DOVER Shipping Company Limited

19/02/2018

The National Marine Biomedical Research Institute (NMBRI) mitigates the risks inherent to long duration human (mariners / seafarers) while translating research findings to tangibly improve health on Shore. The Institute partners with ISMERIT, LTD, ISRAEL

07/01/2018

32 missing as oil tanker collides with vessel off China coast
Beijing, January 7
Two vessels collided off China's east coast, leaving 32 crew members missing, state-run media reported.
The Panama-registered oil tanker, carrying 136,000 tonnes of oil condensate, caught fire after it collided with a Hong Kong-registered bulk freighter at around 8 pm on Saturday, , the transport ministry said.
The collision took place in waters about 160 sea miles east of the Yangtze River's estuary.
The 32 missing crew members were all from the oil tanker. All of the bulk freighter’s 21 crew have been rescued, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Chinese maritime authorities have dispatched eight vessels for search and rescue.
After the coordination of China Maritime Search and Rescue Centre, South Korea has dispatched a coast guard ship and a fixed-wing aircraft to assist in the rescue operation, the report said. PTI/ AFP

24/12/2017

Wishing All Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

06/12/2017

UKHO Revises Admiralty ENC And ECDIS Maintenance Record
The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office has published a revised edition of the ADMIRALTY ENC and ECDIS Maintenance Record (NP133C). First published in 2014, this publication is designed to help mariners demonstrate compliance with IMO regulations during Port State Control inspections, with easy-to-use checklists and templates to record ECDIS annual performance checks and software maintenance.

For the first time, the record now provides guidance to help bridge crews record and manage cyber risks. This update has been developed in line with guidance published by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), stating that approved safety management systems (SMS) should consider cyber risk management in line with the ISM code before January 2021. NP133C has been revised to help mariners achieve this by providing a checklist to document threats and procedures to mitigate risk to ships.

UKHO_ECDIS
Image Credits: admiralty.co.uk
In February 2017, the IMO also made important clarifications on training requirements for ECDIS, stating that seafarers are not required to take type specific training at designated colleges but that companies are still responsible for ensuring all seafarers employed on their ships are familiarised with ECDIS. To support this, the revised version NP133C now includes checklists designed to document and evidence that ECDIS familiarisation training has been completed, thus helping to ensure evidence can be provided during Port State Control inspections.

20/10/2017

A Journal of the Maritime Industry with Casualties, Tugboats, Shipbuilding, Jobs and Industry News

07/10/2017

More funds to train seafarers

The shipping industry is calling on the Government to double funding to help train seafarers.

The industry is asking for a further £30m in a bid to protect UK maritime jobs as the country gets closer to Brexit.

The UK Chamber of Shipping explains that it has proposed an extension to the Government’s existing Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) scheme such that its members would agree to employ trained newly-qualified officers for a sufficient period to enable them to attain higher qualifications.

The Chamber's CEO, Guy Platten, warns that the UK maritime industry is facing competition from other shipping hubs, including Hong Kong and Singapore, where the cost of training staff is lower than the UK which, at £65,000, is the second most expensive place to train a seafarer - even with the Government’s £22,000 subsidy. And people trained abroad are able to take jobs on UK-registered ships. There is also the pressing issue of the rising age of the UK’s sea-going work force.

The Chamber adds that, if the Government’s provision were increased, the industry 'is confident that companies would train officers in even greater numbers - enabling the UK to claim a greater share of the global market for highly-qualified seafarers'.

The CEO warns 'If the UK does not respond with positive measures to ensure that employment prospects for its seafarers remain strong, it will lose its pool of talent and expertise that its shore-based infrastructure of maritime colleges, surveyors, naval architects, marine insurers and maritime lawyers requires in order to advance the UK’s pre-eminence as a maritime nation.'

He adds that the extra funding would easily raise the number of trainees across the industry from the current 800 annually to 1,200 - and had the ability to increase it to 1,600.

Shipping Minister, John Hayes, is reported to have echoed the industry’s call - saying that the UK must increase the number of qualified officers joining the industry by at least 1,500 each year if it is to close the gap between supply and demand.

27/09/2017

The Panama Canal has welcomed the 2,000th Neopanamax vessel transit through its expanded locks, just 15 months after their inauguration.

28/07/2017

22/07/2017

22/07/2017

Performing Pilotage Ops