Photo credit: CPD Deputy Director Peter Paul Coleiro.
Nineteen boats and yachts were destroyed by a fire which broke out at a private boatyard near Gharghur, Malta in the early hours of Thursday 1st February.
The incident happened in the Tal-Balal area just before 1:00am after a loud explosion was heard, with all 19 boats having been completely destroyed. The Civil Department reported that personnel managed to prevent the fire from spreading further, despite a quantity of tar also believed to have caught fire.
The World LPG Association puts the focus on marine in a new report
The World LPG Association (WLPGA), with its continued commitment to cleaner environment, has issued a report “LPG for Marine Engines – The Marine Alternative Fuel”, dedicated to the use of LPG in the marine sector.
With upcoming stricter IMO emission rules, the global 0.5 sulphur cup, ECAS and SECAs emission limits and the requirements for higher quality fuel, it is inevitable that there will be a radical change in shipping fuel options from HFO to cleaner alternatives. Amongst the options, LPG is one of the promising solutions for the reduction of exhaust emissions from marine vessels. LPG as a clean and immediately available energy source, is characterised by low particle emissions, low NOx (nitrogen oxide) and nearly zero SOx (sulphur oxide) emissions, offering significant environmental advantages while meeting all energy and environmental challenges.
The WLPGA report aims to open the doors for LPG as the next marine alternative fuel. The report contains a wealth of information, data and compelling arguments in support of using LPG as the fuel of choice in marine vessels. It also promotes the understanding of Continue reading “The World LPG Association puts the focus on marine in a new report”
Recalls for personal floatation devices sold in Australia and New Zealand issued
Product safety recalls have been issued for two personal flotation devices sold on the local market due to concerns about their effectiveness in an emergency situation.
Following testing by Maritime Safety Victoria (MSV), Jarvis Walker has issued a voluntary recall of its Adult Block PFD Type 1 which was sold under two brands as three separate codes:
– Single unit code 241050 Platinum brand, sold from July 2011 to December 2015
– Single unit code 56000 JW Brand, sold from January 2012 to December 2015
– Twin pack code 241300 JW Brand, sold from August 2014 to October 2017
Regardless of the brand, all have the single unit marking of “PFD TYPE 1”
Boat Safety Scheme certification charges set to rise as part of new four year business and investment plan
The Boat Safety Scheme (BSS) Management Committee has agreed a new four-year business plan to resource its work to 2022 and invest in improvements that will have an even longer-term benefit. The plan also includes the first price rise in certification charges for eight years.
BSS Examiners will pay a new price of £36 (excluding VAT) for each certification they issue to a boat, which is a £7 rise that they will likely choose to pass onto customers.
The new price will apply from 1 April 2018 and the Scheme intends holding it for at least the whole of the four-year business plan period, which is designed to coincide with the four-year lifespan of BSS Certification.
The new BSS business plan includes additional support to BSS Examiners, projects to improve the quality of examinations and enhancements to customer service.
Japan’s first certified LNG-fueled tugboat soon to be constructed
Japanese carrier Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), the ninth largest container shipping company in the world, has signed a deal for the construction of what will be Japan’s first certified LNG-fueled tugboat.
The vessel is Japan’s first LNG-fueled tugboat with the LNG fuel tank mounted on the exposed deck at the stern of the ship and conforming to the IGF code, which regulates safety requirements for vessels that run on gas and low-flashpoint fuels.
This enhances convenience in bunkering, maintenance, and inspection.
Maritime UK has established a Taskforce increase the number of women within the UK maritime sector
The Taskforce brings together leaders from across the maritime sector to identify practical steps to increase the number of women in maritime, and crucially within senior roles across its shipping, ports, marine and business services industries.
Achieving a balanced workforce at all levels in the maritime sector will undoubtedly improve culture, behaviour, outcomes, profitability and productivity.
During London International Shipping Week, then Maritime Minister Rt Hon John Hayes MP called for industry to address gender imbalance in the sector. Government are represented on the Taskforce.
Request to transfer UK rivers to the CRT gets mixed response
The Canal & River Trust (CRT) has put in a formal request to the Government to transfer the Thames, Nene, Great Ouse, Medway and other Environment Agency (EA) rivers to CRT which has met with a mixed response from user groups.
The idea has been discussed numerous times in the past, and was to have taken place when CRT was formed from the former British Waterways in 2012. But the plan was scuppered by the twin problems of the lack of any EA property ‘dowry’ (unlike the considerable commercial portfolio which came from BW and provides some £50m a year in rentals), and the complexity on some rivers of disentangling navigation from other responsibilities (such as flooding) which would stay with the EA. A subsequent proposal Continue reading “Request to transfer UK rivers to the CRT gets mixed response”
Confusion surrounds antifouling paints which have not been banned in the UK
There is still confusion regarding the future availability of antifouling paints says the British Coatings Federation’s Marine Coatings Group.
The group has produced an explanatory note that it says is intended to provide clarity on the Biocidal Products Regulation, making it clear that antifoul paints – including copper-based antifoul – have not been banned.
“Antifouling paints containing co-biocides also known as ‘booster’ biocides have not been banned,” added Trevor Fielding, regulatory affairs manager at the BCF.
boot Düsseldorf has set new records with 247,000 visitors and 1,923 exhibitors across 16 exhibition halls.
Figures for the Beach World were up by 10% where visitors were able to try out a variety of activities alongside professional athletes representing different water sports.
“These figures are unique in the industry,” said Messe Düsseldorf CEO Werner Dornscheidt. “No other water sports trade fair reflects the entire world market in all its diversity as completely as boot.”
Photo: From left: Director General of Business Finland, Pekka Soini; Director General of the Ministry of Employment and Economy, Ilona Lundström; Minister Anne Berner; President Rolls-Royce Marine, Mikael Mäkinen; UK’s Ambassador to Finland, Tom Dodd; Mayor of Turku, Minna Arve (Photo: Pekka Leino)
Rolls-Royce has opened a state-of-the-art research facility in Turku, Finland, to develop the technologies Rolls-Royce and its partners require to shape the future of an increasingly more autonomous global shipping industry.
The new Research & Development Centre for Autonomous Ships includes a Remote and Autonomous Experience Space aimed at showcasing the autonomous ship technologies Rolls-Royce has already introduced as well as those in the development stage.
Commenting on how the Rolls-Royce R&D centre further strengthens Finland’s commitment to developing autonomous transport, Finnish Minister of Transport and Communications Anne Berner, said: “There is great global interest in autonomous vehicles and vessels as a future means of transport. The opening of the Rolls-Royce Research & Development Centre for Autonomous Ships here in Turku, a maritime city with a history of technological innovation, will help achieve our goal of digitalising the country’s transport sector.”
Lifecord – a kill cord you will never forget – launched by Landau
Lifecord is a newly designed kill cord providing the certainty and reliability of a tethered connection between a boat’s engine ignition kill switch and pilot, ensuring the vessel’s engine stops should the pilot be inadvertently thrown from the helm. However, unlike the typical passive kill cords commonly seen, Lifecord is a ‘smart’ kill cord incorporating detection technology designed to trigger an audible and visual warning alarm should Lifecord be connected to the boat’s kill switch but not the pilot, similar to the seat belt warning in your car.
In January 2016, the passenger vessel PeeJay V caught fire and sank. The reason was due to an ineffective main firefighting system and crew who did not fully understand how it should work. New Zealand’s TAIC has published its report on the incident highlighting that for a CO2 firefighting system to be useful, the space must be airtight and everyone involved should be fully trained and know how the system works.
The incident
On 18 January 2016, the tourist boat was on an all-day excursion from Whakatane to White Island with 53 passengers and seven crew on board. It was near the end of the journey, approaching Whakatane Harbour entrance when fire broke out in the engine room. The crew released the fixed CO2 fire extinguisher into the engine room, which suppressed the fire for a short time. However, Continue reading “Poor firefighting system and lack of crew training lead to PeeJay V sinking”
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