safety-alert-operations
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[Alert! The Nautical Institute, Lloyds Register,
Educational Trust, VIDEOTEL]
[Issue 9: Operations]
[Its time to stop pretending...]
Hello and welcome to this issue of Alert!
[STEPHEN HENRY]
The forum for discussing a whole range
of human element issues in the maritime industry.
One of those issues is absolutely key,
the need for ship owners and operators
to recognize the needs of the end user,
the seafarer, during the design and build stages.
Maybe you don't need to think about people
when designing a ship
or get rewarded for not involving them during build.
But nobody can pretend
that ships can operate without them.
But our ships are increasingly complex,
and a high price is often paid
when critical systems fail.
And we're not just talking about dollars and cents,
we're talking about human life.
But in most cases, ship systems are protected
by strict design standards and tolerances,
by redundancy, and by feedback processes.
These will ultimately activate and alarm of some sort,
will take corrective action.
But the performance
and wellbeing of the crew are also critical.
And although they are protected by standards and codes,
such as STCW, ISM, and ILO, there's a problem.
Seafarers don't come fitted with gauges and alarms.
If the manning policies are not realistic,
if the watchkeeping patterns are not workable,
then the seafarer might well become fatigued
and eventually worn out.
If there's no feedback process
in place through education,
effective communication,
and a positive safety and company culture,
then the seafarer will not be able to recognize
when he or she becomes worn out.
We need to start putting things together,
we need to understand that the efficiency
and reliability of seafarers will be undermined
if the ship itself hasn't been
designed and built to purpose.
Or if they haven't been provided
with appropriate training,
easy to understand procedures, and clear instructions,
so they can safely operate the ship systems,
or if there are no appraisals, no mentoring,
and no regular health checks,
or if they're not following a healthy lifestyle.
The ship is a dangerous place,
and it's the responsibility of ship owners,
managers, and operators
[DAVID SQUIRE, FNI Editor ALERT! ]
to develop proper procedures and maintenance programs,
and to ensure that their seafarers
are properly trained.
[Communication skills are vital
to safe ship operations]
When it comes to safe ship operations,
as the title suggests, communication skills are vital.
A powerful tool for understanding,
cooperation, and action,
but communication can also make us
confused and frustrated.
With a mixed group,
communication becomes more of a challenge
since very often the message is sent
but not the same as the message is received.
A situation not helped by the fact that,
in some cultures,
people speak what they mean, while in other cultures,
people do just the opposite.
There is no doubt, the poor communication
can and does cause accidents,
loss of life, environmental damage.
It is an increasing concern for ships' crews,
owners, and operators.
[Stress at sea]
Stress at work is probably
the most neglected area of injury.
Again, it's something that could affect
the safe operation of the ship.
Yet, how many doctors
during a medical examination ask a seafarer
about living and working conditions,
the environment, the hours, and the workload?
How many seafarers complain of harassment by officers
or of discrimination on the grounds
of race, sex, religion etcetera,
how many complain about bullying or intimidation?
Now if the answer is none, then we need to ask why.
And the chances are
it's because employers simply don't have,
as part of their grievance and disciplinary policies,
the procedures in place to educate,
to prevent, or complain.
There is a commonly held feud
that the image of the industry
needs to be improved by promoting it,
quite rightly, as the driver of global commerce.
But we need to look at more than just the public image.
Good ship operators understand
the benefits of a well-trained,
reasonably paid, and well-respected crew,
and they need to make life more difficult
for those operators who do not.
That's all for now, visit the website
if you want to look at this issue in more detail.
You can read what other marine professionals
from around the world have to say on the subject.
Until next time, take care.
[If you are in any way involved in the design operation
or support of ships and their systems,]
[you have a role to play.]
[All the Alert!
bulletins can be downloaded from the Alert! website.]
[www.he-alert.org]