To say the last couple of weeks have been interesting and eventful would be an understatement to say the least.
Let me deal with the Brexit issue, as I have been repeatedly asked what it means for UK surveyors in particular in the past few days. The simple truth s that there is nothing or IIMS can say other than we will monitor as things develop in the coming months. Until a new Prime Minister is elected it is impossible to know what the time frame for departure from the EU will be. But it seems clear that nothing will happen of note that will impact on surveyors probably for a couple of years.
The International Institute of Marine Surveying had a strong presence at the Seawork Exhibition, being held at Mayflower Park in Southampton for the first time. The show attracted over 7,000 visitors and continues to be one of the foremost commercial workboat shows and the largest such event in Europe.
It was an opportunity to meet many members from the UK and further afield as they popped by the stand, which was managed by John Kilhams with assistance from other members of the IIMS head office team.
The IIMS ‘Muddy Rudders’ from left Sam Owen, Sam Legg, Tania Bernice, Elle Hardham and Vicky Lawrence – all set to get muddy for charity
It’s a sad fact that we all know, or have heard of someone who has been affected by cancer, whether it is a close family member or a colleague. In some cases people can make a full recovery, but by no means all. This is why the girls from the IIMS head Office have come together to take on a ‘muddy’ challenge to raise funds for Cancer Research on Saturday 9 July at a special event in Portsmouth.
The Pretty Muddy event is an organised race over 5km (3 miles) with all proceeds going to the reserach. As part of the course, the girls will have to tackle a range of different obstacles as well as enduring a lot of mud too! The team name that that the IIMS has chosen is ‘The Muddy Rudders’, taking inspiration from their work in the maritime world.
Something very special took place last week. Like many millions of people in the UK, I grew up with deep respect for the RNLI, the world renowned, charitable organisation that keeps the coast of this country safe and saves the lives of those who get into trouble at sea. The brave and exceptional work they do through volunteers who crew their fleet is legendary as well as their work on boat yards.
So having admired the work of the RNLI it was rather humbling to be able to take a group of nearly 30 IIMS members to visit their head office and build/refit facility at Poole in Dorset last week. Several things took me by surprise. The sheer size of the RNLI operation is impressive, spread over a large area. The cleanliness and efficieny of the boatbuilding and workshop areas is extraordinary. This is a thoroughly modern, state-of-the-art facility and one that any similar organisation could learn a great deal from. As RNLI Director, Angus Watson said, the RNLI facility is light years away from the boat yards he worked in not so many years ago. Continue reading “Modern ‘boat yards’ have moved on”
On Wednesday 25 May, a group of nearly 30 IIMS members met at the impressive Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) headquarters and training facility at Poole in Dorset, UK. Their mission? Firstly to have a close look first hand at the RNLI All-weather Lifeboat Centre and the various workshops to see and understand the activities going on. Then after lunch, the group combined with the surveyors at their conference for an invaluable afternoon of training and knowledge sharing.
The International Institute of Marine Surveying (IIMS) celebrates its 25th anniversary this year having been founded in 1991. From humble beginnings, the organisation has grown steadily to become the leading, worldwide body for professional marine surveyors of all disciplines and is now respected as such globally. The Institute boasts one thousand members in nearly one hundred countries. IIMS is increasingly passionate about educating surveyors and increasing standards throughout the profession. View full press release.
One of the things I enjoy most is getting out and meeting marine surveyors face to face and not just those who are members of the Institute. Because I work in a bubble at the IIMS head office for periods of time, it only by face to face meetings that I can learn more about the role of a surveyor and better understand the challenges surveyors are facing in their day to day roles. I also delight in being able to pass on news about the progress of the Institute too.
The whole point of a blog I was taught was that it should be updated regularly. My apologies. The reason it has not been is testament to the sheer amount of activity that is going on in this, our 25th anniversary and Silver Jubilee year.
On that subject, much of my time in the first quarter of 2016 has been devoted to our celebrations and ensuring the special IIMS London Conference on 31 August and 1 September will be a success and memorable occasion. The result is, I believe, a very different and exciting two day event, which incorporates the Annual General Meeting and all at a very reasonable cost too. The morning of day one (31 August) offers delegates a small exhibition to enjoy and five high quality, technical workshops. At lunchtime we move seamlessly into the Silver Jubilee Awards for Excellence to be presented by Sir Alan Massey, CEO of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency. More nominations are required please to keep the judging panel busy – and who would not want to be in the running for such a special award and recognition? You can make nominations here until 30 June and I encourage you to do so.
‘What a marine surveyor needs to know about dynamically positioned vessels’ is one of ten IIMS handy guides now available
The recent publication of ‘What a marine surveyor needs to know about dynamically positioned vessels’ by Hugh Raynor brings the number of IIMS handy guides in the series published since last September to ten. There are a further six IIMS handy guides in the early stages of production, being prepared for launch later this year. They include the following topics: inclining experiments, GRP/FRP, small craft engines, moisture metres, riveting, arc welding and using computers in marine surveying.
Additionally, four of the IIMS handy guides have recently been released for publication on Amazon Kindle as eBooks and available to purchase and download now. The rest will follow soon. To find and browse them go to your local Amazon site and search for ‘what a marine surveyor needs to know about’.
In ‘What a marine surveyor needs to know about dynamically positioned vessels’, author Hugh Raynor sets out to explore the subject and explain in simple terms what dynamic positioning is and why it is needed. He says that DP has evolved into a highly complex beast, and in many ways the systems now in place on modern vessels are every bit as sophisticated and safe as can be found on any new jet airliner.
Photo taken at the small craft training day in Watford last month
Officially it is now Spring in the UK, although with night time temperatures still sub zero and snow around, we could be forgiven for arguing this point!
Life at IIMS is rarely dull. There have been some significant changes to report on since my last blog. Due to the increased work flow from the CMID Accreditation Scheme we are running for IMCA, we have run out of office space! This is actually a pleasant problem to have. So, after some negotiation, I am grateful to our tenants, Supported Living Ltd, who have agreed to release half of their space for our use. Hilary and Sam will move into that area to establish a Marine Surveying Academy nerve centre. Some slight modifications are required to the space and the builders are heading in this week to do their bit. We take up occupancy on 1 April.
Almost too small to be surveyed, but just an image I like!
As the Institute starts its twenty-fifth year of operation and prepares to celebrate its Silver Jubilee in 2016, I can report that things are busy at IIMS head office as we have hit the floor running.
Currently we are in the midst of migrating to a new server (finally replacing our 8 year old ‘ancient beast’). These things are never easy. We hit an unforeseen glitch last week, but the way is now clear and we expect to be fully operational on our new server environment imminently. At the same time, we have finally managed to find a solution to our appallingly slow internet connection that has dogged us for years. Simultaneously with the server migration, we are upgrading to a 30Mb broadband line. This is a very positive start to the year and will make us even more efficient!
Last month, IIMS President, Capt Bertrand Apperry, met representatives from Les Sauvateurs en Mer at Ouistreham, Caen in France. The purpose of this ceremony was to present a cheque for £600 to SNSM. This money was raised by IIMS members at the 2015 London Conference. Les Sauvateurs en Mer is Bertrand’s chosen charity. They are a volunteer force who do amazing work aiding and protecting seafarers and members of the public who hit trouble around the French coastline.
