Tag: training

When some skippers see pirates are coming they stop the engine - that is just about the worst "When some skippers see pirates are coming they stop the engine - that is just about the worst thing you can do."For Tony Dumbell, head of Maritime Operations at Fleetwood Nautical Campus, dealing with pirates is a matter of common sense, as he speaks from a virtual ship's bridge in a classroom off the Lancashire coast.The Gulf of Aden may be a world away from the Irish Sea but this college is leading the way in preparing mariners on how to deal with pirates.It also helps sea marshals - armed security guards based on ships - tackle the basics of managing the potentially-lethal situation.The college, where Prince William learned how to escape from a submerged helicopter, is offering modules on dealing with piracy as part of its courses for merchant navy officer cadets.Campus head John Matthews said the college decided to offer the courses after a former student told them about an attempted piracy attack 18 months ago.The ship eventually repelled the attempted boarders by hurling large chunks of wood at the approaching launch.Although students don body armour and are taught how ...

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 ...

Covering the new STCW Grade of 'Able Seafarer Engine'. Marisec Publications has published an updated and expanded version of its 'On Board Training Record Book for Deck Ratings' this month.The 2010 amendments to the IMO STCW Convention, which enter into force in 2012, will make it mandatory for trainee deck ratings to use a training record book to provide evidence of structured on board training.This includes ratings seeking to qualify for the new STCW grade of 'Able Seafarer Deck.'Moreover, most flag states are expected to require existing ratings to be certificated for the new grade of 'Able Seafarer Deck' as part of their minimum safe manning requirements.In addition, Marisec will be publishing a similar 'On Board Training Record Book for Engine Ratings', which will cover the new STCW Grade of 'Able Seafarer Engine'.Source: Tanker Operator

An agreement to deliver the first version of its training course Ecofloat Ecodesk, a public, sustainability database of carbon, energy, water and waste, with data on over 17,000 global organisations, has announced the signing of an agreement to deliver the first version of its training course, Ecofloat, to Maersk subsidiary Svitzer Australia.Ecofloat 1.0 is a new, interactive digital training course specifically designed for the maritime industry.The course comprises ten specific lessons with exercises focused on tug operation specifics such as speed and acceleration, using tide and current and planning ahead, as well as setting out practical steps to reduce fuel costs and carbon emissions via idling time and generator load.Ecofloat 1.0 is hoped to effect a behaviour change through a series of cognitive adjustments by doing real exercises which set the stage for "learning by figuring out". The behaviour change is bedded-in and remains a part of the job and responsibility for the longer term.Ecodesk aims at delivering a series of benefits with Ecofloat, such as reducing fuel consumption by over 15%, reducing GHG emissions, facilitating compliance with legislation, as well as boosting crew morale."If you extrapolate this single measurement/efficiency project across the maritime sector in, the cost savings run ...

All boat users should know how to use a radio and the correct distress procedures At 09.50pm, Solent Coastguard responded to a mayday call from a vessel called Ribcraft.Solent Coastguard broadcast a mayday relay and two leisure vessels responded that were in the vicinity.Solent Coastguard called out the Lymington Coastguard rescue team and requested the launch of the Yarmouth RNLI lifeboat.The skipper of the mayday vessel on questioning then indicated to Solent Coastguard that they had run out of fuel, they were displaying navigation lights and had lifejackets. They had no means of identifying their position and no anchor onboard so were unable to anchor.The skipper of the ribcraft then confirmed that he did have some spare fuel onboard and that he was able to get back to Lymington Marina under his own power.Alan Waters, Duty Watch Manager, Solent Coastguard said:If you are going to sea, please ensure that you have the correct and necessary equipment to get you out of trouble. In this particular incident, a GPS, an anchor and knowing that you enough fuel to make your trip and return safely to port are all items that should be on your checklist.We would always recommend that all boat ...

MLC 2006 formula requires special training Dominick Devlin is a special advisor on the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006) and he is one of the experts involved in the Maritime Labour Academy, a programme of specialized courses aimed at strengthening the capacity of governments, shipowners and seafarers in the application of the Convention. In this interview, Dominick Devlin explains why the MLC, 2006 formula requires special training and why this is essential for the enforcement of the Convention.What is so innovative about the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 to require such a specific training programme? The MLC, 2006 is an immense endeavour and there has been nothing like it since 1919, when the first international labour convention was adopted. The MLC, 2006 places together about 36 existing Conventions, it consolidates them, and when countries ratify it they are not allowed to "pick and choose" between the various parts, like in some other ILO Conventions.What makes it easy for these countries to ratify is a principle of firmness and flexibility: firmness on making sure that the rights of the seafarers are enforced but with a considerable degree of flexibility for the governments, in the way that they will deliver those rights.On the ...

South Korea to provide counter-piracy training The UAE has invited specialist naval forces from South Korea to provide counter-piracy training as part of efforts to boost its defences against the growing high-seas threat.About 10 underwater demolition troops will arrive in mid-July, supplementing 130 Korean "Ahk" special forces already stationed in Al Ain to provide antiterrorism training, said Col Romano Lee, the defence attache at the South Korean embassy in Abu Dhabi.South Korea successfully freed a ship from Somali pirates in January - an event that left an impression on the UAE, a South Korean defence official told the South Korean Yonhap news agency.In January, its navy commandos rescued the South Korean cargo ship Samho Jewellery, which had been hijacked in the Arabian Sea en route from the UAE to Sri Lanka.All 21 Samho Jewellery crew members survived, including the captain, though he suffered a serious gunshot wound. Eight pirates were killed, while five were captured and now face trial in South Korea.The announcement of the arrival of the 10 Korean troops' arrival comes just days after Abu Dhabi received a Turkish naval delegation to do exercises related to counter-piracy.South Korea and Turkey participate in a multinational counter-piracy group called the ...

The meeting went on to establish the mission and objectives of the regional training centre A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to allow the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to fund the building of a regional training centre in Djibouti, to promote the implementation of the Code of Conduct concerning the Repression of Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden (Djibouti Code of Conduct), was signed on Monday (30 May 2011), in Djibouti.The MOU was signed by His Excellency Mr Mohamed Moussa Ibrahim Balala, Minister of Equipment and Transport, Republic of Djibouti, and Mr Koji Sekimizu, Director, Maritime Safety Division, IMO, at the opening ceremony of a high-level meeting, held to formulate a regional coordination process for maritime security training and to endorse the regional training centre.After the signing ceremony, the meeting went on to adopt a resolution to establish the mission and objectives of the regional training centre in Djibouti; the coordination process for regional maritime training; and the process for the programming of regional training.The training centre will be built using funds donated by Japan to the IMO Trust Fund for the implementation of the Djibouti Code of Conduct, which has ...

Allows students to apply marine theory in a realistic environment The British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) has launched a new marine simulation centre in Vancouver.The centre features seven new ship bridges, North America's only 360-degree tug towboat bridge simulator, a ship's main bridge simulation environment, and an engine room simulator complete with audio special effects and emergency lights.The project was completed in conjunction with the Government of Canada and Transport Canada, and with marine industry partners including BC Ferries, Kongsberg Maritime Simulation, Kinder Morgan Canada, Pacific Pilotage Authority, Port Metro Vancouver, Seaspan, and the Council of Marine Carriers."This unprecedented technology allows students to apply marine theory in a realistic and hands-on environment, preparing our graduates for their future and helping them become ready to play a key role in shaping the future of the marine industry in Western Canada," said Don Wright, president of BCIT.Source: Digital Ship

The game suggests ways of combating piracy off Somalia coast This month, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) is rolling out its first ever internet wargame intended to tap the minds of online gamers in order to find solutions to real-world problems facing the Navy.Scheduled to run for three weeks, the MMOWGL the Massive Multiplayer Online Wargame Leveraging the Internet exercise will recruit more than 1,000 online players to suggest ways of combating piracy off the coast of Somalia.MMOWGLI is an online game designed to find and collectively grow breakthrough ideas to some of the Navys most complex problemsthose 21st-century threats that demand new forms of collaboration and truly outlying ideas, said Dr. Larry Schuette, ONRs director of Innovation, whose office is managing the project.The piracy scenario was chosen as a means to demonstrate the platform, but MMOWGLI itself can be applied to any scenario, officials said.ONR intends to produce varying results from a diverse group of players drawn from the ranks of academia, defense, and government and nongovernment organizations. The plan is for MMOWGLI to identify solutions to difficult challenges by tapping into the intellectual capital of a broader community.We hope MMOWGLI will help us to understand what happens ...