Tag: safety measures

OSGis the world's second largest publicly traded oil tanker company The Overseas Shipbuilding Group (OSG), Inc. the world's second largest publicly traded oil tanker company (as measured by number of vessels), is consistently strengthening its capabilities to ensure safety and protection of the environment in transporting its cargoes.OSG is the only major tanker firm with a significant United States Flag and "International Flag Fleet," that has won the confidence of major oil and gas companies, refiners and traders in its (OSG's ) ability to provide safe and reliable transportation services, as it's track record shows.In an interview at the firm's Philippine office in Makati City, OSG President and Chief Executive Officer Morten Arntzen said OSG provides '"marine, shipping and global energy transportation services. " "OSG owns and operates an "international flag" and "US flag fleet" of 129 vessels, including ultra large crude carriers (ULCCs) and very large crude carriers (VLCCs) (aggregating more than 13 million deadweight tons) that transport crude oil, petroleum products and dry bulk commodities throughout the world that account for its vast business. It owns and operates the world's largest ULCC, and also transports liquefied natural gas (LNG). In addition, OSG has ordered four LNG carriers to ...

The Government plans to issue a notification imposing restrictions on ships, which are over 25 years India will soon become a party to two conventions of the International Maritime Organisations for having a strong legal framework to claim compensation in case of oil spills, ship wrecks and other accidents in the maritime sector.The country will accede to the Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage and the Convention for the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling System on ships, said the Union Shipping Minister, Mr G.K. Vasan.The Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage was adopted to ensure that adequate, prompt, and effective compensation is available to persons who suffer damage caused by oil spills, when carried as fuel in ships' bunkers. The other convention that Mr Vasan referred to prohibits use of harmful chemical compounds in anti-fouling paints used on ships. Mr Vasan's statement while inaugurating an international seminar on Towards Sustainable Shipping follows the recent oil leak from the Panama-flagged sunken cargo vessel, m.v. Rak, spilling over the coast of Mumbai. To commemorate the 100{+t}{+h} anniversary celebrations, the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers - Madras chapter, organised the seminar on the theme Towards Sustainable Shipping.Legal frameworkMr Vasan ...

Maersk Executive Safety Day On Friday, 4 November, top executives and heads of safety met for the company's first ever Maersk Executive Safety Day. "Safety makes us special," the Group CEO reiterated on the day, underlining that safety needs the attention of the highest leadership.Human errors can't be accepted as a root cause of any safety incident. Instead, one needs to find root causes that boil down to things that can be fixed.This was one of the main take-aways from the first ever Maersk Executive Safety Day held Friday, 4 November 2011, where top management and heads of safety met to discuss the Group's ongoing safety journey."Safety makes us special," the Group CEO Nils S. Andersen said and continued: "We discuss safety whenever we meet. While working here, you enter the tradition of taking care of one another."Nils S. Andersen thereby referred to the fact that safety is the first discussion point at any Executive Board meeting and defines the way Maersk runs its business. Something that became very visible during the safety day where the Executive Board members presented opportunities and challenges within their various business units.BU's can learn from one another The oil business is in the business ...

Good marine coatings are vital for the maintenance of safe and efficient hull structures Programme will develop appropriate, qualified, expertise in a cost effective and convenient mannerGood marine coatings are vital for the maintenance of safe and efficient hull structures and surfaces.The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) require compliance with coatings standards. Inspections under the IMO's Performance Standards for Protective Coatings (PSPC) and IACS' UI SC223 must be carried out by qualified coatings inspectors certified to National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) Coating Inspector Level 2, The Norwegian Professional Council for Education and Certification of Inspectors for Surface Treatment (FROSIO) Inspector Level III or equivalents.To help meet demand for qualified inspectors, Lloyd's Register has developed a new series of online, marine coatings training courses. Coatings and Corrosion Control with the use of Protective Coatings, is an internationally accredited series of coatings-inspection courses."Students will be able to earn either certificates or diplomas, depending on the level they study, in coatings and corrosion control. The qualification achieved by taking the course on Performance Standards for Protective Coatings is equivalent to the NACE and FROSIO qualifications required by IMO and IACS," said Andrew Williamson, Lloyd's Register's ...

To ensure that the UK's shipping, ports, and waterways are operated safely The UK Department for Transport (DfT) initiated its Maritime Red Tape Challenge.The goal is to examine over 200 international and domestic regulations relating to the maritime sector to ensure that the UK's shipping, ports, and waterways are operated in an efficient, safe, secure, and sustainable manner.Comments (in the areas of industry safety, environment, navigation safety, seafarers, and passengers) should be submitted by December 8.Source: UK Department for Transport

IT summarizes the investigative findings related to areas of BSEE responsibility On April 20, 2010, while the crew of the Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MODU) Deepwater Horizon (DWH) was finishing work after drilling the Macondo well, an undetected influx of hydrocarbons escalated to a blowout. Shortly after the blowout, hydrocarbons that had flowed onto the rig floor ignited in two separate explosions.The flowing hydrocarbons fueled a fire on the rig that continued to burn until the rig sank on April 22, 2010. These events resulted in the tragic loss of eleven lives and multiple injuries. Due to the valiant efforts of the crews on the Damon Bankston and Ramblin Wreck, 115 survivors were able to evacuate the DWH and be immediately rescued.Crews of several other vessels in the area were first responders to the scene and also provided assistance to those in need. Over a period of 87 days, almost 5 million barrels1 of oil were discharged from the Macondo well into the Gulf of Mexico resulting in the largest oil spill in U.S. history and affecting offshore and coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico.Because of the severity of the accident, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and ...

The nation must make commitment to spill prevention and response preparedness Last week the Department of the Interior released its proposed program for offshore oil and gas leasing from 2012 to 2017. The proposed program calls for potential lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico as well as in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas north and west of Alaska. This is an important time to examine the lessons we are still learning from the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. The nation must make a genuine commitment to spill prevention and response preparedness, which was not the case when the BP oil blowout occurred.If the United States is truly committed to protecting our ocean and the people who depend on ocean ecosystems, then we need to take action on six key lessons: Establishing baseline science before the federal government commits to offshore leases allows for better decisions about whether, where, when and how to drill. The necessary information includes identification of Important Ecological Areas and the Environmentally Sensitive Areas specified in the federal government's "blueprint" for responding to oil spills and other hazardous substance releases. Spill prevention and response preparedness must be integrated into oil and gas leasing ...

The oil spill once again calls into question the safety of drilling The Brazilian unit of U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. (CVX) is rushing equipment to find the cause of an oil leak at the offshore Frade field, but the spill is not related to a production well and output is continuing normally, a Chevron spokeswoman said in an interview Thursday."We don't yet know the cause of the spill, but we know for sure that it is not from a production well," the spokeswoman said.The oil spill will likely once again call into question the safety of drilling for oil and natural gas far offshore after last year's Macondo disaster in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Chevron became aware of an oil slick of an undetermined size between the Frade field, about 120 kilometers off the coast of Espirito Santos state, and the nearby Roncador field operated by Brazilian state-run energy giant Petroleo Brasileiro (PBR, PETR4.BR), or Petrobras, the company said. The two fields are located in the Campos Basin offshore Brazil, where more than 90% of the country's crude oil is produced."This is not the same thing as Macondo," the spokeswoman said, adding that oil leaks from the seabed ...

Enforcing safety practices The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has stressed the importance of safety for companies in the maritime and shipbuilding sector in the free port.SBMA director Norberto Sosa, a marine and terminal operations expert, stressed that local firms should exert extra efforts to keep the industry safe and help erase the image as a disaster-prone country."We are being known for maritime disasters. I do not want that to continue. There should be visible management commitment to safety," he told representatives of maritime firms here."There are lessons to be learned in recent accidents in the shipbuilding industry, particularly the tragedy that struck the Keppel shipyard in Subic, Zambales, he said.Sosal also emphasized that business locators in the Subic Bay Freeport should place safety on equal footing with business objectives.A committee has been organized by the SBMA to conduct safety inspections of the different shipyards and drydocks in the free port.Director Wilfredo Pineda has assured locators that SBMA has done its part in enforcing safety practices, as the Subic Bay Freeport now hosts several shipbuilding and repair companies, including Hanjin Heavy Industries, Co., Ltd., the fourth largest shipbuilder in the world.Source: Manila Bulletin

Concern continues over potentially dangerous reefer containers The ITF is taking action to protect the health and safety of port workers and seafarers as concern continues over potentially dangerous reefer containers.Some 900 refrigerated units were withdrawn by shipping line Maersk last month after three fatalities were linked to maintenance work carried out on containers in Vietnam.Although as yet unconfirmed, it's thought that some reefers may have been topped up with contaminated gas causing them to be potentially explosive under certain conditions.ITF affiliates across dockers, seafarers and road and rail sections, have been informed of the potential risk attached to these units and are being advised to follow up with their local health and safety authorities.ITF dockers' section secretary Frank Leys said: "We are pleased to see that big shipping lines like Maersk have reacted quickly to this situation and we would join our US affiliate, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, in urging any companies or organisations who haven't already taken steps to alleviate this risk, to follow suit now."Seafarers' section secretary Jon Whitlow added: "We are extremely concerned for the welfare of those workers on ships who may be unaware that a defective container is being carried on board."Whilst ...