BRIAN MURPHY: BIM National Fisheries and Diving College offers internationally accredited

BIM National Fisheries and Diving College offers internationally accredited qualifications for commercial divers working in the aquaculture industry

Brian Murphy, Director of BIM Diver Training Programmes

Bord Iascaigh Mhara provides a broad range of services and supports to Ireland’s Seafood Industry. In addition, two fulltime colleges, Greencastle and Castletownbere, deliver specialised training programmes. Courses include Deck Hand, Navigation, Fire Fighting, Engineering and now Commercial Diver Training at the National Fisheries and Diving College in Castletownbere, Co. Cork.

Divers are an essential element of the workforce on any fish farm and provide vital services to other forms of aquaculture. The role of the diver is varied and depends on the stage of the fish production cycle. Typically, this includes site and mooring inspections, seabed sampling and surveys, net inspection and repairs, attachment or removal of net weights, removal of mortalities from cages and recovery of items from the seabed. The bigger the site, the more work there is for divers and the more divers are needed to get the job done.

The aquaculture industry is now the largest employer of divers in Ireland. Many are full-time employees, and some are contract divers who provide services to fish farms during busy periods and then work in other areas of the diving industry for the rest of the year.

Dive team complete recovery of work piece

qqi level 6

BIM ran commercial diving programmes from 1990 to 2000 and trained many divers who have worked on farms. With no courses offered between 2000 and 2018, a shortage of divers became apparent as some retired or moved to different roles within the industry. So, based on industry demand, BIM revisited their diver training programmes and established a new set of courses.

Firstly, two new awards had to be developed: a QQI Level 6 Commercial Scuba and a QQI Level 6 Surface Supplied Diver (Inshore) to thirty (30) meters. Awards were developed with Quality Qualifications Ireland (QQI) to meet current requirements for diver training based on Health and Safety Executive (UK), International Diving Schools Association (IDSA) & European Diving Technology Committee (EDTC) standards to ensure a world-class standard for diver training schools in Ireland.

BIM then had to develop its courses to meet these new award standards. Courses are delivered by the National Fisheries and Diving College in Castletownbere and approved by QQI and by the HSE (UK) to ensure divers trained in Ireland receive internationally recognised certifications.

The National Fisheries and Diving College in Castletownbere is well placed to deliver these courses with a waterfront school and direct access to a sheltered body of water for the safe delivery of all elements of the course.

Bere Island provides sheltered waters even in the most challenging weather conditions enabling divers to dive safely almost every day.

BIM has invested in a complete diver training system that includes

Diver Training

Bord Iascaigh Mhara now provide commercial diver training courses based on international best practice at the National Fisheries & Diving College, Castletownbere Co. Cork.

Divers working in Ireland are required to have appropriate training. Depending on the work they do, they must have either a Commercial Scuba or a Surface Supplied Diving qualifi cation. For most commercial diving, the preferred method is Surface Supplied Diving (SSD), which provides greater protection for the diver, unlimited air supply, and a fully independent back-up supply. Divers with this qualifi cation can work on all aquaculture sites as well as inshore civil engineering projects. To work in the o shore oil, gas and renewables sectors, a further top-up programme is required. The SSD course duration is four weeks full time and on successful completion candidates will receive a QQI Level 6 Certifi cate: Surface Supplied Diving (Inshore). The Commercial Scuba course is a prerequisite for SSD. Students learn how to use scuba equipment and simple communication systems in a commercial setting. Divers learn how to work underwater in a range of environments and how to use core tools underwater. The Commercial Scuba course is fi ve weeks long and on completion candidates receive a QQI Level 6 Certifi cate: Commercial Scuba Diver. Both qualifi cations are recognised by the HSE UK ensuring international validity and employability.

For more information contact:

NFCI Castletownbere

Phone 027-71230 Mobile 087-2897629 (Shane Begley) Mobile 087-2378471 (Brian Murphy) Email diving@bim.ie Website www.bim.ie

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an International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) certified containerised surface-supplied diving system and recompression chamber together with the necessary ancillary equipment to run a diving spread.

Divers start at the basics using commercial scuba equipment with hand tools and learn both the necessary theory and practical skills required for industry and certification. The tasks undertaken by a commercial scuba diver are limited. Surface-supplied equipment is preferred when divers must carry out works involving power tools, cutting, burning, or welding underwater.

offShore reNewable eNergy

Surface supplied diving, as the name suggests, means that the diver’s air supply is provided from the surface via an umbilical, including communications and depth monitoring capabilities. This is a safer alternative to scuba, where the size of the cylinder limits the diver’s air supply. The correct choice of equipment and dive skills required is driven by a Dive Plan and Risk Assessment for any diving project. Both are covered in the BIM diver training course.

While the BIM programme was established to provide divers for the aquaculture industry, the qualifications are the same for other commercial diving areas, including scientific diving, media, underwater archaeology, marine civil engineering, and many other areas where divers are required.

Indeed, Ireland is about to enter a new era in marine industrial activity with the development of offshore renewable energy, primarily offshore wind energy. Not only will this industry generate significant employment opportunities across a wide range of activities, but it will also generate substantial demand for suitably qualified divers.

New Irish diving regulations came into force in 2019. Statutory Instrument (S.I.) 254 SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELFARE AT WORK (DIVING) REGULATIONS 2018 includes the aquaculture industry explicitly.

In the past, divers with recreational diving qualifications would sometimes carry out diving jobs on fish farms. However, under the previous regulations, there was uncertainty regarding the qualifications required and applying the regulations to fish farms.

This is no longer the case and employers of divers are required by law to ensure that their divers are suitably qualified and competent to carry out the works required and meet the legislative requirements for minimum team size, type of equipment used, and the appointment of a diving supervisor who is suitably qualified and competent.

BIM engage a team of specialised instructors to deliver the courses to the highest standard. Brian Murphy, Course Director, is a qualified Mixed Gas Saturation Diver and Dive Supervisor with over 40 years of experience as a commercial diver and instructor working in the North Sea and worldwide, both inshore and offshore.

Cillian Gray is a qualified commercial diver, instructor, and equipment technician with over 30 years of experience as a commercial diver in inshore civil engineering, scientific diving, and aquaculture.

Tiernan Gray is an instructor, Life Support Supervisor, Air Diving Supervisor and Diving Medical Technician with over twenty years of experience both inshore and offshore. This blend of experience, qualifications, and state-ofthe-art equipment ensures that students at the National Fisheries and Diving college will benefit from world-class tuition and be fully prepared for industry on completion of their course.

The National Fisheries and Diving College plans to expand on the range of diving and associated courses available. Plans to create Dive Supervisors courses and offer specialised training in underwater welding, burning and power tools are well underway.

BIM is currently in the process of re-engineering a barge to meet its training needs specifically. This 29m x 12m barge, under refurbishment in Bere Island Boatyard, and will primarily be driven by renewable energy, utilising a cutting-edge battery pack provided by Daretech technologies. It will ensure that BIM has the perfect platform to deliver these courses in the future.

Anyone interested in pursuing a career in diving or finding out more about the courses should contact Capt. Shane Begley, College Principal, (021) 71230 or Brian Murphy, Course Director, on (087) 2378471

Surface Supplied Diver heading to work.