The key focus for ‘Maritime Singapore’ in 2017 will be to continue strengthening efforts to raise the bar as a major Asian and International Maritime Centre. In this respect, the SSA is working closely with MPA and other key industry players and has outlined five key areas in its Blueprint for Growth in preparation for better times ahead for the shipping industry. The five key areas are: Regional Leadership, Legal, Finance, Operational excellence and Innovation with Technology.
Admiral Peter Brady
Maritime Authority of Jamaica (MAJ) Director General Rear Admiral Peter Brady has been appointed Jamaica’s Special Envoy to the IMO.
Following his appointment Admiral Brady will lobby for Jamaica’s candidature to Category C of the IMO Council.
Admiral Brady has a wealth of experience to help in his newly-appointed role, having been the chief technical delegate for Jamaica at the IMO for a number of years.
The Armitt Group successfully managed the recent removal of two 1050 metric tonne Ship Un-Loaders from the former Tilbury power station located on the Thames, east of London.
After a lengthy planning phase, with various solutions considered, Armitt’s plan was accepted by the client. 
Armitt project managed the operational communication, vessel agency and chartering, liaising closely with all parties to perform two large piece movements, overcoming any unforeseen issues as they arose.
“From the initial draft surveys of the berth, through lashing and securing systems and the engineering calculations, notwithstanding the stringent requirements for the lashing and welding teams, Armitt worked tirelessly to propose the most economic and efficient solution that met the strict criteria of the client,” said Nicholas Marshall, Commercial Director, at the Armitt Group.
“The SPMT equipment was supplied by Mammoet and worked efficiently with both machines clearing the ground pretty much as expected, with the water bags only required for one of the lifts.”
Training programme from Videotel and The Standard Club addresses the need to report ‘near-miss’ incidents with others through an open, ‘no-blame’ safety culture
VideotelTM, a KVH company, has announced the launch of a new training programme, “Report a Near-Miss, Save a Life”, in association with The Standard Club, a protection and indemnity (P&I) club, which insures ship owners, operators, and charterers for their liabilities to third parties.
The training programme examines the importance of sharing near-miss reports, so that lessons can be learned and publicised throughout a fleet, to help reduce the chances of similar incidents happening.
Although standards have improved, since the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) adoption of the International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and Pollution Prevention (ISM Code) in 1993, a high proportion of near misses at sea can still be attributed to human error. This fact was recently highlighted in the Marine Accident Investigation Branch’s Safety Digest report which identified that 75% of incidents received by the Confidential Hazardous Incident Reporting Programme (CHIRP) during the past 12 years could be traced to human factors.