successful in managing Human Factors and the needs of the seafarer onboard? What needs to change?
G.J.: I will say that the industry has room for improvement, but I will not agree that human factors are ignored onboard. The human element is important both at home and onboard. Media tend to focus only on the onboard factors and then forget to focus on the whole life of a seafarer. The challenges one might experience in the private life will play an important part of a seafarer’s physical- and mental health.
S4S: Despite various initiatives and collaboration, is there a need to address any crew welfare issues from a regulatory point of view?
G.J.: No, there should not be a need for such. I will first stress the importance of strict compliance with MLC. If MLC is lived by fully and there are still challenges, the question can be relevant.
S4S: What is your wish list for the industry and/or regulators and all parties involved towards loss prevention?
G.J.: I see already a great deal of collaboration within the different non-governing bodies who actively lobby towards the different flag states and IMO. I am chairing the IG Ship Technical Committee, and it is rewarding to see that we can join forces and work on safety as a common goal, despite being competitors as insurers. I see the same within IUMI and other committees. If I have a wish, it must be that some of the processes should take less time. IMO, with the convention SOLAS and STCW are often behind in time. New technologies and new practices are implemented in shipping before the IMO has managed to update the conventions. That itself is a risk.
S4S: How is the Skuld P&I Club facing the most challenging issues of digitization and decarbonization? Are there any related initiatives/ projects/ actions planned?
G.J.: Skuld has been on the digital journey for quite some time. Our digital services via our logged in pages are constantly being developed and improved. We want to make life easier for our members and to provide them with more of our insights. Working with claims for more than 125 years has given the Club quite some experience. We are making this experience digital for our members. When it comes to decarbonisation, it is important to be at the forefront, by learning and understanding the new technologies. We are supporting our members’ decarbonisation initiatives; we are insuring their green shift.
S4S: What needs to change to raise the industry’s profile and attract future talents?
G.J.: First, we must promote a seagoing career. In my eyes, it is one of the best careers you can have, and it opens fantastic opportunities ashore as well. The learnings you get from life at sea are unique and highly valuable. Life at sea is, in most cases, excellent. That should be the focus as we parallel work to solve and improve on the few things that are not working as well as we want them to be.
The views presented hereabove are only those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of SAFETY4SEA and are for information sharing and discussion purposes only.
