Month: November 2013

Date Announced For London International Shipping Week 2015

Elaborate Communications

Following the success of this year’s inaugural event, the date for the next London International Shipping Week (LISW) has been announced.

London International Shipping Week 2015 will take place from September 7 to 11, 2015.

Already maritime businesses are lining up to support this flagship industry event, which benefits from the backing of the UK Government and the global shipping industry. A range of conferences, seminars and meetings are being pencilled into diaries.

Sean Moloney, Director of LISW organiser Shipping Innovation, said: “We are delighted to announce that London International Shipping Week will again take place. Following the success of this year’s inaugural event we consulted widely throughout the UK and international maritime sectors and are pleased that the decision to run the event in two years’ time has the total support of the shipping industry and government.”

The first London International Shipping Week attracted thousands of delegates to the UK capital to attend more than 70 maritime events, including a high-level Government reception at Lancaster House, a Downing Street summit, well-attended conferences and a Gala dinner.

Speaking after this year’s LISW packed programme, UK Shipping Minister Stephen Hammond said: “Very simply, it was an outstanding success, creating a buzz well beyond expectations. I am sure this will resonate for some time to come.”

“I fully expect London International Shipping Week to become a regular fixture of the industry calendar,” Kenneth MacLeod, UK Chamber of Shipping predicted.

A special LISW Launch Event is planned for September 2014 to introduce the conference themes, to welcome the new sponsors and to set the ball rolling for 2015. Anyone wishing to participate in the LISW Launch Event should email: info@shippinginnovation.com for more details.

Pay Attention to COLREGS Warns Videotel

Debra Massey

PRESS RELEASE
Every incident of ship collision brings the risk of costly damage to a vessel and its cargo; the prospect of environmental damage; and the danger of personnel injury or even death. For 40 years, the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) have been in force and yet still vessel collisions occur on a far too frequent basis.

Addressing this is the new hotly awaited training course from Videotel Marine International, the COLREGS & IALA Buoyage Training Course. Developed in conjunction with Steamship Mutual, the course is designed to ensure that all deck officers and crew performing lookout duties are fully conversant with the regulations designed to prevent unnecessary accidents. It deals with both COLREGS and the IALA (International Association of Marine Aids and Lighthouse Authorities) buoyage system.

“In recent years, increased ship size and high traffic density have heightened the risk of collision,” explains Nigel Cleave, CEO of Videotel. “It is an absolute requirement that the watchkeeping officer – and indeed every member of crew performing lookout duties – thoroughly understand and follow these important rules to ensure safe navigation of the ship.
“Yet still the majority of incidents are caused through negligence and the failure to fully understand the Collision Regulations. Research has also found that the understanding of and adherence to the rules is not as comprehensive as would be expected. These regulations have been put in place to help the team on the bridge ensure the safety of the vessel, cargo and crew.”
The first part of the course deals with the Collision Regulations. It clarifies the meanings of
every Rule, putting them into simple easy-to-understand language and illustrating them with
graphic diagrams, sound and light signals, where appropriate. It also includes the full text of the Rules and the four Annexes.

The second part of the course deals with the IALA buoyage system. Being able to recognise
every buoy and knowing what each means is essential for all watchkeeping officers and each type
of buoy, their top marks and lights are described and their meanings illustrated graphically. The
course deals with the lateral buoyage systems in regions A and B, the cardinal marks, isolated
danger marks, safe water marks, special marks and the emergency wreck marking buoy.

For maximum effect the course is delivered using interactive eLearning Computer Based Training (CBT). Voiced narration, graphics and 3D animation as well as video are used to illustrate concepts and aid understanding. As this knowledge is fundamental to bridge watchkeeping, both parts of the course end with a test comprising of extensive randomised questions and a high pass mark is required.

Over the last three months alone Videotel has produced and launched over 15 training programmes and courses, which are provided in up to 29 languages. These range from training programmes on COLREGS to others dealing with a variety of important subjects including specialist requirements for Deep Water Ship handling to the practical management and switching of marine fuels.

Voyager Distribution Network Expands

Debra Massey

Global Navigation Solutions is pleased to announce that Voyager is now offered by all members of the Global Navigation Solutions maritime services group.

Ship operators looking for the state-of-the-art route planning, intelligent data management and quality of compliance provided uniquely by this new digital chart management system can now obtain Voyager from any company within the Global Navigation Solutions group worldwide.

Bringing together the world’s most established and reputable names in maritime navigation into one global network, the Global Navigation Solutions group of companies comprises: DPM Europe, DPM Singapore, HanseNautic, Lilley & Gillie Charts, Thomas Gunn and Poly Thomas Gunn.

Mike Robinson, CEO of Global Navigation Solutions is delighted with the move. “With offices in Germany, Greece, North America, Singapore, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and the UK, we are now able to offer our customers the services of a world-wide team of more than 300 highly skilled people – all with excellent knowledge and understanding of the market, the latest technology and the changing regulatory environment.

“We are proud of the heritage of the Voyager brand and the leading role it plays in navigation today. Global Navigation Solutions is setting new standards in the provision of navigational products and services and this significant expansion of the Voyager distribution network will serve to reinforce our reputation for excellent customer service.”

Voyager sets industry standards in the management, maintenance and use of navigational information on board. Global Navigation Services’ team of maritime experts and software engineers have incorporated a Chart Correction Service, Admiralty AVCS and Digital Publication updates, a full paper and digital chart and publication catalogue, a GIS based route planning tool and a rapidly growing range of additional services – all designed to help make navigational planning more efficient, safer and more cost-effective.

Videotel works with industry to meet chemical tanker training needs

Debra Massey

Chemical Tanker safety comes into sharp focus in a new training course from leading maritime training provider Videotel Marine International.

The newly-launched Advanced Chemical Tanker Course has been developed in conjunction with the Chemical Distribution Institute (CDI), with the involvement of some of the biggest names in the chemical tanker industry.

Nigel D. Cleave, Videotel CEO, explains the thinking behind the initiative: “Chemical companies employ some of the highest quality workforce and demand the highest quality training for that workforce. We have worked with the industry to produce this high-specification course which is extremely flexible and sophisticated in its delivery and will be continually updated to meet the changing demands of this sector.”

The Advanced Chemical Tanker Course is online, live-tutored and MCA-accredited and is targeted specifically at Masters, Chief Officers, Chief Engineers, Second Engineers and other persons having immediate responsibility for loading, discharging and care in transit of cargo on bulk liquid chemical tankers, including shoreside operational personnel.

Course content focuses on meeting the requirements of STCW and is constantly reviewed and updated to address findings and recommendations from marine casualty investigations.

Delivered through the unique Videotel Academy, the advanced course technology allows students to complete their study at a time and place to suit them and their employment responsibilities.

Live tutorials and interactive discussion sessions are conducted on-line through the Videotel Academy virtual classroom, while the learning experience is supported by electronic course notes, video sequences and library access. Each day of the five-day programme, which covers 11 study modules, concludes with an assignment and assessment paper with a final written assessment on day five.

The course benefits from the involvement of former seagoing and CDI General Manager, Martin Whittle, as Course Tutor. Martin brings with him 21 years of sea-borne experience and was responsible for the chemical industry’s global marine transportation and storage inspection schemes and the subsequent establishment of CDI-T and IMPCAS systems.

Chemical tanker businesses profit from cost savings as the online format avoids the need for costly travel and accommodation costs, while its 24-hour, instant-access approach is time-efficient. The course content is fully customisable to provide bespoke training which can also be harmonised with individual company in-house training programmes.

Reducing CO2 is economic ‘no brainer’ for shipowners, ICS tells UN climate change conference

Debra Massey

Today, at the United Nations (UNFCCC) Climate Change Conference in Warsaw (COP 19), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) will advise a United Nations event on the economics of mitigation that reducing CO2 emissions is an economic ‘no brainer’ for the global shipping industry. Further efforts by industry to improve fuel efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions from ships – which carry about 90% of global trade – is already a matter of enlightened self interest.

ICS, which is the principal international trade association for shipowners, will explain that fuel is the shipping industry’s largest variable operating cost. In the last 5 years alone, fuel prices have increased by about 300%, and are expected to increase by a further 50%-100% due to the imminent switch to low sulphur fuel, soon to be required for most ships by separate International Maritime Organization (IMO) rules.

“The fuel costs for a typical ship carrying iron ore are already about US$3 million a year. For the latest generation of mega containerships they could be as much $30 million a year” said ICS Director External Relations, Simon Bennett. “The high cost of fuel means that market forces are already providing shipowners with every incentive they need to continue improving their fuel efficiency and reduce their CO2 emissions. Otherwise shipping companies will simply not survive.”

With the full support of the shipping industry, the worldwide entry into force in January 2013 of amendments to the IMO MARPOL Convention makes shipping the first industrial sector to have a binding global regime in place to reduce CO2 emissions.

“In addition to the new IMO regulations to improve the efficiency of new ship designs, the mandatory application of Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plans is now giving additional impetus to fuel efficiency measures that are already being taken by much of the industry.” said Mr Bennett. This includes measures such as operating ships at slower speeds, and adjusting trim (the balance of weight which affects how ships move through water).

The shipping industry remains committed to working with governments at IMO to help deliver further measures to improve fuel efficiency from ships. The immediate focus at IMO, pending the conclusion of a replacement to the Kyoto Protocol in 2015, is the development of a mandatory system for the monitoring and reporting of the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by every individual ship in the commercial world fleet. This is fully supported by the industry and is something on which ICS is about to make a detailed submission to IMO with respect to a possible way forward that might be acceptable to all nations in both developed and emerging economies.

ICS Questions France About C02 Reporting Requirements For Ships

Elaborate Communications

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the global trade association for shipowners, has written to the French Government to raise concerns about a new requirement for foreign shipowners to provide information to their French customers about CO2 emissions, using a detailed methodology that has not been discussed internationally.

ICS believes that the unilateral application by France of these new CO2 reporting requirements to foreign ships cuts across the principles of global regulatory uniformity and the primacy of IMO as the regulator of international shipping.

The new and very detailed rules that have been added to the French Transport Code apply across all transport modes, although the Director General for Maritime Transport is responsible for their enforcement in the maritime sector.

ICS has therefore suggested that the Director General for Maritime Transport should advise that these requirements will not be enforced on international shipping pending the outcome of discussions on the monitoring and reporting of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions currently taking place at the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

The IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee is now in the process of developing global regulations for the mandatory monitoring and reporting of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by ships trading internationally.  ICS fully supports the development of these measures at IMO and wishes to avoid any impediment to their adoption for global application.

Simon Bennett, ICS Director External Relations, explained: “We anticipate that the methodology for reporting that will be agreed by IMO Member States through amendments to the MARPOL Convention will be very different to the methodology specified by the new French requirements.  The IMO requirements should also be tailored to the special characteristics of international shipping, and will be the product of international consensus.  The immediate implementation of these French regulations is a real concern because shipping is a global industry requiring adherence by governments to a uniform global regulatory framework if it is to operate efficiently.”

ICS has reminded France of the difficulties that would be created if other coastal states were to implement their own unilateral requirements for the reporting of CO2 emissions by ships.

Mr Bennett added: “The global maritime transport system would be very challenged indeed by the administrative burden of providing information that required the use of different methodologies and national formats for reporting given that cargo ships can call at a very large number of countries during the course of a year.”

Shipping companies are still trying to understand the detail of the new CO2 reporting requirements, the English translation of which has only recently come to the attention of the global shipping industry.  But serious concerns are already being raised by international companies about the validity of the methodologies that have been developed by France, as set out in the ‘Methodological Guide for Transport Services’ produced by the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy.

The development of a global system for the monitoring and reporting of CO2 emissions from ships will be considered by the next meeting of the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee in March 2014.   It is also the subject of a draft EU Regulation proposed by the European Commission.

Article L. 1431-3 of the French Transport Code came into effect for foreign shipping companies in October.

Bibby Ship Management ‘Girl Power’ – Taking Up The Challenge

Elaborate Communications

Intrepid trekkers – Jess Kramer, Sarah Ryan, Nicky Davenport and Sandra Corrigan have just arrived home from a trip of a lifetime.

All four Bibby Ship Management (BSM) Isle of Man employees took part in the Bibby Line Group ‘Giving Something Back’ Dalai Lama Trek in India, in October. The five day trek saw the team reach an altitude of 3,500 metres, camping in some extreme weather, however with such a fantastic support crew keeping the team firmly on the ground the trip was a great success.

Months of training and hard work paid off as the team raised an amazing £6,800 for their chosen local charities – Hyperbaric Chamber, Manx Diabetic Group, IOM Sea Cadet Troop and IOM Hospice. The charities will benefit from the team’s wonderful achievement and it will make a positive impact on them.

Mark Robertshaw, Managing Director, of the Isle of Man office, said: “This is a significant achievement for the team and we’re proud of their hard work and dedication to such worthy causes.”

The trek was organised by the wider Bibby Group and involved up to 22 employees from across its diverse businesses taking part, with a total of 21 charities benefiting from over £35,000 which was raised.