Feature Articles

We were lucky when we were struck by lightning on our small 35’ GRP cruising sailing boat in Turkey in 2013, but without an LPS. All the plastic and some of the metal gear at the top of the mast exploded (see photo below) and simultaneously the headlining in the saloon exploded downwards with a loud bang. So much smoke that we initially thought we were on fire; but my wife and I survived unscathed to tell the tale.

The most likely discharge exit was through the propeller shaft, but practically all electronics were violently destroyed and, as an electrical and electronic engineer, my assessment for our insurance claim afterwards showed that most devices had experienced severe arcing with small electronic components having exploded internally (see photo below).

Continue reading “An approach to a modern sailboat lightning protection system”

We are haemorrhaging money! Machinery is the biggest cost in terms of overall claims amount that insurers pay. Machinery incidents amount to over 40% of the overall claims paid by underwriters. To give some background, insurers cover the cost of replacing machinery which has broken as a result of negligence by the crew providing such loss or damage has not resulted from want of due diligence by the
insured, owners or managers. This is very wide coverage and effectively acts as warranty insurance for the machinery. Obviously it is open to abuse and insurers trust the owners to be open and honest when presenting a claim for machinery damage.

I have been in the insurance industry for over 30 years and have benefited from the Braemar’s, previously the Salvage Association, monthly reports. The top four causes of casualty are always machinery, grounding, fire and collision in that order. This is also backed up by the International Union of Marine Insurers (IUMI), where the data is kindly provided by Lloyd’s List Intelligence.

Continue reading “Machinery, what is the underwriter’s problem?”

Article by Phil Duffy MIIMS
Principal Surveyor at Interface Marine Yacht and Boat Surveyors France

The focus of this article is on the process and the logistics involved in surveying large crewed yachts, rather than on the practicalities of the survey. The areas of inspection are basically the same as on any pre purchase survey, albeit larger and with regard to machinery systems can be more technically involved, the time frame of course is much longer.

One question I often get asked is how to get the business, or how to make the jump from surveying small pleasure craft to larger vessels…. As always, the client will need to trust your ability to carry out the job, and for that you will need to prove your track record with references etc. It can be a chicken and egg situation, unless you have worked for one of the larger surveying companies or are able to assist on some large yacht surveys and gain an insight that way. In my case it was quite an easy transition, as during my career at sea I have held both Engineer and Captain Positions of large yachts.

Continue reading “Surveying large crewed yachts”

The Report Magazine went to interview Ian Millen, COO of Dryad Maritime, a specialist company providing a range of maritime security products and services that are essential in times of heightened security risks to keep seafarers safe. Dryad Maritime says it is a maritime operations company with a high grade intelligence capability. But what does this actually mean? Mike Schwarz went in search of some answers.

Q. Your company slogan interests me: ‘Dryad Maritime is a maritime operations company with a high grade intelligence capability’. What are the core services that you provide? I understand it is more comprehensive than just giving details of the threat of worldwide piracy attacks?

Continue reading “The Ian Millen Interview: Maritime surveillance and security”