As training onboard holds a positive and important role in the development and promotion of shipboard safety culture and to further bolster the Club’s hard and soft copy loss prevention publications, they are undertaking the production of a new loss prevention video series.
Entitled “LEARN THE ROPES”, the videos will be covering a variety of focused topics to further enhance crewmembers’ learning and development to strengthen their knowledge and skills needed during the performance of onboard tasks.
The first short explanatory video produced for the loss prevention video series covers “The Can Test” which explains the correct method of performing the test and interpreting their results. Cargo liquefaction and dynamic separation have been the cause of a significant number of vessel losses, with many crew deaths. There have also been many near misses, with vessels developing significant stability issues due to these phenomena.
Although shippers are obligated to provide safe cargo, the Club continues to see incidents where this is not the case.
Section 8.4 of the IMSBC Code details a test procedure that the Master and crew may use for determining the possibility of liquefaction – the Can Test. It is strongly recommended that dry bulk cargoes declared as Group A or which have a large proportion of fine material are subjected to regular can testing before and during loading.
Unfortunately, West P&I Club has seen that this testing procedure is often carried out incorrectly, which can give false reassurance regarding the suitability of the material for shipment.