DNV has performed the world's first certification of ship superintendents when it recently certified five NYK superintendents. The event marks the launch of DNV's new service line on personnel certification in the shipping industry.

"The best players in the industry are waking up to the fact that the big differentiator in performance is the human factor," says Bjørgulf Haukelid, head of DNV's competence, operations and management unit.

The five NYK superintendents are all employed in Singapore-based NYK Ship Management, which operates about 70 vessels.

In a further development to achieve a safer, cleaner and more profitable industry, DNV has developed the first global system for classifying maritime competence. DNV Personnel Certification in the maritime industry is a uniform way to assess competence that includes competence standards that can be applied globally and certification which is internationally recognised," says Bjørgulf Haukelid, head of DNV's competence, operations and management unit.

The tests were carried out on DNV SeaSkills globally accessible web-based platform, allowing for a secure and controlled test environment.

Date: 2005-12-20