Small Craft News

World’s first battery-powered luxury boat using Williams Advanced Engineering tech

Posted on by News Hound
World’s first battery-powered luxury boat
World’s first battery-powered luxury boat

Williams Advanced Engineering (WAE) is working with fellow Oxfordshire-based firm, OXIS Energy Ltd, on the production of ‘cleaner, greener energy’, designed for an all-new 40ft electric battery-powered luxury boat.

The craft, from Yachts de Luxe (YdL) of Singapore and designed by Jean Jacques Coste, will be the world’s first ever battery-powered luxury boat to be powered by Lithium Sulfur (Li-S) cell and battery systems technology. The objective is to achieve a range between 70 and 100 nautical miles at cruising speed – setting new standards for range in electric boats.

WAE will be responsible for the state-of-the-art 400 kWh battery system, which comprises ultra-light, high-power/high-energy density Li-S cells – provided by OXIS Energy Ltd – and the battery management system (BMS). The design and manufacture of the cell modules, the BMS and its installation will be carried out by WAE at its dedicated battery facility in Grove. Continue reading “World’s first battery-powered luxury boat using Williams Advanced Engineering tech”

Shipowners creating a series of four podcasts about preventing yacht electrical fires

Posted on by News Hound
Shipowners creating a series of four podcasts about preventing yacht fires
Shipowners creating a series of four podcasts about preventing yacht fires

Since 2014 the Club has experienced 17 yacht fire claims. Of these claims, it was established that 10 were directly a result of an electrical fault, and 1 indirectly. These claims have the potential to demand a high quantum, with one such claim currently sitting at just under US$ 3 million. It is not just the financial implications of these incidents as yachts suffering from fire or smoke damage deprive their owner use of their asset. This Podcast mini-series has been created to generate awareness surrounding the causes of yacht electrical fires and provide guidance from industry experts on how these incidents may be avoided.

The guests and speakers each have different specialisms within the yacht industry, such as flag State, underwriting, and surveying, offering a variety of different perspectives and opinions to the discussions. Shipowners hopes that you find these podcasts informative and encourage further circulation of these materials to assist the common goal of mitigating incidents of this nature. Continue reading “Shipowners creating a series of four podcasts about preventing yacht electrical fires”

Fire on RoRo linked to accidental fuel spill says accident report

Posted on by Rosie Burton
Fire on RoRo linked to accidental fuel spill says accident report
Fire on RoRo linked to accidental fuel spill says accident report

Transport Malta has published an investigation report into the engine-room fire onboard the Maltese-registered RoRo cargo vessel Eurocargo Trieste, following departure from the port of Livorno in November 2019. The investigation identified an accidental fuel spill onto a hot surface as the most likely cause of the incident.

At around 0123 on 21 November 2019, ro-ro cargo, motor vessel Eurocargo Trieste had left Livorno for Savona, Italy. There were 25 crew members onboard and the vessel was laden with trailers.

At around 0220, shortly after dropping off the outbound pilot, a fire broke out around the starboard main engine. The engine-room crew initially tried to fight the fire but soon had to vacate the space. The crew members were then mustered, and the firefighting team tried to enter the engine-room to fight the fire.

Due to thick smoke and difficulties to enter the space, the fire-fighting team retreated, and the master decided to flood the engine-room with CO2. The gas was released at Continue reading “Fire on RoRo linked to accidental fuel spill says accident report”

MAIB Chief Inspector, Capt Andrew Moll, makes a statement at the start of Carbon Monoxide Awareness Week 2020

Posted on by News Hound
Carbon Monoxide Awareness Week 2020 aims to keep this issue in the minds of surveyors and the public
Carbon Monoxide Awareness Week 2020 aims to keep this issue in the minds of surveyors and the public

MAIB recently published a safety bulletin about the tragic deaths of two sailors on board Diversion due to carbon monoxide poisoning. As we continue our investigation it is vital that we remain alert to the silent danger carbon monoxide poses to the maritime community and the steps we can take to protect ourselves.

Over the past ten years MAIB has investigated six incidents involving carbon monoxide poisoning resulting in the tragic loss of ten lives. The majority of these incidents occurred on board motor cruisers used for recreation. In this time safety action has been taken and MAIB has made 12 safety recommendations focussed on preventing further, needless loss of life.

Continue reading “MAIB Chief Inspector, Capt Andrew Moll, makes a statement at the start of Carbon Monoxide Awareness Week 2020”

Four key safety issues identified after fatal Conception fire in the final report

Posted on by News Hound

Following months of complex and forensic investigation, the National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) has published its official report on the fire onboard the small passenger vessel Conception in September 2019 off California, which killed 34 people. It has highlighted poor oversight by the company and USCG regulatory issues as key areas of concern which were revealed in a recent preliminary report. There is a long list of recommendations for the USCG to adhere to following this most harrowing accident.

About 0314 on 2 September 2019, the USCG received a distress call from the Conception, a 75-foot-long small passenger vessel, anchored in Platts Harbor on the north side of Santa Cruz Island, California, reporting fire. When Continue reading “Four key safety issues identified after fatal Conception fire in the final report”

Canadian Government publishes new Marine Navigation Safety Regulations to improve maritime safety

Posted on by News Hound
Canadian Government publishes new Marine Navigation Safety Regulations to improve maritime safety
Canadian Government publishes new Marine Navigation Safety Regulations to improve maritime safety

The Government of Canada has published new Marine Navigation Safety Regulations 2020, which now apply to commercial vessels of all sizes, including fishing vessels, workboats, water taxis and ferries.

The regulations represent a consolidation of nine existing sets of marine safety regulations into a single one that:
– provides clearer and more up to date language on required navigational safety equipment;
– requires vessel owners to have equipment to help reduce the risk of collisions that could cause pollution, like oil spills, and threaten endangered marine life, such as Continue reading “Canadian Government publishes new Marine Navigation Safety Regulations to improve maritime safety”

IMO webinars put fishing vessel safety high on agenda

Posted on by News Hound
Fishing vessel safety is the subject of a series of IMO regional webinars
Fishing vessel safety is the subject of a series of IMO regional webinars

One year after the well-attended Torremolinos Conference, IMO is launching a series of regional webinars in a renewed push to encourage ratification of a key treaty to bring in global enforceable standards for fishing vessel safety.

The webinars, launching in Latin America and the Caribbean in November, will bring together key stakeholders involved in fishing from across governments and highlight the benefits of the Cape Town Agreement, which was adopted by IMO in 2012. The Agreement, once in force, will bring in mandatory international safety requirements for fishing vessels of 24 metres in length and over, including provisions addressing stability and associated seaworthiness, machinery and electrical installations, life-saving appliances, communications equipment and fire protection, as well as fishing vessel construction.

Continue reading “IMO webinars put fishing vessel safety high on agenda”

MCA 2019-2020 annual report highlights the work of this Government department

Posted on by Rosie Burton
MCA 2019-2020 annual report highlights the work of this Government department
MCA 2019-2020 annual report highlights the work of this Government department

Her Majesty’s Coastguard (HMC) responded to more than 31,000 incidents at the coast according to the MCA 2019-2020 annual report.

“As this report demonstrates, we continue to keep protecting the general public with our first-class search and rescue service,” said Brian Johnson, chief executive of the MCA. “Elsewhere, exciting work has, and is continuing to take place across the board, with important steps being made in many areas, such as survey and inspection and enhanced experiences for UK Ship Register customers.”

Technology and innovation
As well as frontline search and rescue, HMC has delivered a number of major Continue reading “MCA 2019-2020 annual report highlights the work of this Government department”

USCG to update type approval requirements for survival craft equipment

Posted on by News Hound
USCG to update type approval requirements for survival craft equipment
USCG to update type approval requirements for survival craft equipment

The US Coast Guard (USCG) is proposing to update the type approval requirements for survival craft equipment required to carry on U.S. flagged vessels. The proposed rule is deregulatory and would remove US Coast Guard type approval requirements for nine of these types of survival craft equipment and replace them with the requirement that the manufacturer self-certify that the equipment complies with a consensus standard.

Comments and related material must be received by the US Coast Guard on or before December 4, 2020.

The US Coast Guard proposes to amend several approval and carriage requirements Continue reading “USCG to update type approval requirements for survival craft equipment”

AMSA report: Serious marine incidents increase in 2018-2019 in Australian waters

Posted on by News Hound
Serious marine incidents increase in 2018-2019 in Australian waters
Serious marine incidents increase in 2018-2019 in Australian waters

AMSA received a total of 12,349 marine incident reports in the period 2016 to 2019, according to the first marine incident annual report for regulated Australian and foreign flagged commercial vessels in Australian waters. The data suggests a significant upward trend in serious incidents between 2018 and 2019, demonstrating the need for a concerted effort on improving safety.

The 2019 annual report presents an analysis of marine incidents including fatalities reported to AMSA. The vast majority of incidents are of a technical nature (78.4%).

The increased reporting rate is a positive sign in terms of industry commitment to safety, and suggests that industry engagement initiatives are yielding results. Continue reading “AMSA report: Serious marine incidents increase in 2018-2019 in Australian waters”

UK inland waterways sustainability requires investment

Posted on by News Hound

The installation of 300 shore power mains connection charging sites is just one recommendation for the UK Government from the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) to make boating more sustainability plan. The infrastructure investment would improve air quality by reducing the emissions from stoves for heating and engines run for charging batteries, as well as enabling a move towards more boats with electric propulsion, says the IWA’s Sustainable Propulsion Group.

Other recommendations in inland waterways sustainability plan include a national dredging programme across Britain’s inland waterways, working with navigation authorities, to make propulsion more efficient.

Continue reading “UK inland waterways sustainability requires investment”

IIMS set to change its Certifying Authority training strategy

Posted on by News Hound

For many years, the IIMS Certifying Authority (CA) has pursued a rigid training policy, requiring an examiner to attend one of the two days real-time training that has been arranged annually. This concept now seems somewhat outdated and inflexible. Furthermore, asking an examiner whose specialism is coding motorboats to sit through a presentation on workboats and cranes at a training day is not a great use of anyone’s time, unless it has direct relevance of course!

It has always been a requirement as part of the Institute’s contract with the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) that our coding examiners are continually assessed, which includes attending training. And at MCA audit the CA is asked to provide evidence that this has happened.

Continue reading “IIMS set to change its Certifying Authority training strategy”

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