Fish is becoming an increasingly popular food, and fishing vessels are being adapted to meet the new market opportunities. A modern fishing vessel is an advanced ship that often costs far more than NOK 100 million. Their owners and crews have an impressive ability to adapt and reorganise their operations. This industry is full of people with plenty of ideas and energy.
Friday June 16th a historical event took place at Statoil’s Head Office in Stavanger. The first ever certificate on Hardware In the Loop (HIL) testing was issued following the successful tests on the Dynamic Positioning (DP) system onboard the Diving And Construction Support ship Acergy Osprey.
Anglo-Eastern Shipmanagement (AESM), whose headquarters are in Hong Kong, has no fewer than 5,000 participants attending its ultra-modern training centre in Mumbai each year. More than anything else, this underlines Anglo-Eastern’s commitment to value-added courses and the continuous development of seafarers.
The Polar King is the name of the cable-laying vessel that has now been converted into the world’s largest seismic ship and renamed Geo Atlantic – still classed by DNV.
The following provides a brief overview of some of the most significant changes that have taken place in the Rules for Classification of Ships in the July 2006 issue.
DNV has had a strong breakthrough in the German market. Not only are passenger and cruise ships being built to DNV class in Germany but LPG and RoRo ships are also being built at shipyards on the Baltic Sea. In addition, German shipowners have ordered container ships, bulk carriers and tankers in Korea, China and other countries – to be built to DNV class.
DNV has certified the LNG carrier training course of the world leading company NYK. Certification of the course was based on SIGTTO’s (Society of International Gas Tanker and Terminal Operators) LNG shipping suggested competency standard and DNV’s standard for learning programmes.
Fuel cell technology, estimated to be up to 50 per cent more efficient than today’s diesel engines, will in the near future transform the economics and environmental impact of commercial shipping, according to a DNV-led joint industry project called FellowSHIP.
The German shipping industry experiences enjoyable growth in all respects. The number of container ships owned or operated by German companies has increased considerably during recent years. Newbuildings financed in Germany are ordered all over the world. But also German shipyards and manufacturers of maritime equipment are well booked for the years to come.
Peter Harren, a captain and head of the “Harren&Partner”- shipping company in Bremen, Germany, wants to do something about food on board ships, which he does not think is good enough. “Good chefs are in short supply at sea,” he says – but he doesn’t stop there, he is doing something about it!
DNV is launching a new service which will help shipowners to reduce the high level of accidents on board ships caused directly by human error. By analysing and changing the safety culture throughout the organisation, there is a huge potential for cost savings and to build reputation as a competitive advantage.
Liquid wastes from ships at sea present a potential environmental threat, and their discharge is strictly regulated. But there is growing pressure to make shipping even more environmentally friendly, and DNV is taking part in a joint Norwegian–Singaporean water-treatment project which should further reduce the risk of marine wastewater pollution.
Losses from dangerous-goods incidents in container ship operations are mounting and the industry is paying attention. The STCW convention stipulates requirements for the training of shipboard personnel handling dangerous goods, but little attention has been devoted to shoreside personnel. This is challenging as problems often originate far from the ship, in a container packing station or shipper’s yard.
Bernard Meyer, the sixth generation of Meyers to head MEYER WERFT in Germany’s Papenburg, on the border with the Netherlands, is full of enthusiasm. Not only does he talk warmly about Papenburg, the people who live here and everyone who works at the shipyard, but he is also full of pride in the ships being built here. “Papenburg – that’s the place where the beautiful ships are built,” he says.
DNV has verified 300 training providers globally as part of a quality improvement project, and revealed that more than 50 per cent under-perform according to best practices regarding facilities, course content and instructor qualifications. “This demonstrates that lack of relevant qualifications represent a serious safety risk in shipping,” says CEO of DNV, Henrik O. Madsen.