Costa Concordia & Maritime Error Management
Costa Concordia: An opportunity for advancing human factor awareness? Will the casualty advance desirable critical thinking and cognitive awareness or merely trigger shortfall RRPP? A maritime casualty with everything a novelist could hope for – a huge state-of-the-art modern passenger vessel strikes a rock and eventually grounds on the foreshore of a bucolic island town, thousands of lives are imperiled…
OPITO Launches New Research Project
Oil and gas industry skills body OPITO has commissioned a new study which aims to identify the skills and competence gaps in offshore supervisors and how this impacts…
Hydro Group Reports International Growth
Aberdeen-based Hydro Group Plc, a global design and manufacturer of underwater cables and connectors for subsea, underwater, topside and onshore applications, sets sights on further international growth with opening of new Singapore office. Singapore currently represents Hydro Group’s second largest export market, with the Group identifying more than £1million of potential sales in the region per year.
Jotun Introduces the World’s First Resilient Antifouling
Jotun has announced the launch of SeaLion Resilient, a high performance marine coating based on epoxy-polysiloxane technology. Following extensive research and testing…
Waterfront Entrance for Norwegian Breakaway
Norwegian Breakaway, the largest ship ever constructed in Germany, floated out of Meyer Werft’s covered building dock II at the end of February. The luxury cruise ship will undertake sea trials before her delivery to the owner and passage to her home port of New York by May 7th, 2013. The build project represented Bolidt’s highest profile decking commitment for a maritime customer through 2012, with 16,500m2 of surfacing materials delivered.
400 Officers Certified in Navmaster ECDIS
While staying on board ship and continuing with their duties, over 400 navigating officers have earned formal certification in Navmaster ECDIS. The training course launched by PC Maritime nearly a year ago meets STCW requirements and standards set out by the Nautical Institute for ECDIS familiarization. Available on standalone DVD, the PC Maritime package uses text, voiceover and video and requires users to carry out actions just as they would on Navmaster ECDIS.
Human Error Found in Walla Walla Motor Failure
A three-month safety investigation recently concluded that human error was responsible for the failure of an electric drive motor that removed the 188-car ferry Walla Walla from service. According to the final report, investigators determined the motor failure was avoidable and resulted from mistakes made by Washington State Ferries personnel. The motor failure occurred Nov. 4, 2012 when the Walla…
Route Spotlight:
Avoid Costly Voyages with Eco-Steaming & Weather Routing. In the recent financial climate, eco-steaming has proven to be profitable while also being good for the environment. However, a shipping company must always be aware of the prevailing weather situation in relation to their fleet. This article deals with a ship's route options while approaching Typhoon Bopha in December, 2012. The suffering attributed to the passage of Bopha was well documented in the news around the world.
Port of Cleveland to Address Critical Problems
The Port is leading critical intitiatives for river renewal and infrastructure improvements. • Managing sediment dredged annually from the river. Enough sediment…
Container Ship 2013 Capacity to Outpace Demand
A.P. Moller-Maersk expects container ship capacity to grow 11% this year, outpacing demand, forcing owners to take corrective measures. The industry is likely to scrap more vessels…
Chinese Liftboat Hoists Shell's 'Noble Discoverer'
'Noble Discoverer', the massive drillship that is an integral part of Royal Dutch Shell's Arctic oil drilling ambitions, is getting a lift to Asia. The drill rig has been loaded onto the cargo deck of another vessel, the 708-foot Chinese-flagged heavy lift ship Xiang Yun Kou, which arrived in Resurrection Bay, not far from the Alaskan community of Seward, reports the Alaska Dispatch. Under the watchful eye of the Coast Guard…
Kværner Wins GBS Offshore Newfoundland Contract
Kvaerner Contractors to provide engineering, procurement & construction (EPC) services for the Hebron Project gravity based structure (GBS). ExxonMobil Canada Properties has released the option for Kvaerner's joint venture company Kiewit-Kvaerner Contractors to provide the full scope of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the Hebron Project gravity based structure (GBS). The…
Navy Divers Check Antarctic Wreck
Divers from Royal Navy ice patrol ship HMS Protector braved the chilling temperatures to monitor the state of sunken research ship 'MV Bahia Paraiso'. When she ran aground in 1989 the ship spilled 645,000 litres of diesel and caused one of the worst marine environmental emergencies in Antarctica to date. However, a recent Argentine and Dutch team carefully removed all traces of fuel, with HMS Protector’s dive team tasked to ensure there was no further leakage.
Megayacht Back to Feadship for Second Refit
Feadship has welcomed home the 71.60-m (235-ft) 'Utopia' for a range of maintenance activities and technical upgrades. Originally launched in 2004, this is the second time Utopia has returned to Feadship for a refit, the first being a successful project in 2007 to personalise the yacht to her then new owner’s requirements. The main work involved in the project is the repainting the hull and superstructure…
Japan Test Production of Frozen Subsea Gas
Japan to begin the world’s first offshore drilling operation to extract frozen natural gas locked under the seabed. Japan Oil, Gas & Metals National Corp., known as JOGMEC…
MCA Publish DP Relative Positioning Guidance
The International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) has published “Guidance on RADius Relative Positioning System” (IMCA M 224) describing the RADius microwave radar system.
Another Tankship Released by Somali Pirates
EU Naval Force Flagship ESPS Méndez Núnez assists 'MV Smyrni' after it sails out of the Somali pirate's holding anchorage. MV Smyrni, with a crew of 26, was carrying 135,000 tonnes of crude oil when she was hijacked on 11 May 2012. After ten months of being held in a pirate anchorage off the Somali coast, it is understood that a ransom was paid for the vessel, and on 10 March 2013, she was released by her captors.
NYK Change 13,000 Car Carrier Lights
Car Carriers change to latest energy-saving units: part of sales proceeds to aid Great East Japan Earthquake reconstruction efforts. To make improvements in energy and economic efficiency, NYK has installed E·COOL, a next-generation energy-saving fluorescent lighting system produced by Optrom, Inc., on six NYK-operated car carriers. Since April 2012, approximately 13,000 fluorescent lights have been replaced by E·COOL.
PVA & Coast Guard In Hi-speed Vessel Fire Safety Accord
The Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) & the U.S. Coast Guard sign policy agreement regarding Coast Guard approval of fire protection for newly constructed high-speed vessels. This agreement is critical to the U.S. shipbuilding industry to ensure delivery of Coast Guard-approved high-speed passenger vessels. The product of a chartered working group of experienced PVA member industry experts and Coast Guard policy specialists…
Maersk Asia/US E.Coast Service to Transit Suez, Not Panama
Maersk Line, will stop using the Panama Canal to transport goods from Asia to the U.S. East Coast as bigger ships make Suez more profitable. Maersk Line will send…
