Marine News

MPA Singapore has issued advice on how to conduct effective marine incident reporting

Posted on by News Hound
Once this is ensured, the owner, manager and shipmaster of the affected Singapore-registered ships should alert MPA of the incident immediately or at the latest, within 2 hours.
Once this is ensured, the owner, manager and shipmaster of the affected Singapore-registered ships should alert MPA of the incident immediately or at the latest, within 2 hours.

MPA Singapore issued a marine notice to inform operators of Singapore-registered ships on the procedure of reporting of any marine casualty, incident or security-related incident involving Singapore-registered ships.

To begin with, the following can be considered to-be-reported marine incidents:
– the death of, or serious injury to, a person;
– the loss of a person from a ship;
– the loss, presumed loss or abandonment of a ship;
– material damage to a ship;
– the stranding or disabling of a ship, or the involvement of a ship in a collision;
– material damage to marine infrastructure external to a ship, that could seriously endanger the safety of the ship, another ship or an individual; or
– severe damage to the environment, or the potential for severe damage to the environment, brought about by the damage of a ship or ships.

As noted, the general principle in any incident is that urgent steps on the ground, in accordance with ships’ and companies’ approved plans, must first be taken by Continue reading “MPA Singapore has issued advice on how to conduct effective marine incident reporting”

An explanation to cargo ships that sink when their cargo liquefies

Posted on by News Hound
Solid bulk cargoes are typically “two-phase” materials as they contain water between the solid particles.
Solid bulk cargo are typically “two-phase” materials as they contain water between the solid particles.

Think of a dangerous cargo and toxic waste or explosives might come to mind. But granular cargoes such as crushed ore and mineral sands are responsible for the loss of numerous ships every year. On average, ten “solid bulk cargo” carriers have been lost at sea each year for the last decade.

Solid bulk cargoes – defined as granular materials loaded directly into a ship’s hold – can suddenly turn from a solid state into a liquid state, a process known as liquefaction. And this can be disastrous for any ship carrying them – and their crew.

In 2015, the 56,000-tonne bulk carrier Bulk Jupiter rapidly sunk around 300km south-west of Vietnam, with only one of its 19 crew surviving. This prompted warnings from the International Maritime Organisation about the possible liquefaction of the relatively new solid bulk cargo bauxite (an aluminium ore).

A lot is known about the physics of Continue reading “An explanation to cargo ships that sink when their cargo liquefies”

Frequency of total hull losses at its lowest since 1996 reports Cefor

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Cefor Hull Trends 2018
Cefor Hull Trends 2018

The number and impact of major and total hull losses has remained low since 2016, a trend that has continued into the first half of 2018, according to figures by the Nordic Association of Marine Insurers (Cefor).

The overall claims frequency continues its positive trend and stabilizes at a relatively low level, and total loss frequency reached a minimum again in the first half of 2018, and continues thus the last year’s trend with some oscillation at low levels.

Insured values dropped on average 2.5% on 2018 renewals. The improvement compared to the previous years is especially due to some recovery in the supply/offshore segment in 2018, following a recovery in the bulk market in 2017. However, it should be noted that Continue reading “Frequency of total hull losses at its lowest since 1996 reports Cefor”

American Club publishes Safety Management Systems help guide

Posted on by News Hound
The booklet is the fourth in a series of coming guides produced by The American Club, which deal with matters of safety, protection of the marine environment and maritime security.
The booklet is the fourth in a series of coming guides produced by The American Club, which deal with matters of safety, protection of the marine environment and maritime security.

The American Club has recently published a helpful new guide which focuses on Safety Management Systems. The aim is to assist both seafarers and shoreside personnel in understanding the basic principles of how to implement local and international safety management systems.

The booklet is the fourth in a series of coming guides produced by The American Club, which deal with matters of safety, protection of the marine environment and maritime security.

A safety management system – or SMS – is a proven and essential tool for achieving loss prevention success for both international shipping under the International Safety Management (ISM) Code and U.S. inland waterway operators and on non-compulsory vessels under the U.S. Code of Federal Regulation Subchapter M, towing vessels safety management system option for compliance.

The new guide is expected to assist operators with Continue reading “American Club publishes Safety Management Systems help guide”

BMA releases safety bulletin following nitrogen cylinder fatality

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The examination showed that the damaged nitrogen cylinder had suffered significant corrosion at the point of failure.
The examination showed that the damaged nitrogen cylinder had suffered significant corrosion at the point of failure.

The Bahamas Maritime Authority issued a safety alert regarding the potential serious risk for safety on board a ship where nitrogen cylinder are used as a stored kinetic energy system for launching lifeboats. This alert was issued after the authority obtained information from an ongoing maritime incident investigation conducted by the Transport Accident Investigation Commission, New Zealand.

The vessel had hydraulically powered davits with six power packs, three on each side of the vessel. A stored energy system consisted of a piston accumulator and a bank of four high pressure (180-210 Bar) nitrogen cylinders were fitted to each lifeboat launching davit.

In February 2017, one of the nitrogen cylinders of a stored energy system onboard exploded while being topped up to maintain the correct pressure. A crew member died as a result of the explosion. The findings of the investigation indicate that significant corrosion affected the structural integrity of the cylinder.

The remains of the exploded nitrogen cylinder and other three cylinders from the same Continue reading “BMA releases safety bulletin following nitrogen cylinder fatality”

Application Spotlight – Undercarriage Inspection

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Cygnus 4+ general purpose
Cygnus 4+ general purpose

In Construction and Mining, machine performance is integral to a project’s success and cost efficiency. Undercarriage can make up more than 50% of the maintenance costs of a machine. Any component failures could lead to serious delays or costly replacements.

Integrated with Cygnus 4+ Ultrasonic Thickness Gauge, TrackTreads developed an Undercarriage Tool to monitor a machine’s undercarriage quickly and effectively. Thickness Measurements are taken on each undercarriage component using Cygnus Ultrasonic Thickness Gauge – a truly simple to use and accurate thickness gauging device. Connected to a mobile application via  Continue reading “Application Spotlight – Undercarriage Inspection”

British Ports Association rolls out its sustainability charter

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Symbols of the sustainability charter include: leaves, ships, dolphins and fishing
Symbols of the sustainability charter include: leaves, ships, dolphins and fishing

The British Ports Association (BPA) has published its new sustainability charter which commits to supporting the dual aims of a strong and healthy environment and a thriving economy.

Astonishingly, 90 percent of the UK population lives within 30 miles of the coast, and no part of the UK is more than 70 miles from it. The Charter notes action underway for shoreside power with some British ports having already installed shoreside power for smaller vessels such as fishing boats and leisure craft. For the majority of ports, particularly those handling large vessels such as cruise ships and large cargo vessels, the installation cost is currently prohibitively high. However, all major ports in England (and many others in the rest of the UK) will have produced air quality plans that include assessments on shoreside power by May 2019. Continue reading “British Ports Association rolls out its sustainability charter”

MCA new code to allow pleasure vessels to be used for business

Posted on by CEO
A race support boat
A race support boat

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is seeking feedback from the public on a new code of practice for intended pleasure vessels (IPV)

The MCA would like feedback on a new proposal to allow pleasure craft to be temporarily used for business purposes and as race support boats.

The organisation has been working with British Marine, RYA, and the Yacht Brokers, Designers and Surveyors Association (YBDSA) to develop the new code of practice which is due to be published on 1 January 2019.

The code is divided into parts. The first refers to intended pleasure vessels (IPV) to be used for temporary commercial reasons and the second for said craft to be used to support race boats.

Continue reading “MCA new code to allow pleasure vessels to be used for business”

Wärtsilä’s divers make the need for unscheduled dry-docking avoidable

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Diver in the sea next to a boat
Diver in the sea next to a boat

Vessels’ repair needs do not always match with planned maintenance schedules. With specialist underwater teams, no vessel is far from fast, high-quality repair and refurbishment that enable operators to avoid the potential loss of income related to dry-docking.

As the first global operator in the underwater services market, the technology group Wärtsilä is uniquely positioned to offer marine service and maintenance, regardless of the vessel’s location. Maintenance and repair services performed by specialist divers add to Wärtsilä’s comprehensive service offering such as dry docking, and allow for operators to minimise or eliminate vessel downtime.

“Reduced fuel consumption, efficiency improvements, and higher utilisation rates are always on the top of operators’ agenda. With our in-house specialist teams of certified diver technicians and propulsion experts, we are equipped to offer our customers underwater services Continue reading “Wärtsilä’s divers make the need for unscheduled dry-docking avoidable”

ISO updates guidelines for sea anchors on survival craft and rescue boats

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A sea anchor is a vital component to a rescue boat, reducing the likelihood of it drifting away or spinning around, and keeps it steady in the wind.
A sea anchor is a vital component to a rescue boat, reducing the likelihood of it drifting away or spinning around, and keeps it steady in the wind.

As more people are heading out to sea over summer, safety both onboard and overboard is under the spotlight. For this reason, an ISO has been updated for the effectiveness of sea anchors for rescue boats known as ‘ISO 17339:2018, Ships and marine technology – Life saving and fire protection – Sea anchors for survival craft and rescue boats.’

A sea anchor is a vital component to a rescue boat, reducing the likelihood of it drifting away or spinning around, and keeps it steady in the wind. The updated ISO for the performance and safety of sea anchors brings them in line with the IMO’s International Life-Saving Appliance Code.

The International Life-Saving Appliance Code prescribes the carriage and use of sea anchors for survival craft and rescue boats, yet the revised recommendation on testing of lifesaving appliances does not provide requirements of performance and testing procedure for the sea anchors. This document addresses those areas, which the IMO recommendation does not address, in order to enable consistent implementation by maritime Administrations.

The new ISO addresses the performance and testing of Continue reading “ISO updates guidelines for sea anchors on survival craft and rescue boats”

USCG issues fated duck boat’s COI in an unusual move

Posted on by News Hound
The COI reports operational limitations which may have been exceeded while the voyage took place.
The COI reports operational limitations which may have been exceeded while the voyage took place.

The US Coast Guard released the Certificate of Inspection (COI) for the ‘Stretch Duck 07’, the amphibious tour boat that sunk in Table Rock Lake, Missouri on July 2018 with the loss of 17 lives.

The COI reports operational limitations which may have been exceeded while the voyage took place. The limitation included limits on permissible weather and surface conditions.

It also indicates that the boat’s stability letter was issued on March 2009, and its last “drydock” was carried out in January 2017. Its operations were to occur in Table Rock Lake and nearby Lake Taneycomo, and it was not permitted to operate on the water “when winds exceed thirty-five (35) miles per hour, and/or the wave height exceeds two (2) feet”.

In addition, the US Coast Guard established a Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) after the sinking of the Stretch Duck 07 boat in Branson, Missouri on July 19. An MBI is US Continue reading “USCG issues fated duck boat’s COI in an unusual move”

Fire in cargo hold caused by light bulb reveals Maritime NZ report

Posted on by News Hound
Maritime NZ describes a fire in the cargo hold of a container ship caused by the heat from a 500 watt light bulb as the ship was berthed in port on New Zealand's East Coast in late 2017.
Maritime NZ describes a fire in the cargo hold of a container ship caused by the heat from a 500 watt light bulb as the ship was berthed in port on New Zealand’s East Coast in late 2017.

Maritime NZ has published its Lookout report. In it they present a range of of maritime casualties, offering some clear lessons that have been learnt. In this incident, Maritime NZ describes a fire in the cargo hold of a container ship caused by the heat from a 500 watt light bulb as the ship was berthed in port on New Zealand’s East Coast in late 2017.

The cargo hold fire incident

The floodlight was unintentionally left on after the hold was filled with timber packs. Some of the timber was destroyed in the fire and other packs charred, but the ship suffered only cosmetic damage. No-one was injured.

The cut timber had been loaded during the day and the 148 metre vessel was due to sail at the change of tide, when the cargo hold fire alarm sounded just before midnight.

Crew donned breathing apparatus to check the site, and reported smoke coming out of Continue reading “Fire in cargo hold caused by light bulb reveals Maritime NZ report”

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