International News

Skuld P&I Club warns of dangers of entering an enclosed zinc concentrate cargo hold

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Recently the Skuld P&I club noted a crew fatality incident caused by entering an enclosed zinc concentrate cargo hold. A chief officer of a bulk carrier was found lying unconscious in the cargo hold after he entered the hold alone without ventilation and tragically lost his life. It was later established that the cause of death was asphyxiation. Measurements performed the day after the accident showed that the level of oxygen in the air at the stairwell was 2.6%.

Due to the cargo’s nature of oxidation, ventilation and atmosphere tests are vital before entering holds and breathing apparatus is needed. At sea-level, humans require air that contains minimum 19.5% oxygen. Below that an Continue reading “Skuld P&I Club warns of dangers of entering an enclosed zinc concentrate cargo hold”

New publication from London P&I Club on deck crane inspections and maintenance

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The London P&I Club has published an article on deck crane inspections and maintenance in its newsletter LP Focus, which looks in detail at particular claims issues prompted by the Club’s experience and feedback from Members.

Deck cranes are an important item of a ship’s equipment and when they break down this can result in loss of hire claims. Furthermore, failure of a deck crane can result in serious injury or death. Depending on the trade of the ship, the cranes may be used in every port or they may be used infrequently.

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New Generation AHTS & Rig Moves course

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anchorAnchor handling requires special equipment and skills, not only in performance of the anchor handling operations, but also in preparing the projects. In this three day AHTS & Rig Moves course from 17-19 May 2016 delegates will study and learn all they need to know about this specialist field. The location is Amsterdam, The Netherlands. IIMS members and non members are welcome to apply.

The course gives an overview of the necessary skills, technology and requirements. Hydrostatics, hydrodynamics, hydrography, naval architecture, nautical engineering and safety engineering are the sciences that play an important role in Anchor Handling operations and design of the AHT’s, the procedures and connections.
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First wind turbine installed at Gemini Offshore Wind Park

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First wind turbine installed at Gemini Offshore Wind Park
First wind turbine installed at Gemini Offshore Wind Park

An important milestone has been reached in the construction of the Gemini Offshore Wind Park. On 16 February 2016, the first wind turbine was installed by Van Oord, and it will soon begin producing electricity. In the coming months, a total of 150 wind turbines will be installed 85 kilometres off the coast of Groningen, the Netherlands. The wind park, scheduled for completion in the spring of 2017, will supply sustainable energy to 785,000 households for decades to come.

After installing the electrical infrastructure and 150 turbine foundations last year, Van Oord is now working on installing the wind turbines. The wind turbines are being transported, including by Van Oord’s offshore installation vessel Aeolus, from Esbjerg harbour in Denmark directly to the wind farm. The energy generated will be routed through the high voltage grid from Eemshaven to the end-users.

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Sir Alan Massey to present IIMS Silver Jubilee Awards

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Sir Alan Massey will present the 2016 IIMS Silver Jubilee Award for Excellence
Sir Alan Massey will present the 2016 IIMS Silver Jubilee Award for Excellence

Sir Alan Massey, Chief Executive Officer of the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), has agreed to present the IIMS Silver Jubilee Awards for excellence at the IIMS 25th Anniversary Conference on Wednesday 31 August 2016 at Regent’s University, London.

Sir Alan became the Chief Executive of MCA in July 2010. Prior to that appointment he was in the British Royal Navy, where he was Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief, Naval Home Command, in the rank of Vice Admiral. During his seagoing years, he commanded four warships, including the aircraft carriers HMS Illustrious and Ark Royal. He was appointed a CBE in 2003 and a KCB in 2009.

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New PrimeShip-HULL system released by ClassNK

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New PrimeShip-HULL system released by ClassNK
New PrimeShip-HULL system released by ClassNK

PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) has long been the go-to design support system for ship designers worldwide. To date, over 800 licenses have been provided to more than 90 shipyards. In response to the latest amendments to the IACS Common Structural Rules for Bulk Carriers and Oil Tankers (CSR BC & OT), ClassNK has just released its latest version, PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) Ver. 3.0.0.

Adopted in 2013, the CSR BC & OT were designed to enhance safety and reliability. Although they represent a major step forward for ship safety, they also present a number of new challenges for shipyards and designers due largely to the increase in overall vessel design time. To alleviate the burden of these new rules on ship designers and cut down the required man hours, ClassNK released PrimeShip-HULL(HCSR), a multi-functional vessel design support tool that makes it easy for designers to carry out rule calculations and optimize their designs.

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North America’s inaugural LNG marine fuel terminal open for business

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Harvey Energy. Image courtesy of Harvey Gulf
Harvey Energy. Image courtesy of Harvey Gulf

Less than a year after the delivery of the M/V Harvey Energy, America’s first LNG powered vessel, Harvey Gulf has accomplished another first when it completed a successful LNG bunkering of the energy from the newly constructed LNG terminal at its operation base in Port Fourchon, La. The bunkering included the transfer of 43,000 gallons of LNG in approximately 2.25 hours without reported incident.

The terminal is designed to meet the requirements of 33 CFR part 127 NFPA 59A, and able to deliver LNG at a pumping rate of 550 GMP. The total on site storage is approximately 270,000 gallons contained in three 90,000 USG type “C” vacuum insulated tanks.

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Eco-Ship Drive Green Highway launched by K Line

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The new environmentally friendly, eco-ship, Drive Green Highway launched by K Line
The new environmentally friendly, eco-ship, Drive Green Highway launched by K Line

Solar Frontier announced its CIS solar panels were installed by Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (K Line), on its newest environmentally friendly transport ship.

K Line’s new ship, a car carrier named Drive Green Highway, integrates advanced energy efficient technologies and design improvements to reduce its impact on the environment. It is the first of 8 similar vessels that will be built under K Line’s “Drive Green Project”, and was launched in early February at a ceremony in Nagasu Port in Kumamoto, a coastal city in southern Japan.

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Is Lloyd’s Open Form still appropriate as ships get bigger and bigger?

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The role of the Lloyd's Open Form is being called into question as ships get larger
The role of the Lloyd’s Open Form is being called into question as ships get larger

According to the London Shipping Law Centre, as merchant ships get larger, as their cargoes expand in size and complexity and as their values escalate, the legal challenges facing salvors and wreck removers are multiplying.

In recent years, the salvage industry had tackled incidents all over the world when some of the largest vessels, particularly after groundings, have spilled oil and containers into the sea. Despite deployment of the best available equipment and skills to retrieve cargoes and to contain oil slicks, work could take several months, often in the same atrocious weather conditions that contributed to the incident.

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Generous donation of Scottish timber means Nelson’s flagship, HMS Victory, will fight on

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Timber donated from three Scottish estates will help to preserve HMS Victory for future generations
Timber donated from three Scottish estates will help to preserve HMS Victory for future generations

Timber has long been a vital backbone for shipbuilding and famously HMS Victory was built from over 5,500 oak trees, 250 years ago. It even inspired the Royal Navy’s anthem Hearts of Oak. That strong tradition will now continue with a generous donation of timber from three estates in Aberdeenshire that will ensure that the ship survives for the foreseeable future.

The timber, from eleven elm trees and ten oak trees, is due to be felled shortly and embark on its long journey south. In the 250th year of her launch in 1767, HMS Victory is in the midst of a 15 year conservation project and in need of the very best quality materials to ensure she survives a further 250 years.

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Delayed Titanic II looks set to sail in 2018

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Titanic II looks set to sail from Jiangsu, China, to Dubai in 2018
Titanic II looks set to sail from Jiangsu, China, to Dubai in 2018

Billionaire Australian businessman Clive Palmer has announced that Titanic II will now set sail in 2018. The fully functioning replica of RMS Titanic will be launched 106 years after the original vessel famously came to grief in the North Atlantic. The vessel’s maiden voyage will be from Jiangsu, China, to Dubai. Originally Titanic II was slated to make the journey from Southampton, England, to New York (the route planned for the first ship) by 2016, but this has been delayed.

The Titanic struck an iceberg and sank on its maiden voyage on April 15, 1912, killing 1503 people.

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ABS assesses the issues associated with jackup safety

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The key to jackup safety operations is constant risk management
The key to jackup safety operations is constant risk management

The key to jackup safety operations is constant risk management and with this in mind, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has released a white paper to present some of the challenges facing the global jackup fleet along with the research and development (R&D) efforts.

ABS highlights that reliable technology, a strong safety culture and effective operational procedures are critical to creating a safe work environment. As operating environments and operational expectations change, technologies are introduced, and new ways of doing things emerge. Today, the global jackup fleet comprises more than 650 units, and more than 50% of these units are more than 30 years old. Evolution in the sector is inevitable, but as operational expectations change, there has to be a clear understanding of how new challenges may be leaving these older assets behind and how lower-specification units could continue to perform safely on many challenging sites.

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