Shipping

Alang shipbreaking workers operate in poor conditions

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A new study says that Alang shipbreaking workers continue to work in appalling conditions. Photo courtesy of The Hindu Business Line
A new study says that Alang shipbreaking workers continue to work in appalling conditions. Photo courtesy of The Hindu Business Line

The working and living conditions at the Alang shipbreaking yards in India, remain alarmingly poor, argues a new study published in the Economic & Political Weekly, a well known Indian Social Science journal. The research was commissioned and financed by the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) and was coordinated by Dr Geetanjoy Sahu from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). TISS’ findings are based on intensive field work in Alang from April 2013 to May 2014 including interviews with 300 shipbreaking workers as well as stakeholders from the industry, trade unions and authorities.

The study finds that the “costs to workers’ health and the environment are alarming” while the profit margins for both the yard owners and the contractors providing the labour force are extremely high. Dr Sahu reports that the approximately 35,000 unorganised migrant workers at the Alang shipbreaking yards continue to live in shanty dwellings without adequate facilities for drinking water, sanitation and electricity. The authorities have set up only 12 showers and six toilets. As a result, “workers are forced to defecate in the open”.

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ClassNK register passes the 230 million gross tons mark

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ClassNK has announced that its register has surpassed the 230 million gross tons mark in 2014 for the first time
ClassNK has announced that its register has surpassed the 230 million gross tons mark in 2014 for the first time

Leading classification society ClassNK has announced that its register topped 230 million gross tons for the first time. The announcement was made following a meeting of the Society’s Classification Committee, which certified that the NK Register listed 8,826 vessels totaling 231.34 million gross tons at the end of November 2014.

As ClassNK finished 2013 with some 220.9 million gross tons on its register, the achievement means that ClassNK has added a net total of more than 10 million gross tons to its register in the first 11 months of the year, continuing the leading classification society’s stunning growth over recent years. Continuing recent trends for the Society, transfers of vessels from other classification societies accounted for more than one third of the vessels joining the ClassNK Register, setting a new record for the Society.

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New Chemical Tanker Safety Guide published by ICS

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Tanker Safety Guide on chemicals A fully updated edition of the definitive industry guidance on the safe operation of chemical tankers has just been published by the shipping industry’s global trade association, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).

The new edition of the ICS Tanker Safety Guide (Chemicals) replaces the previous edition issued in 2002. ICS recommends that a copy is carried on board every tanker engaged in the carriage of chemical cargoes, and that copies are also held within shipping company technical departments.

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UN condemns Somali pirates

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The type of skiff used by Somali pirates. Photo: UNODC
The type of skiff used by Somali pirates. Photo: UNODC

The United Nations Security Council today reaffirmed its condemnation of all acts of Somali pirates and all piracy and robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia, reiterating its calls for the international community to intensify their efforts in fighting what it said was a threat to the East African country’s stability.

Adopting a new resolution, the Council stressed the need for UN Member States to engage in a “comprehensive response to repress piracy” and tackle its underlying causes, while also calling on the global community to “take part in the fight against piracy and armed robbery” by providing a consistent military presence to the region.

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Southampton Port is set to berth the world’s biggest ships

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Southampton Port is ready to handle the world's largest ships
Southampton Port is ready to handle the world’s largest ships

Associated British Ports‘ Southampton Port is ready to handle the biggest ships in the world today and long into the future after a £40 million dredging project.

Dredgers have completed a programme of capital dredging to deepen and widen the approach channel linking international shipping lanes to the Port.

The work ensures ships with a draught of up to 15.5m – the biggest container vessels currently in service – will be able to access the container terminal at Southampton Port.

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Small tanker pirate attacks rise in SE Asia says IMB report

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Small tanker pirate attacks are rising in southeast Asia
Small tanker pirate attacks are rising in southeast Asia

While pirate attacks on the world’s seas have fallen for the third consecutive year, small tanker hijacks by armed gangs are escalating in Southeast Asia, reveals the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) International Maritime Bureau (IMB) in its latest piracy report.

IMB’s 2014 third quarter global piracy report notes a total of 178 pirate attacks so far this year, down from 352 for same period in 2011. In the first nine months of 2014, pirates killed three crew, kidnapped five from their vessels and took 369 seafarers hostage. A total of 17 vessels were hijacked, 124 were boarded and 10 were fired upon. There were 27 further reports of attempted attacks.

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Edith Maersk docks at DP World London Gateway

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The Edith Maersk, the largest vessel ever to enter the River Thames, docked at DP World London Gateway
The Edith Maersk, the largest vessel ever to enter the River Thames, docked at DP World London Gateway

The Edith Maersk, the largest vessel ever to enter the River Thames, arrived at DP World London Gateway on Sunday 19 October.

The 396 metre long, 56 metre wide ship has a draught of 16 metres and can carry up to 15,500 teu.

The ship, which is just weeks shy of celebrating its first anniversary, left the terminal on Sunday night bound for Singapore.

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Mariners Alerting and Reporting Scheme (MARS)

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Mariners Alerting and Reporting Scheme (MARS)
Mariners Alerting and Reporting Scheme (MARS)

What is MARS?

There is an important free resource available to the whole of the shipping industry that makes a major contribution to safety and that surveyors can help to improve. This is the Mariners Alerting and Reporting Scheme (MARS) operated by The Nautical Institute. MARS is a free resource and The Nautical Institute hopes that surveyors will help to make its existence known to the maritime world. The Nautical Institute wants as many mariners and, indeed, as many in shipping as possible, to benefit from lessoned learned from accidents and near misses. Surveyors can spread the word to let mariners and companies know the resource is there.

The background to MARS is known to all; across the major transportation modes and in many other fields, human error looms as the leading cause of both accidents and incidents. In recent years, the definition of human error has been expanded to include concepts such as unsafe supervision and organisational influences (e.g. resource management and operational processes). In the maritime industry approximately 90 percent of accidents can be traced to human error despite the promotion of regulations, training and quality management systems.

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Initial findings into three fatalities

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This article relates to the entry of a confined space on board the cargo ship SUNTIS in Goole Docks, Humberside on 26 May 2014 resulting in three fatalities. The initial findings of the MAIB are available.

At approximately 0645 (UTC+1) on 26 May 2014, three crew members on board the cargo ship, Suntis, were found unconscious in the main cargo hold forward access compartment, which was sited in the vessel’s forecastle (f’ocsle). The crew members were recovered from the compartment but, despite intensive resuscitation efforts by their rescuers, they did not survive.

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Shipowners ‘need protection’ from excessive port charges

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Guy plattenUK Chamber CEO, Guy Platten, has delivered a keynote speech to the British Ports Association annual conference in Belfast.

Mr Platten focused on the broad challenges facing the industry, but explained that a system must be found to mediate disputes between shipping companies and port operators over the cost of doing business.

He said: “Shipowners, just like commercial ports, are in business to make money – and expect to negotiate with their suppliers in order to secure a good service at a competitive price. Some UK ports are effective monopolies – and I reveal no confidences when I say that there are concerns that this results in them treating shipowners as captive customers.

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Non MLC 2006 compliant supply ships could be detained

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A container ship on the water outside a port city

Non compliance with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006 regulation, which came into force on 7 August, could result in North Sea supply ships being detained says shipping and maritime law expert Katie Williams of Pinsent Masons.

Katie Williams said that although most UK operators were already compliant, vessels operating or passing through UK waters under other national flags could now be at risk of enforcement action. “The Maritime Labour Convention consolidates what has been in place in the UK for some years, but a major change is that for the first time it has an enforcement mechanism with real ‘teeth’,” she said.

“Many shipping companies and charterers have invested significant time and effort in trying to ensure that they will comply with the new regime, however the Maritime and Coastguard Agency as the UK’s enforcement body will be looking to set down a marker that they intend to rigorously apply the new laws. It would be a nightmare scenario for a boat which is chartered at thousands of pounds a day to be detained in port, but it is feasible that in extreme circumstances this could happen,” she said.

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The role of the stevedore in shipping

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A Crane lifting a raft fom a ship onto the docksWHAT IS STEVEDORING?

Stevedore It is an occupation which involves the cargo operations i.e. loading and unloading of cargoes on ships. It also includes the other various dockside functions. The people engaged in this occupation are known as stevedores in UK & Europe. However, in the United States and other areas are referred to as longshoremen. At present, in countries such as Dubai, Singapore etc. where stevedoring is a commonplace and where all the cargo passes through domestic and international ports is usually handled is known as Freight Station or Freight Terminal. In this scenario, the stevedores do need heavy machinery, such as tractor, trailers, cranes and forklifters, etc. If on the other hand the some other related work is performed manually where use of machinery is not required such as labour or clerical work. The businesses which specialize in loading and unloading vessels are referred to as stevedoring companies.

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