The Maritime Executive Magazine July/August 2009 by Maritime Executive Magazine

Piracy Debate

What About the Mariners? THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE CLAUS BIHL, MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE

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Executives Tackle Safety

Changing Culture From the Top Down

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TOC

MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE At Maersk, Certified Excellence and Cutting-Edge Innovation Add Up to Measurable ROI. BY JOSEPH KEEFE

32 | Software Silver Bullets for the Maritime Industry

Executive Achievement

BY MAREX STAFF

36 | Maritime Training:

Washington Insider

A Review of Some of the Best Software Solutions in the Business

A Global Perspective BY JOSEPH KEEFE

Executive Interview:

Claus Bihl

A Conversation With the Managing Director at the Maersk Training Centre BY JOSEPH KEEFE

Reception area of the MTC Guesthouse

42 | Maritime Communications Shootout: No Room for Pirates Increased Capacity + Falling Prices = Fierce Competition BY BARRY PARKER

48 | From the Top Down: Enhancing Safety Through Culture Change

8 | Vice Admiral Vivien S. Crea Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard

12 | Congress and the Courts Fashion New Maritime Policies

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Case Study:

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Contents

The domestic political headlines this summer have thus far featured… BY LARRY KIERN

MarEx OP-ED

16 | Piracy and Its Long-Term Effect on Merchant Mariners

Who Cares for the Victims of Pirate Attacks? BY DOUGLAS B. STEVENSON

BY ROBERT PATER, STRATEGIC SAFETY ASSOCIATES

52 | Maritime Training & Education Directory

Find the right program to fit your goals and expectations.

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Upgrades and Downgrades

18 | Have Asset Values Finally Touched Bottom?

A lively debate is taking place in shipping circles… BY JACK O’CONNELL

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RW Fernstrum

1/9/09

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Page 1

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THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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For subscriptions please visit www.maritime-executive.com The Maritime Executive (ISSN 1096-2751) is published bi-monthly by The Maritime Executive, LLC, 3200 S. Andrews Avenue, Suite 100, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306, Tel. (866) 884-9034. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Domestic subscription rates are $36, per year. International subscription rates are $86, per year. Application to mail at periodicals postage rates is pending at Fort Lauderdale, FL and additional mailing ofﬁces. For single copies of the magazine or reprints of articles appearing in this magazine, contact The Maritime Executive at (866) 884-9034. COPYRIGHT: © Copyright 1996 by The Maritime Executive. All rights reserved. The Maritime Executive is fully protected by copyright law, and nothing that appears in it may be reproduced, wholly or in part, without written permission. We cannot be responsible for the claims of manufacturers in any of the items. Editorial manuscripts and photos will be handled with care but no liability is assumed for them. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to The Maritime Executive, 3200 S. Andrews Avenue, Suite 100, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316. Change of address notices should be sent promptly with old as well as new address and with ZIP code or postal zone. Allow 30 days for change of address.

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EDITORIAL

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

Maritime eLearning: Thankfully Not Your Father’s Classroom

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Suddenly ﬁnding yourself on the wrong side of 50 is scary enough without the added burden of new technology that suddenly doesn’t seem optional anymore. Fortunately, most of what is coming down the pike – or already here – is easy enough to navigate, right out of the box. At some outfits, they call Joseph Keefe this particular phenomenon “plug-and-play.” When it Managing Editor comes to something that I am actually required to operate, however, I call that kind of software “easy enough for Joe.” On the other hand, for the new generation of mariner coming up through the ranks right now, it really doesn’t matter. This group, as a generic demographic, are already far more tech-savvy than I ever dreamed possible. Having seen the cover of this magazine, you know that the focus of our editorial content is maritime education and training. Perhaps we could have better named it the “Maritime Education, Training, Technology and eLearning” edition. That’s because the stars are finally aligned to bring the considerable burden of maritime regulatory training and credentialing into parity with other industries. It’s about time. Long ago, most other sectors of the transportation world began to incorporate the powerful tools of eLearning, distance learning, and blended or “hybrid” forms of all that into their instructional curriculums. On the waterfront, the first two STCW training courses – developed by the folks at the Calhoon MEBA Engineering School (CMES) – were approved by the U.S. Coast Guard only within the last 18 months. More are sure to follow, but the process of getting this far was not easy, nor did it happen overnight. Stay tuned: The pace is about to quicken. There are several factors that will expedite the modernization of the maritime classroom. As you will discover in this edition, the decreasing cost and increasing availability of broadband communications aboard ships, including but not limited to email, Web browsing and other online activities, will ultimately make it easier for mariners to complete at least a portion of their seemingly steady diet of maritime

regulatory training while at sea. Formerly considered a tool to transmit business data or perhaps increase retention of seafarers in a tight job market, at-sea, broadband-enabled eLearning will now make it possible for mariners departing their vessels for vacation to actually go on holiday. Just as there are only so many hours in each mariner’s day (especially on vacation), there is also a corresponding limit to the money in the coffers of shipping companies that are already struggling to make a buck without their training budgets being doubled every time the IMO decides to overhaul the STCW protocols. Consider, for a moment, the savings for a major cruise line that can run 1,000 personnel through the STCW-mandated “Crowd Management” course without having to fly a single one of them to a training course where, not coincidentally, they will also have to be housed and fed. And once the STCW eLearning metric is transferred to other disciplines, the savings will expand exponentially. At the CMES-sponsored eLearning Symposium in July, it was informally proposed to take certain aspects of the STCW-mandated BST training online, potentially reducing a one-week, away-from-home commitment to an overnight event for the more rigorous, physical aspects of that training. The U.S. Coast Guard’s Mayte Medina, a Senior Member of the U.S. Delegation to the IMO, told the gathered throng that very little was scheduled to go away in terms of the training requirements already in place and several new initiatives were underway. The traditional “brick-and-mortar” training protocols, as good as they may be, simply are not going to be able to satisfy all the new demands – certainly not within the time constraints of mariners and the industry they serve. For those of you sitting in the home office thinking that none of this has anything to do with you, think again. Actively being discussed at the highest levels is a proposal to ramp up the requirement for shipping companies to more closely monitor the certifications of their mariners. For today’s mariners and maritime professionals, eLearning technologies probably can’t come soon enough. Not every course is suitable for online delivery, but – where appropriate – these tools represent a powerful and valuable asset for any training facility. Distance and eLearning and, yes – hybrid or “blended” forms of that – have arrived at the waterfront. I have earned two STCW endorsements in this manner. And I can assure you, “It’s easy enough for Joe.” Mar Ex

Joseph Keefe can be contacted at jkeefe@maritime-executive.com with comments, input and questions on this editorial or any other piece in this magazine. The Maritime Executive welcomes your participation in our editorial content.

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ExecutiveAchievement

Vice Admiral

By MarEx Staff

Vivien S. Crea J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

THE 25TH VICE COMMANDANT OF THE COAST Guard has a message for those who would like to be regaled with stories of an unfair or difficult climb up the ranks: Baloney! VADM Crea’s rise defies the commonly held notion that there are limited opportunities for women and minorities in the nation’s fifth uniformed military service. Crea holds the second highest position in the Coast Guard and is the first woman to do so. For a time she was the highest ranking woman in the history of the U.S. armed services (eclipsed only recently by a four-star general in the Army). Earlier in her career she served as Commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Area. She was the first woman from any service, as well as the first member of the Coast Guard, to serve as the Presidential Military Aide, carrying the nuclear “football” for President Reagan. Crea’s educational background is equally impressive with two Master’s degrees – one from MIT – and an undergraduate degree from the University of Texas. The pace of life that saw her break through many barriers in the military, including being one of the first women aviators in Coast Guard history, is not likely to end when she retires in August. In any language, all of that spells leadership. That she provided that leadership cheerfully and without complaint for more than 35 years in a maritime industry that is, at times, anything but friendly to women is especially noteworthy.

AT THE TOP

Confirmed by the Senate as the Vice Commandant in June of 2006, Crea also serves as Chief Operating Officer, responsible for the daily functioning of the organization, policy development, mission execution and support delivery. In addition to serving as Component Acquisition Executive, Vice Admiral Crea also chairs the Coast Guard’s Flag and Senior Executive Leadership Council. None of that happened by accident. VADM Crea points to the three most important things for a leader in any organization: “You have to have a passion for what you are doing. And then – I’ve made some sacrifices and made some choices – you have to make the

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commitment to what you are trying to accomplish. Then you have to have perspective – see things from the point of view of those you are trying to influence. You’ve got to be a good listener.”

GETTING THERE: PROFILE IN PERSEVERANCE Her path to the number-two spot in the Coast Guard was not a traditional one, but from Crea’s perspective it makes perfect sense. Not a Coast Guard Academy graduate – that path was not open to women when she was in college – Crea instead went to the University of Texas and from there entered the Coast Guard through OCS. “I was an

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EXECUTIVE ACHIEVEMENT crewing on cutters began to be implemented two years later in 1977. Today, there are few Coast Guard historians who wouldn’t argue that Crea’s refusal to take “no” for an answer (three times) in the early 1970s was the impetus for these changes and many others that followed. Eventually, VADM Crea gravitated from fixed-wing service to the primary Coast Guard platform, the HH-65 Dolphin helicopter. Today, Crea has the distinction of being the holder of the Coast Guard’s “Ancient Albatross” officer’s award. Like everything else she seems to tackle, this is one of the highest honors the Coast Guard can bestow: recognition as the longest-serving Coast Guard aviator on active duty. The honor comes with an old, smelly leather aviator’s helmet, to which – lest anyone forget who barnstormed through a gender-barred door in the early 1970s – VADM Crea affixed a pair of diamond-studded earrings.

LEADERSHIP DEFINED: NO EXCUSES – NO LIMITS

Despite Crea’s leadership, the Coast Guard still has trouble attracting minorities and women. Today there are only 91 woman pilots, representing just seven percent of all Coast Guard pilots, and 102 female air crew (three percent of all enlisted air crew). The Coast Guard and its Academy lag

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Army brat – raised all over the world – and ended up graduating from the University of Texas after starting college in Germany. But I was interested in marine biology and the protection of the environment. That’s what inspired me, not necessarily the Coast Guard or the military. I looked at NOAA, EPA, the Coast Guard and the Navy – because of their oceanographic programs.” Once she had made up her mind to make the Coast Guard a career, she also knew that being tied to a desk for the next 20 years was not an appealing career path. Her application to be assigned to a Coast Guard cutter was turned down because the Coast Guard had no provision for gender separation. A subsequent application for flight school was also turned down because “she might get assigned to a ship” and the same problem might crop up. Undeterred, Crea persisted because she felt that aviation was the ticket to getting involved with “all of our missions.” Her persistence eventually paid off. Crea now looks back and remembers, “It wasn’t a punitive ‘no.’ Had that been the case, I would have left the Coast Guard. I was admitted to flight school in 1975, and around that time the doors opened for everything: the Academy, flight school, etc.” Eventually, and probably not coincidentally, mixed-gender

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far behind the other military services in this regard and others, and enormous pressure is being brought by Congress to change that reality. Crea addresses the touchy subject pragmatically. She insists, “We need to get across the point for everyone that there is tremendous opportunity in the Coast Guard for anybody to come in and do whatever they want. We’re making progress in attracting minorities and with women in particular, but we need to do better.” That said, Crea stops short of making excuses for women or minorities already in the Coast Guard. “Race or gender shouldn’t be an issue, and I don’t think it is in today’s Coast Guard.” The idea that “mentoring” for women was probably in short supply in the Coast Guard as Crea came up the ranks often comes up in conversation. The Vice Commandant would have none of it, however. “I take issue with that. I didn’t have women who mentored me. People don’t have to look like you do to be an effective mentor. I was mentored by a lot of really great bosses who went the extra mile because they thought I had something to offer and/or was receptive to their advice. A mentor can be anybody who takes an interest in helping you achieve your goals for whatever reason. White males were all that were really around, and I did just fine.” Crea’s philosophy for success leaves no room for excuses from anyone. She insists, “I don’t feel that I had any barriers. There’s a lot of people who would like me to tell them how hard it was and how I struggled. Beyond the first try at getting into flight school and then finally getting that door open, I actually think I’ve gotten more opportunity than most. And it gave me tremendous exposure to thornier issues, more frequently and at an earlier stage than others might have had.”

RETIREMENT: ANYTHING BUT SEDATE

As VADM Vivien Crea retires from the Coast Guard in August, she has some simple advice for those she leaves behind: “Find something you like to do – life is too short to do otherwise – and don’t let anyone tell you no.” As for women in the maritime industry, the advice is even plainer: “I think there are tremendous opportunities for women in the transportation sectors. Don’t sell yourself short.” Crea declined to discuss her future plans beyond “initially taking a little time off,” but one thing is all but certain: Her name will pop up on the maritime radar again in the not-too-distant future. That’s because Crea’s definition of leadership is color- and gender-blind, and limited only by the imagination of the person seeking to make it happen. That’s a good thing for the Coast Guard, the maritime industry and – yes – anyone else who thinks that achieving anything worthwhile in the face of difficult odds is just too darn hard. Mar Ex

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WASHINGTON INSIDER

Written by Larry Kiern, Winston & Strawn LLP

WashingtonInsider J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

Congress and the Courts Fashion New Maritime Policies

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

THE DOMESTIC POLITICAL headlines this summer have thus far featured the Obama Administration’s principal priorities: health care reform, climate-change legislation, and the confirmation of Judge Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. At the same time, the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have advanced legislation addressing pressing issues in the maritime industry, and courts have issued important decisions with serious implications for vessel operators nationally.

Congress Acts to Protect Americans First from Somali Pirates

In the face of obstinate resistance to embarked military security teams (EST) on U.S.-flag vessels by the U.S. Navy, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, fulfilled his promise to the industry and maritime labor to move quickly to provide protection to U.S.-flag vessels and their American citizen merchant seamen crews from the threat of Somali pirates. On June 25, 2009, Chairman Cummings took to the floor of the House of Representatives and offered an amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization Act of 2009 that would require the Secretary of Defense to embark security teams on U.S.-flag vessels carrying government-impelled cargo on high-risk voyages. The Cummings Amendment was not openly opposed on the floor by any Member of Congress, and the measure passed by voice vote. Then the House passed the DOD bill by an

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overwhelming vote of 389-22. Rep. Howard McKeon (R-CA) responded to Chairman Cummings’ remarks in support of the amendment by expressing a reservation, but not opposing it. Mr. McKeon’s reservation was that the U.S. Navy did not have enough ESTs to perform the mission without cutting into their “dwell time” back home between deployments. Oddly, this reservation, expressed for the first time on the House floor, represented an entirely new excuse from the U.S. Navy about why it won’t perform this critically important mission to protect American merchant seamen. Heretofore, the U.S. Navy had claimed it could not patrol the ocean area where the pirate attacks have occurred. The U.S. Navy only shifted ground after the disingenuous nature of its prior excuse was exposed at Chairman Cummings’ subcommittee hearing. However, the new reason cannot withstand scrutiny either. Even if the U.S. Navy doesn’t have a sufficient number of teams, the U.S. Coast Guard does. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Brian Salerno testified at Chairman Cummings’ hearing that the Coast Guard could perform the mission if tasked. Indeed, the Coast Guard has a specially trained, 3,000-member Deployable Operations Group, which is well-prepared for this mission. Moreover, resources are not an issue because Congress has already appropriated $40 million more than the Obama Administration requested for Somalia operations in the emergency war funding supplemental. Additionally, congressional appropriations bills in the House and Senate

already include hundreds of millions of dollars in additional funding for both DOD and the Coast Guard for the next fiscal year. Therefore, DOD has not offered good reasons for its refusal to protect Americans from Somali pirates with ESTs. On June 26, 2009, the Senate Armed Services Committee reported out its version of the DOD Authorization Act of 2009, which included report language acknowledging the serious threat presented by Somali pirates and supporting enhanced DOD operations to combat piracy. The Senate measure, however, parroted the DOD position that U.S.-flag vessel operators should simply hire private armed security guards. Unfortunately, the DOD misled the committee by failing to disclose that it is currently illegal or practically impossible for vessel operators to hire private armed security guards in many of the key destination countries in East Africa for which U.S.-flag vessels carrying government-impelled cargo are bound, e.g., Djibouti, Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa. Therefore, the DOD position is irresponsible and the Congress should adopt the Cummings Amendment. If the U.S. Navy won’t provide ESTs, the Coast Guard can and should.

Congress Acts to Protect American Citizens from Cruise Ship Criminals

In the Senate, bipartisan support emerged for the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2009. On July 8, 2009, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation unanimously reported out the

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bill first introduced by Senator John Kerry (D-MA). This successful legislative action followed the decision by the Cruise Lines International Association, Inc. (CLIA) to drop its opposition to reform and support the bill. CLIA’s shift followed the decision by bill sponsors to agree to the demands of the cruise ship industry to strip provisions from the measure to which it fiercely objected: (1) the Death on the High Seas Act remedy for passengers, and (2) the requirement for higher guard rails to protect passengers from falling overboard. Despite these concessions, the bill represents a significant improvement in the law governing passenger security and safety. The legislation would improve security and safety for cruise ship passengers, strengthen law enforcement authority on cruise ships to protect passengers and, finally, hold cruise lines accountable for the safety of their passengers. As Senator Kerry stated, following the Commerce Committee action: “Murky lines of jurisdiction are no longer an excuse for risking the safety of millions of Americans who will board cruise ships this year. Security, safety and accountability must be strengthened to hold criminals accountable and end the cycle of serious crimes on these vessels.” Ken Carver, President of the International Cruise Victims Association, hailed the Commerce Committee action and said, “The efforts made my Senator Kerry and the Commerce Committee have truly made the difference.” The legislation would require cruise lines to report crimes that occur on cruise ships to the U.S. Coast Guard and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It would mandate that cruise lines preserve evidence of crimes, provide proper medical treatment to rape victims, and provide passengers basic safety measures, e.g., peep holes, door latches, and electronic keying technology, to protect them from cruise ship staff

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who commit violent crimes against passengers. While not a complete victory for the advocates for victims of crime on cruise ships, the legislation marks major progress in protecting passengers and sets the stage for legislation to be enacted by Congress this session.

Court Decisions Strike Blows to the Maritime Industry

In recent weeks, important court decisions altered the legal seascape of the maritime industry as courts interpreted environmental and regulatory laws in ways that hurt the industry. First, on March 16, 2009, the Hawaii Supreme Court struck down a Hawaii law that permitted the operation of the innovative, high-speed interisland Hawaii Superferry, which was developed with over $70 million in financial support from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) in the form of U.S. Government Guaranteed Ship Financing Obligations. Following years of protracted litigation brought by local environmental and community activists in Hawaii’s courts to block the Superferry operation, the Hawaii Supreme Court finally struck down as “unconstitutional special legislation” the Hawaii legislature’s November 2007 enactment that expressly permitted the Superferry to operate despite questions about environmental approval previously granted to the Superferry by the Hawaii Department of Transportation. As a practical matter, this decision by the Hawaii Supreme Court doomed the Superferry operation, and the company filed for bankruptcy on May 30, 2009. The Superferry story is a cautionary tale for the domestic maritime industry as it develops short-sea shipping. Despite an innovative application of modern technology to improve transportation and solid federal government support through MARAD ship financing, the entire project foundered on the shoal of a

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THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

state environmental permitting rule and the incompetence of state bureaucrats, who bungled the project’s environmental approval. What is even more distressing is the apparent lack of any meaningful relief for the Superferry for the injury caused by the malfeasance of state bureaucrats. A remarkably similar defect with the Coast Guard’s unlawful administration of federal marine inspection laws was underscored by the June 30, 2009 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denying the appeal of Hornbeck Transportation in its damages lawsuit against the U.S. Coast Guard. In that case, the appeals court readily confirmed that the agency had acted unlawfully in forcing a Hornbeck vessel out of service for almost two years. But the court concluded that the law provided no remedy for the damages the Coast Guard caused. In the appeal, the Coast Guard admitted its misconduct, which had been adjudged by the federal district court in Hornbeck’s initial lawsuit against the Coast Guard. Yet the Coast Guard obdurately refused to disclose key documents showing the real reasons for its unlawful action and hid behind a claim of sovereign immunity to avoid compensating the company. Sadly,

the Coast Guard’s handling of this matter contradicts its recent representations to Congress and the maritime industry that the agency is reforming its marine safety program and is committed to greater transparency. Also on June 30, 2009, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California upheld the legality of the new vessel fuel regulation that mandates the use of low-sulfur fuel out to 24 miles offshore California The California rule had been challenged by the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA) as exceeding the state’s authority, which it argued does not extend seaward beyond three miles. Importantly, the challenge did not invoke the federal Clean Air Act, which PMSA appeared to accept permits the state’s imposition of the new requirement. The court held that the law permitted the state to impose the requirement beyond three miles because there was ample legal authority allowing a state to protect its citizens from health and safety threats using its police power. The court relied heavily on the public record, attributing injurious health impacts from ship-generated air pollution. Consequently, the court cleared the way for similar state actions, and the regulation of shipping in the United States has become further balkanized.

Conclusion

This summer, actions by the Congress and the courts remind all of us in the maritime industry that government decisions dramatically impact maritime issues, even if they don’t capture headlines. Moreover, these important actions signal the start of what promises to be an especially active period for government intervention that will impact the maritime industry from piracy policy to safety and environmental regulations. Congress is only now really getting started, and its actions will surely prompt more disputes for the court to address in ways that will profoundly affect the industry for many years to come. Mar Ex

Larry Kiern is a partner at Winston & Strawn LLP, an international law firm of 900 lawyers. His practice concentrates on maritime issues, including legislative, regulatory, and litigation matters. Before joining Winston & Strawn, he was a Captain and law specialist in the U.S. Coast Guard who served as the Legislative Counsel and Deputy Chief of the Coast Guard’s Congressional Affairs Office.

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OPED STEVENSON EXECUTIVEACHIEVEMENT

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By Douglas B. Stevenson

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Piracy and Its Long-Term Effect on Merchant Mariners

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Who Cares for the Victims of Pirate Attacks? Piracy is almost as old as seafaring itself. But recently, seafarers have confronted even greater risks from pirates. In 2008 at least 293 pirate attacks occurred worldwide. Forty-nine vessels were hijacked; 46 other vessels were fired upon; 889 seafarers were taken hostage; 32 seafarers were injured; 11 seafarers were killed, and 21 seafarers are missing and presumed dead. Of the 293 pirate attacks in 2008, 111 took place off the coast of Somalia. The dramatic increase in piracy and armed robbery incidents in this one region – including hijacking vessels carrying World Food Program aid, the M/V Faina with its cargo of 33 T-72 tanks and other weapons, and the M/T Sirius Star loaded with a $100,000,000 cargo of crude oil – prompted an extraordinary international response. The United Nations Security Council adopted five resolutions addressing piracy off the coast of Somalia. The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia, comprised of twenty-four nations, several international organizations and maritime industry representatives, was established to facilitate and coordinate efforts implementing Security Council Resolution 1851. A coalition of maritime industry organizations developed “Best Management Practices to Deter Piracy in the Gulf of Aden and off the Coast of Somalia.” More than 25 countries have sent naval units to waters off Somalia to support anti-piracy measures. The International Maritime Organization recently updated its guidelines for flag states and ship operators on preventing and suppressing acts of piracy. These are just a few examples of the responses to the scourge of piracy off Somalia. Almost every day, somewhere in the

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world, a seminar, conference, or other discussion focusing on piracy issues takes place. Almost all of the piracy discussions and measures concentrate on preventing and suppressing acts of piracy, such as the use of force, arming merchant ships, and prosecuting pirates. While we must address these very important topics, one critical issue remains unexamined: What happens to merchant mariners who survive pirate attacks? Since 2003, pirates have kidnapped or taken hostage more than 2,800 merchant mariners, and they have robbed or attacked many more. What happened to the seafarers after their release or after the attack? » Did they continue their seafaring careers? » Are they fit to work on ships? » Do they need continuing medical attention? » Do they receive medical attention? » Where do they get help to deal with the aftermath of surviving a piracy incident? The answer to all of these questions is the same: I don’t know – nor does anyone know. No one keeps comprehensive records of seafarers who have been attacked by pirates. Nations, international organizations and the maritime industry must persist in their efforts to prevent and suppress acts of piracy. But, in addition, they must also devote attention to the after-effects of piracy on mariners and their families. Initial steps should include: 1 Studying the effects of piracy on survivors. Although many studies have examined the effects of traumatic events on police, firefighters, military and others, nothing has been published on the specific effects of piracy. There is a great need to complete a clinical study of the psychological impact of pirate attacks on seafarers that takes into account the unique nature of seafaring, including its multicultural nature. The results of such a study will help determine how best to care for seafarers who have survived a pirate attack.

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OPED STEVENSON

tions to our development and prosperity. We owe them the assurance that we will do everything we can to protect them from piracy – before, during, and long after an atMar Ex tack. Douglas B. Stevenson directs the Center for Seafarers’ Rights at the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York & New Jersey, providing legal assistance and advocacy for merchant mariners worldwide. He also serves as Chairman of the International Christian Maritime Association, a free association of 27 Christian organizations serving merchant mariners in 526 seafarers’ centers in 126 countries. Mr. Stevenson is a maritime lawyer and a retired U.S. Coast Guard officer. Prior to joining the staff of the Seamen’s Church Institute in 1990, he served in a variety of Coast Guard legal and operational assignments including command at sea and political and security advisor at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. He is the 2001 recipient of the Chamber of Shipping of America’s Rear Admiral Halpert C. Shepheard award and the Diocese of New York’s 2006 Servant of Justice award. He is a graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and the University of Miami School of Law.

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THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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2 Creating guidelines on caring for seafarers after a pirate attack. IMO and industry guidelines exist for preventing and suppressing pirate attacks. There are no guidelines for caring for seafarers who have survived a pirate attack other than guidance for debriefing seafarers for military or prosecutorial purposes. Some shipping companies have provided an extensive array of services and care for their crews following a piracy incident. The lessons leaned from shipping companies and countries caring for their crewmembers who survived a pirate attack, as well as the results of clinical studies, should be consolidated into international guidelines. 3 Creating a piracy survivors resource center. Many jurisdictions provide services and resources to help crime survivors and their loved ones repair the damage to their lives and property. Although the resources address almost all kinds of crime, none focuses on piracy survivors. The establishment of a resource center for piracy survivors would assist seafarers and shipowners alike in finding the help needed after an attack. We depend upon merchant mariners for their contribu-

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Have Asset Values Finally Touched Bottom?

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

A LIVELY DEBATE IS TAKING place in shipping circles – and elsewhere – about the direction of asset values. One camp points to rising commodity prices and higher freight rates as reason to believe the worst is over. Others say an oversupply of vessels, coupled with negative economic growth, means we still have a ways to go. Who’s right? At Marine Money Week in New York last month the question on everyone’s lips was, “Is it safe to go back in the water?” Which, translated, means “Have vessel values finally bottomed and can we start buying ships again?” Close behind it was the wishful refrain, “Will private equity ride to the rescue and save us from certain disaster?” The two laments are not unrelated. With vessel values at their lowest levels in 35 years, shipowners struggling to meet payments on vessels ordered at the top of the market are hoping for an influx of private equity riches to bail

them out of their misery. TABLE 1: Baltic Dry Index (April - July 2009) Similarly, would-be entrepreneurs are seeking that pot of private equity gold to help them finance a startup fleet at today’s rock-bottom prices. “Don’t count on it,” states Hamish Norton, Jefferies & Co.’s Chief Equity Strategist, Courtesy: Capital Link sell high” is the name of the game, referring to the hopedand isn’t that what private equity is for windfall. Adds Dahlman Rose’s all about – knowing when to pull the Simon Rose, “For every 50 deals that trigger? Can vessel values go any are talked about, maybe one will get lower when freight rates are rising and done.” What do these guys know that commodity prices firming? we don’t? Certainly there is ample Since the beginning of the year, oil precedent for private equity participaprices have risen nearly 40 percent, tion in shipping. This writer need look albeit from a low base. Freight rates no further than his own experience have risen with them. At the same when, about eight years ago, two pritime, the oil futures market is in the vate equity investors bought controlcondition known as contango, meanling interest in a faltering company ing the forward price of oil is higher and gave it the jump-start it needed to than the current price. This is an insucceed. Three years later they cashed centive for oil companies, traders and out, reaping speculators to buy oil now at today’s millions in the low prices and store it for future delivprocess. So it ery. How, or where, do you store it? can be done. Mergers, Acquisitions, Divestitures & Auctions Well, VLCCs are a good place to start. Pulling the There’s lots of them around; freight www.marinebusinessexchange.com Trigger rates are still relatively cheap, and they Everyone knows can hold up to two million barrels Are you ready to sell your business or are you ready to expand your business through a merger or acquisition? We presently that the real each. The result has been a bonanza have investors and buyers that are seriously interested in all money in shipfor tanker owners who, desperate for types of marine and marine related companies worldwide. ping is made charters, have seen their bottom lines through the buoyed by the demand for storage Phone 251-626-0713 purchase and space. Analysts estimate as many as Cell 504-650-5000 sale of vessels. 50 VLCCs are currently storing black Fax 251-447-0423 9786 Timber Circle, Suite A, E-mail info@marinebux.com Daphne, AL 36527 USA “Buy low and oil and another 50 products carriers

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JACKO’CONNELL

TABLE 2: Baltic Dirty Tanker Index (April - July 2009)

Courtesy: Capital Link

Holding Fire

Courtesy: Capital Link

The argument against jumping in feet first goes like this: With oil demand forecast to fall another two percent this year and not recover till sometime late next year, the outlook for tanker values is dubious at best – despite the recent run-up in rates. Similarly, commodity demand – and thus the demand for bulkers – is driven almost entirely

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TABLE 3: Capital Link Maritime Index (Five-Year Perspective)

are storing distillates. A similar phenomenon is taking place in the drybulk market, where China’s recent buying binge has helped drive up the price of everything from copper to zinc, not to mention drybulk rates themselves. As this column pointed out a while back, the bottom fell out of the drybulk market last summer when China stopped buying. It had stored up enough supplies to get it through the Olympics and beyond, and it sat on the sidelines until early this year when, with inventories depleted, it started buying again. That provided the boost to get rates moving in the right direction, but how long will it last? In the two months from mid-April to midJune the Baltic Dry more than doubled, to above 4,000, which is where most analysts figure it will end the year. It has since followed a bumpy up-and-down road and now sits at the 3,500 level, so it’s probably not too late to get in.

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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JACKO’CONNELL

Timing Is Everything

Differing opinions are what make a horse race, so take your pick: Buy now, or buy later? In this regard, perhaps the behavior of shipping stocks will give us a clue as to the direction of asset values. And to determine the direction of shipping equities, we

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

by China, which happens to be buying as it replenishes depleted inventories. But once inventories are built up, it will stop buying for a period, and rates – and prices – will fall. The Great Recession has a long way to go, and things will get worse before they get better. So take your time, hold onto your cash, and let asset values fall even further. Then swoop in for the kill. The Baltic Dirty Tanker Index, after peaking in June above 700, now sits at the 500 level. How much farther can it fall?

need look no further than the recently launched Capital Link Maritime Indices. These indices, seven in all, are designed to help investors track the direction of maritime stocks and of specific industry sectors, including tankers, dry bulk, container, LNG/ LPG, and mixed fleet. They also include an MLP (Master Limited Partnership) index, a thoughtful addition. The indices are market cap-weighted and include all issues traded on U.S. exchanges. What do they tell us? Not surprisingly, from an historical perspective (the indices go back five years), the charts suggest there is no better time to buy maritime stocks. Every sector is at a five-year low. In the short term, there are clearly ups and downs, but from a long-term perspective these are minor deviations. So if you think these stocks can fall even further, hold your fire. If you think they can only go up, jump in!

Follow-Up

A new sidebar feature called “Off the Shelf,” in which this writer will review some of his recent maritime reads, will make its debut in this space commencing with the next issue. We know the readers of MarEx are a cultured lot, and that they also have limited time on their hands for idle pursuits like reading. So we hope these brief peeks into the relevant literature of the day will both save them time and stimulate their interest. MarEx Jack O’Connell, the senior copy editor of this magazine and a former maritime executive, is a private investor who may own shares in some of the companies mentioned in his columns. The views expressed in this column are his and his alone and are not in any way to be construed as investment advice.

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MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE

MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE At Maersk, Certiﬁed Excellence and Cutting-Edge Innovation Add Up to Measurable ROI. By Joseph Keefe

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

From the Start: Measured Growth Built on Founding Principles

“No loss should hit us which can be avoided with constant care.” That simple credo, spoken first by A.P. Møller in 1946, eventually became the philosophy on which the multinational giant would create one of the most advanced and forward-thinking maritime training centers in the world. Today, safety and vigilance are two of the fundamental cornerstones of the A.P. Moller - Maersk Group and its Maersk Training Centre (MTC). After an accident in 1978, which was attributed to human error caused by insufficient competencies, Maersk Drilling Training Centre was established in Svendborg, Denmark, specifically to train offshore employees. Within four years it was recognized as an international training center and in 1989 became one of the founding members of the European Well Control Forum. Twenty years later, the training facility now extends its reach to established centers in Chennai, India; Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K.; and, just recently, a third subsidiary in Wuhan, China. Claus Bihl, Managing Director of MTC since 2000, neatly states the A.P. Moller – Maersk approach to training when he says, “We don’t ‘sell’ courses; instead, we teach competencies.” That tenet again is rooted in the 1978 accident that, after investigation, revealed that employees were properly certificated and had the required training – but not necessarily the right competencies to do the job. Bihl adds, “When the training ends, you want to know: What are we getting out of this? Well, so do we.”

Benchmarking MTC: From Inside and Out

MTC is part of a diversified conglomerate known as the A.P. Moller - Maersk Group. Founded in 1904, this total group

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of companies – totaling 117,000 employees in 130 countries – reported net profits of $3.4 billion in 2007. Through the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, MTC serves customers worldwide in five critical faculties, which combined can deliver almost any type of learning an organization would need today. MTC defines these faculties (and the year that they were added to the current curriculum) as Oil & Gas (1978) , Maritime (1994), People Skills (2002), Safety & Security (2005), and Terminals & Logistics (2007). Through a highly competent group of permanent employed instructors and a strong network of external consultants, MTC is capable of delivering the latest knowledge within any subject area, extending from the very technical maritime and offshore disciplines all the way to people skills and leadership development that cross all lines of business. Although much of the Centre’s original task was to respond to the greater Group’s increasing demands for training officers in the expanding Maersk maritime fleet, the management structure was changed, along with the name, in 1994. And although the word “drilling” ceased to be part of the title, its importance was undiminished, and Oil & Gas is still counted among the Centre’s five key faculties. Eventually, MTC began to be approached by outside companies looking for training that quickly was becoming recognized as some of the best in the business. Claus Bihl looks back on the early interactions with outside groups and realized that, although MTC wasn’t actively marketing to outside companies, the need to benchmark its services against a recognizable standard was undeniable. “We had been going around saying that we have high quality, but anyone can say that. We then set out to prove it.” Today, MTC not only competes with other training facilities for

7/27/09 10:20:41 PM

MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE Three decades after its inception…MTC has received from Det Norske Veritas (DNV) their first-ever SeaSkill Award for Excellent Performance in the field of maritime training (Certificate of Excellence). With a 94 percent rating, MTC has established itself – in the words of DNV – “as the benchmark to which all others can aspire.”

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Main building panorama. Guesthouse and MOSAIC (Simulator building) panorama.

Participants gather for a class photo in the lobby. THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

outside business but is required to demonstrate that its price and quality beat outside competitors when marketing to its core customer – A.P. Moller - Maersk. Three decades after its inception, MTC has subsidiaries in India, the U. K. and China and has received from Det Norske Veritas (DNV) their first-ever SeaSkill Award for Excellent Performance in the field of maritime training (Certificate of Excellence). DNV, which for many years had recognized individual courses and management programs, developed a four-step program to evaluate the entire learning process in order to give companies and organizations a benchmark to guide them when selecting the right programs. With a 94 percent rating, MTC has established itself – in the words of DNV – “as the benchmark to which all others can aspire.”

Internal Requirements: Driving Cutting-Edge Technology and Training

At MTC, internal A.P. Moller - Maersk requirements ultimately drive decisions involving which training to provide and how to do it. Supporting some of the 200 course offerings at MTC are the Reefer Simulators, a Full-Mission Drilling and Drilling Operation Trainer Simulator, an Anchor-Handling and Dynamic Positioning Simulator, a Liquid Cargo-Handling Simulator, an Electronic Chart Display Simulator and a Fire Contingency-CO2 Simulator. At the heart of all of that is what MTC maritime instructors call the MOSAIC, or Maritime Offshore Supply and Innovation Centre. The new, state-of-the-art anchor-handling complex is already on line for DP, Anchor Handling and Ship Handling/Maneuvering courses. MTC’s anchor-handling simulation training is anything but new, however. It began in 2000 as a response to in-

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MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Firing up one of the three new satellite simulators.

ternal requirements and has now a 12-hour travel day on both ends expanded to a broad industry cliof the course is a key component. entele who know it to be among Some would characterize that the most advanced in the world. philosophy as smart business. Rather than wait until mandated Claus Bihl calls it, “Return on by law or triggered by a highInvestment.” What that means in profile accident – as others have more simple terms is to measure notably done – MTC invested sigtraining so as to define value. nificant capital in emerging technologies such as anchor handling MTC Defines ROI: Examinations. and dynamic positioning. Long Identifying the “Gap” in before it became a “profit” center, Instructor with students in the MTC Auditorium. Training and Developing the facility enjoyed solid relationthe Solution ships with such offshore industry To say that education and trainheavyweights as ConocoPhillips, ing at MTC are a progressive Statoil, Total and EXXON. event would be understating the Leading-edge training doesn’t total package. At the place where just mean sophisticated simulacourse development, more often than not, is developed using tors. And while the idea that tools like “Bloom’s Taxonomy” “training doesn’t have to be (a multitiered model of clasconducted here” isn’t necessifying thinking according to six sarily new, the use of “mobile cognitive levels of complexity) or “Kirkpatick’s Four levels simulators” certainly is. MTC’s mobile crane simulators, of Learning” (each successive evaluation level is built on CraneSIM, were created together with APM Terminals but information provided by the lower level), the goal is clear: caters to the entire industry. Bihl explains, “It’s primarily delivering Return on Investment to the customer. cost-driven. We set out with APM Terminals on a project When the training center moved from a cost center to a and bought two simulators and built them into 40’ containprofit center, MTC began its benchmarking of ROI. Before ers and a small classroom as well – full-mission simulation. then, says Claus Bihl, “We were strictly focused on training The container comes right into the terminal off a ship. You and quality. Everyone seemed happy with that – certainly just lift it off and plug it in.” Needless to add, the mobile they got high value for what we provided. But could you simulator can go anywhere in the world, probably on a be absolutely sure that you got the value you paid for?” Maersk ship, and someday will train countless operators from a wide range of companies. Although Maersk knew that the income side for a time would be 100 percent from internal sources, it established The crane simulator in particular goes to the heart of MTC’s mission and vision. Beyond the tremendous savings MTC as a profit center so that costs could be monitored in for internal and external customers alike, the attraction and a more sophisticated way. In response, MTC educators got convenience of training people who don’t want the stress of more interested in the business of training and additionally

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MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE on any of its vessels. Today, MTC is working closely with Kongsberg to upgrade these simulators so as to be able to recreate scenarios similar to the recent Bourbon disaster.

Looking Forward: Getting Back as Much as You Deliver

From 2000 to 2007, MTC was occasionally approached by other companies looking for quality training. Normally, MTC agreed, but provided the service on a very small scale. Although the practice was not part of their strategic focus, Claus Bihl and his management team soon realized there was tremendous “up side” to engaging with other companies. Bihl adds, “Every time you deliver learning or are in the learning process with outside customers you receive as much from them as you deliver.” In doing so, MTC also keeps abreast of what constitutes “best practice” in the industry. Today, training to outside companies at the various MTC worldwide locations can be as much as 50 percent of course output or as little as 10 percent, depending on the location. Claus Bihl, of course, knows that his training center is less vulnerable to internal demand fluctuations when there is a healthy supply of outside business. As MTC ramped up its efforts to provide training to outside firms,

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began to see their internal clients as customers. It was a whole new perspective. The now standard way of doing business has served MTC ever since. Internal and external customers can expect to be queried at length about first identifying the “gap” in training and then developing the solution to close that gap – well before the first lecture or simulation session ever takes place. With 75 percent of the cost of training represented by logistics (travel, lodging, etc.), the global downturn has had the positive effect of making companies more open to new ideas rather than just sending people to a course. MTC’s Bihl insists, “Everyone – the customer and the provider – should be focused on trying to measure the ROI of the time and money spent on training.” From the customer’s view, defining ROI means identifying the goals from the outset. As an example, MTC recently ran a safety campaign for APM Terminals where, in the first quarter of this year alone, LTI rates dropped by up to 50 percent. From a monetary standpoint alone, the savings were huge. In terms of human capital, the long term benefit was incalculable. It was just this type of success early on that prompted MTC to be among the first to develop anchor-handling simulators. Since doing so, Maersk hasn’t seen an anchor-handling accident resulting in a fatality

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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Looking Forward: Getting Back as Much as You Deliver

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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began to see their internal clients as customers. It was a whole new perspective. The now standard way of doing business has served MTC ever since. Internal and external customers can expect to be queried at length about first identifying the “gap” in training and then developing the solution to close that gap – well before the first lecture or simulation session ever takes place. With 75 percent of the cost of training represented by logistics (travel, lodging, etc.), the global downturn has had the positive effect of making companies more open to new ideas rather than just sending people to a course. MTC’s Bihl insists, “Everyone – the customer and the provider – should be focused on trying to measure the ROI of the time and money spent on training.” From the customer’s view, defining ROI means identifying the goals from the outset. As an example, MTC recently ran a safety campaign for APM Terminals where, in the first quarter of this year alone, LTI rates dropped by up to were huge. In terms of human capital, the long term benefit was incalculable. It was just this type of success early on that prompted MTC to be among the first to develop anchor-handling simulators. Since doing so, Maersk hasn’t seen an anchor-handling accident resulting in a fatality on any of its vessels. Today, MTC is working

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MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

daunting task. From MTC’s perspective, training used to be a matter of answering the call from its A.P. Moller – Maersk principals. Claus Bihl sums up today’s business plan at MTC when he says, “Now, we pick up the phone and Participants come to grips with wire in one of the more practice-based courses. make the call. Doing that, we the only real concern was that perhaps it might be givhope to influence the customer’s choices in training and ing away competitive knowledge that others, outside the bring value to the table. We take our roots from an internal A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, did not possess. In the end, drilling accident and knew what we wanted to accomplish MTC’s courses now are more flexible, serving individual from our inception. Today, those roots are key to our drive customer requirements – not just off-the-shelf curriculums. to measure training ROI.” Headquartered in Svendborg, Denmark and with three As MTC continues to grow, this proactive rather than branches around the globe, MTC today conducts more reactive approach serves parent A.P. Moller – Maersk – than 30,000 course days annually, using 11 simulators, and customers like MOL, Shell, Torm and Acergy – quite and trains more than 8,000 students. On the other hand, well. But that’s not to say there isn’t room for change. there are a lot of good training facilities from which to MTC’s annual strategy meetings kick off in August to choose. The reality of today’s maritime training is that it is determine how best to carry out the mission. One thing a competitive world, with many choices and many variables that isn’t likely to change, however, is MTC’s Certificate of to consider. Hotel-quality accommodations, restaurantExcellence status from DNV. That standard, coupled with quality dining, technology and state-of-the-art simulators forward-thinking techniques and cutting-edge technoloare but a few of the factors. Adding all of that up can be a gies, adds up to just one thing: ROI. MarEx

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6/25/09 12:45:03 PM

7/27/09 10:20:55 PM

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

CLAUS BIHL

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

By Joseph Keefe

Claus Bihl,

Managing Director, Maersk Training Centre As the cover subject for this edition of MarEx, Claus Bihl is more than just the Managing Director of A.P. Moller - Maersk’s Maersk Training Centre (MTC) and its facilities in other countries. He’s also in charge of DNV’s highest rated “Center of Excellence.” MTC is home to some of the most innovative trends in maritime training today. Claus Bihl and his team, of course, have a huge hand in all of that. Follow along as Bihl discusses what maritime training can and should be: in the classroom, in the workplace, and in scores of key countries around the world. MarEx: Starting in 1980 with the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, your background is perhaps not the traditional route to becoming the Director of a training facility. Tell us about the journey. Claus Bihl: My route to MTC might be viewed from the outside as being untraditional. But A.P. Moller – Maersk is a diverse place to work, so you might find that this would be the rule rather than the exception. It is true that I’ve worked on the rigs, later as a shipping man, then in the HR function and now here. At A.P. Moller – Maersk we cross-train and look for new opportunities and challenges. My human resources background gave me an opportunity to see competency training from both sides – and so my customers are now in the same chair I was in before I came down here. I have a better idea than most of the pressures from that end. You are always under constant budget constraints when you sit in the HR department. When the training ends, you want to know: What are we getting out of this? MarEx: Your experience as a roughneck, derrickman and assistant driller also gives you another perspective. What’s the biggest change in oil and gas training that you’ve seen and how does MTC ﬁt into the leading edge of all of that? Bihl: I actually considered going into the drilling industry. Therefore, I have an understanding of what is needed and

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why. The typical rig person back then was “hands on,” perhaps not too academic. And it wasn’t as hard to get the oil out of the ground. Today, you drill in 3,000 meters of water and see the technology behind it. Companies are pressured into getting training that satisfies regulatory requirements, but not core competencies. What the drilling industry is lacking is a basic entry education, something similar to what a ship’s officer needs in order to get that first job. The drilling industry is unique in that you might start as a roughneck, and one day you’ll find yourself a supervisor without perhaps having the necessary educational competencies to support that. At A.P. Moller - Maersk, we have such programs, but this is not an industry standard, worldwide. MarEx: When the training center moved from a cost center to a proﬁt center in 2000, what was the biggest change that resulted? Is this the critical juncture when MTC began its benchmarking of ROI in training for customers? Bihl: don’t think we could say that we measured ROI before that time. We were strictly focused on training and quality. Everyone seemed happy with that – certainly they got high value for what we provided. But could you be absolutely sure that you got the value you paid for? This was the primary driver for management to say that we want this established as a profit center. They knew that the income side

7/27/09 10:20:57 PM

CLAUS BIHL

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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pushed back”? would be 100 percent from Bihl: Fortunately, we have A.P. Moller - Maersk, but never had a situation like it was set up as a company that. We’ve been able to and you could monitor the build our capabilities and costs in a more sophisresources here as we atticated way than by just tracted outside business. saying, “We need training; It’s a matter of proper you get it for us.” At MTC, planning over a period of people got a lot more three to six months. Work interested in the business splits vary from branch of training, more motivated to branch. In the U.K., and focused. They started for example, it’s about to see our internal customa 50-50 split. In other ers as customers. It was a “ …they have their own procedures, values and places, like Denmark, it whole new perspective. We culture which are being built into the learning might entail as much as 90 had to ask ourselves, “Are we provide for them. Our courses now are more percent for the A.P. Moller we providing value?” And ﬂexible, serving individual requirements – not – Maersk Group. our customers began to MarEx: You’ve always ask, “Why are we doing it just off-the-shelf curriculum.” had to prove that your this way?” services were both cost-effective and of equal or better MarEx: In 2007 your facility opened its doors to outside quality than those offered by outside training groups. But companies. You had to convince your Board of Directors the greater workload from outside has likely changed your to do that. What was the rationale for that decision? business plan. Talk about the challenges of doing both at Bihl: From 2000 to 2007 we did provide some training to outside customers, but we did not market it as such. We were approached by other companies who asked if we could provide training. Normally, we did so, but on a very small scale. It wasn’t part of our strategic focus, but there is always an upside to engaging with other companies. Every time you deliver learning or are in the learning process with outside customers you receive as much from them as you The Industry’s Most Proven and Reliable deliver. Our instructors therefore get a broader benchmark Data Communications! on what constitutes “best practice” in the industry. You Boatracs is the market leader in data communications and software have to look at how others do things and then, by deliverapplications and has been in business since 1990. We serve thousands of ing a higher volume of training, you get better at it. We as a commerical vessels in the offshore, inland, workboat, fishing and training center are also less vulnerable to demand fluctuagovernment markets throughout North America. tions. In the end, I don’t think it was a difficult decision for • Rely on mission-critical performance with always-on data communications without dead zones the Board to give its approval. The only real concern was • Achieve operational efficiencies with affordable order that perhaps we might be giving away competitive knowlmanagement, mapping and messaging applications edge that others, outside the A.P. Moller - Maersk Group, Stay in control of your fleet with near real-time safety, crew, • did not possess. And we still have courses that reflect a high maintenance and location information degree of Maersk procedures, values and culture, but those • Service your customers with timely and accurate order aren’t the courses we offer to outside customers because and billing information they have their own procedures, values and culture which • Get world-class customer service and support with our are being built into the learning we provide for them. Our 24/7/365 client care call center courses now are more flexible, serving individual requirements – not just off-the-shelf curriculums. MarEx: What percentage of your work caters to internal requirements and what percentage to outside needs? Has there been a time when A.P. Moller – Maersk personnel might have had to stand in line for training, or perhaps when an outside customer had to be told, “We’re doing internal training right now. Your course will have to be

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CLAUS BIHL

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

the same time. Bihl: In the beginning, it was strictly internal training with little pressure to market and demonstrate financial value. Someone at A.P. Moller – Maersk somewhere would call and say, “We’ve got issues with competencies in XYZ areas,” and we’d devise a solution. It was always coming from one side, more reactive than proactive. Now, we pick up the phone and make the call. Doing that, we hope to influence the customer’s choices in training and learning and bring value to the table. We take our roots from an internal drilling accident and knew what we wanted to accomplish from our inception. Today, those roots are key to our drive to measure training ROI. MarEx: Do you market differently internally than to an outside group? Can you point to some valued outside customers for your training? Bihl: We see the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group as a very big customer. Most of us have come through the Maersk work experience so we share the same culture and values. That’s perhaps easier than serving outside customers. We don’t do a lot of traditional marketing. We present at conferences and try to communicate our skills at meetings. We don’t “sell” courses; instead, we teach competencies and discuss with our customers all aspects involved in the learning pro-

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cess. Both A.P. Moller – Maersk and our outside customers are just that: our customers. For many years we have been well connected to the oil and gas sector. We have done courses for oil majors such as ConocoPhillips, Statoil, Total and EXXON. Those relationships existed before we became a profit center. We’re now getting the word out that we don’t just do training for Maersk – we do it for others too. On the shipping side, we provide training for MOL, Shell, Torm, Acergy and others. MarEx: Where some training facilities only certify certain courses, you have managed to get an entire training system and facility “DNV-approved.” How did this come about and how difﬁcult was it to achieve? What do you have to do to maintain that “DNV Center of Excellence” certiﬁcation? Bihl: We’ve been going around saying that we have high quality, but anyone can say that. We set out to prove it. It has been estimated – by DNV themselves – that as much as 50 percent of maritime training worldwide is substandard. Some facilities have on their walls a certification of their general management systems. The acid test occurs when you bring all of your training and management into action. That’s where the learning takes place. You can have the best courses, the best management, the best simulators and the best instructors. But if you don’t manage to tie these things into one another, none of it is worth anything. We had DNV sitting in on more than ten courses in a week’s time and evaluating how we performed. In the end, they told us that we had set the benchmark for the industry. And they come back every year – we just had an audit. But we don’t see an audit as a problem. We look at it as a help. If we have non-conformities, well then, let’s deal with them and find ways to do things better. MarEx: Beyond the seafaring aspects of China, India and the U.K., what made you expand there as opposed to other places? Bihl: Simply put, we had requests and inquiries from our A.P. Moller – Maersk’s business units. We had a lot of officers coming out of these regions and were trying to recruit in others – India and China, in particular. It was more costeffective to run our training activities locally in those countries, and it brought us closer to our ultimate customers. We also wanted to cater to outside companies. That has been going very well in the U.K. We look at new countries all the time but now from a purely MTC commercial aspect. . MarEx: You’ve pioneered a number of training concepts. The idea that “training doesn’t have to be conducted here” isn’t necessarily new, but the use of “mobile simulators” certainly is. Talk about your mobile “crane” simulators and why you think this aspect of your services is important. Bihl: It’s primarily cost-driven. We set out with APM Terminals on a project and bought two simulators and built them into 40’ containers and a small classroom as well –

5/12/09 3:10:38 PM 7/27/09 10:21:29 PM

CLAUS BIHL

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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Moller – Maersk in 1980. full-mission simulation. The container comes right Bihl: I would hope that an into the terminal off a ship. important emerging trend You just lift it off and plug in maritime education is it in. Our trainer comes more emphasis on measurdown and runs the course ing the total learning value the next day. A tremendous chain, or ROI, on learning savings for our customers, and training efforts. And I and don’t forget the convehope that companies, large nience factor: People don’t and small alike, would be want the stress of traveling looking at better ways to to courses on their time spend their training doloff. The elimination of the lars. And – God forbid that 12-hour travel day on both you should go ahead and “ We set out with APM Terminals… bought two ends is critical for many. teach a valuable compesimulators and built them into 40’ containers MarEx: A unique aspect of tency before STCW comes and a small classroom as well – full-mission MTC’s operating scheme and tells you that you have simulation. The container comes right into the is your “focus on ROI.” Give to. (Laughter). Perhaps terminal off a ship. You just lift it off and plug it a good example of how one of the biggest changes the customer can docuhas been the global mix of in. Our trainer comes down and runs the course ment “changed behavior seafarers. When all of our the next day.” and performance” that officers were Danish, we translated into actual savings. In this challenging ﬁnancial knew their educational background, etc. That’s no longer climate, can this help generate increased business? true. How do you measure competencies across cultural Bihl: It’s about identifying the “gap” in competencies and and international boundaries? That is very hard. I’m not then developing the solution to close that gap. In terms of saying that our Danish system is better or worse than the global downturn in the economy, the crisis has had the any other, but it is very complicated to judge the value of positive effect of making companies more open to listening various graduate certificates. Fourteen different nationalito new ideas rather than just sending people to a course. ties do not necessarily provide for a homogenous training Remember, 75 percent of the cost of training is typically experience. MarEx: Your “vision” is to develop people and business salary and logistics: travel, lodging, etc. So only 25 percent for tomorrow. Your “mission” is to be a full-service learndetermines the quality of learning. Everyone should be foing provider. From our point of view, both goals should be cused on trying to measure the ROI of the time and money interconnected. What’s the difference between these two spent on training. From the standpoint of the customer, it ideologies and where do they connect? forces you to define goals and the definition of “success” Bihl: Good question. Our long-term goals should be refrom the outset. As an example, we just ran a big safety flected in our vision. The mission is our everyday progress campaign for APM Terminals. And in the first quarter of and work towards achieving that vision. How we acthis year alone, we have seen LTI rates drop by up to 50 complish that mission might change over time. We have percent. That means a lot in monetary terms, but on the strategy meetings every year to evaluate our mission and human side it is huge. On another front, we were among determine if it is still appropriate. That process is kickthe first to develop anchor-handling simulators. We’d had ing off in August, actually. As a DNV-certified center of some accidents on our vessels and, of course, we did not excellence, we want to be sure that the areas that we do like that and tried to do something about it. In 2001, we cover are covered well instead of trying to be all things to set about developing those simulators – not necessarall people over a broad range of subjects. The two are conily available at that time. Since then, we haven’t seen an nected in the sense that only by focusing on the customer anchor-handling accident involving fatalities on Maersk need – to gain learning and competencies – and only by vessels. Now we are upgrading those simulators so as to be focusing on the entire activity chain for any training and able to recreate scenarios like the Bourbon disaster. We are learning activity will you truly be able to develop not only working closely with Kongsberg on that project. individuals but also the organizations. Ensuring that the MarEx: Pick out one critical trend in maritime training that is only now emerging. What would that be, and why? organization has the right competencies at the right time is Give us your slant on what you feel to be the biggest crucial for any organization to achieve its goal. change in maritime training since you started with A.P. MarEx: Good stuff. Thank you for your time. MarEx

7/27/09 10:21:30 PM

SILVER BULLETS

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

By MarEx Staff

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Software Silver Bullets for the Maritime Industry A Review of Some of the Best Software Solutions in the Business

BUYING SOFTWARE OFF THE SHELF and tweaking it to meet business requirements takes lots of tenacity and determination to make it functional. And building homegrown software can be an expensive endeavor, especially in today’s economic climate. Besides, can a small or medium company really afford to hire an information technology (IT) specialist to help manage information? MarEx went hunting for a few software companies and maritime organizations to help get small-to-medium companies up and running quickly, inexpensively and efficiently. From operational research and inventory control to crewing, customer relations and billing, training, and shipto-shore communications, MarEx found a few silver bullets in software solutions to make any maritime company run more profitably and efficiently. While MarEx is not recommending any of the companies mentioned, each one does offer some pretty sophisticated programs for monitoring business information and operational activities.

Maritime Operational Research by MITAGS

The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) has continually invested in full-mission simulation technology for over twenty years. Recent technological advances have led them to use the simulators in operational research projects in addition to the traditional training mission. Today’s simulators allow for accurate modeling of vessels transiting confined waters under a variety of environmental and traffic conditions. They are also one of the few research tools that provide “ground truth” reference by allowing captains, pilots, and tug masters to interact in a manner very similar to the real world. With the advent of electronic chart data and satellite imagery, virtually any port or waterway in the world can be programmed into the simulator within days. The simu-

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lated environment can be further enhanced with detailed visual scenes and depth/current models. Hydrodynamic ship models are also programmed into the simulator based on sea-trial data and information provided by professional mariners. MITAGS’ simulation exercises are set up to identify potential obstacles that could impede the safe passage of vessels and the procedures needed to mitigate these risks. This information is then used to help define the operational limits for the ship/port system. Marine simulation models the physical forces acting on a ship or other marine craft – including navigation channels, water currents, wind forces, wave action and tugboats – in combination with the ship’s maneuvering characteristics and human piloting. Generally, one variable at a time is adjusted until the maximum safe operational limit is achieved. The parameters are then combined to determine the overall effects. Other factors, such as blockage in the channels, placement of navigational aids, resources needed (like tugs and power), can also be evaluated. MITAGS takes the available data on wind, waves, currents (tidal and/or river discharges), visibility, and other situational factors and assigns a probability to each so that the risk of not having favorable operating conditions can be assessed for that ship/port combination. This can even be done for different seasons to help refine the risk analysis further. Similar results can be achieved for other ship/ port combinations throughout the array of ship types and contingency ports being considered. Today, MITAGS works with a number of cruise lines, LNG terminal operators, and port authorities, which have adopted the use of full-mission ship simulation to help answer operational questions. The United States Coast Guard also requires simulation for their waterway suitabil-

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SILVER BULLETS

ity reports. As vessels become more complex and environments evermore demanding, maritime operational research will remain a vital and important part of marine operations.

Boatracs’ Information Solutions for Workboats

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OCENS’ Weather and Satellite Communications

OCENS, Inc., which is also known as Ocean and Coastal Environmental Sensing, Inc., is a global weather-data provider using satellite phones. The ability to quickly download weather information via Inmarsat, Iridium, Globalstar satellites or cellular phones or via other Internet connections is essential for mariners. OCENS Mail is one of the fastest ways to send email communications while at sea via fast transfer and compression. Most email transfer systems blindly compress everything coming over the lines. OCENS Mail transfers Page 1 by compressing and sending large streams of data emails

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Information Solutions for Workboats— Boatracs is a cutting-edge provider of communications and information solutions for small to midsize commercial workboats and fishing companies. Since 1990, the company has been providing two-way ship-to-shore communications based on Qualcomm Satellite Communications technologies. Today, the company is going well beyond just providing a communications link. It’s ‘Inland Professional Software’ (Inland Pro) is providing a whole new array of workboat management solutions, which include order management, dispatch, messaging, invoicing, and compliance functionality. Essentially, Inland Pro allows a workboat company to manage its operations more efficiently by automating many business processes which are done manually today. Companies can now automatically dispatch its customer orders to its fleet of vessels, track all of the work orders in as much or as little detail as they’d like, and collect all of the necessary data for customer invoicing and regulatory compliance. “The simplest way to think about it is that we can dramatically reduce a company’s operating expenses by automating the customer order-to-invoice process,” says Irwin Rodrigues, VIce President and General Manager of Boatracs . “We believe our software is the most affordable and easiest to use for the Small to Medium sized workboat company. The shore-side functionality can be hosted by Boatracs or by the company, making it extremely easy for a LMA Ad 178x79 1 up 17/7/09 14:26 company withoutLP0026AB501:Layout an IT department to get and running

very quickly.” For customers not needing the full functionality of the integrated Inland Pro software, Boatracs also offers a product called ‘BT Forms,’ which allows data and information to be sent back and forth from sea to shore. Companies can create their own forms and transfer information via laptops. Communicating operational data via free form email is inefficient and prone to errors. BT Forms allows crew and operational staff to enter information on preestablished forms without errors. They can send a vessel log, engineering or safety log or any other document that management requires in its vessel operations. Boatracs offers software solutions for three levels of operational maturity and automation . 1) Customers can buy the basic satellite communications solutions, which includes the transfer of embedded macro data back and forth. 2) BT Forms, which allows a more flexible yet structured way to transfer data. 3) Inland Professional Software, which allows for the fully integrated order management, dispatching and invoicing capabilities.

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SILVER BULLETS

in the acquisition order with purchasing,” says Clement Hamer, CEO of ZeeBORN, Inc. “No matter where in the world the ship or office is, everyone is working within one communication system.” The Office Manager is a basic module in all ZeeBORN applications. More than a contact data management tool, the module administers relations between inside and outside contacts and monitors outgoing and incoming documents and emails while managing schedules and appointments. The Crewing module is a powerful tool plus a Web interface for job applications, including certificates, sea services, contracts, rank and per-ship serOCENS Weather offers three user packages: vice planning, crew qualification details (including 1 WeatherNet is a system designed to optimize the download of weather earning and deductions), and certificate expiration and ocean conditions via wireless connections, which include comdates. It can be used by ship or shore personnel to pressed text, images, charts, buoy data, radar and GRIB files. crew vessels or recruit available qualified mariners. 2 GRIB Explorer offers unprecedented access to GRIdded Binary, which The Purchasing module provides a quick and is a scientific form of weather and ocean data, by eliminating the high easy interface that works closely with the Maintecost of sophisticated software used by ocean racers, shipping lines and nance and Crewing modules. Nearly all tasks can routing companies. Any at-sea user can acquire critical information via be done using this module in terms of ordering, the Oceans GRIB data software that runs in conjunction with OCENS’ inventory control and buying externally – including WeatherNet program. requisitions, quotations, purchase orders, delivery 3 MetMapper transforms maps, satellite images and ocean charts into intracking, invoice registration, invoices and payteractive components that carry map overlays, vessel position and route/ ments, and reviewing budget values. way point information. The user has the ability to better analyze weather The Budgeting module can automatically reconand ocean information to make critical decisions for navigation. cile budget limits and margins and interface powerfully with the Purchasing and Crewing modules, as well as several major accounting systems. Besides budget “The OCENS weather software offers a choice of mulanalysis, overviews and reports, it also allows for the imtiple products with thousands of weather files for the entire portation of data from external sources or manually enters world in a variety of different formats,” says Jeff Thomasexpenses. sen, OCENS’ Sales Director. “Whether it’s text, satellite The Task Tracking module collects tasks resulting from photo or GRIB data, the user downloads the type of info problems, such as those detected in audits and inspections, needed off our server, which then automatically disconand manages the necessary follow-up by assigning responnects and allows for viewing on a computer or phone sibilities, priorities and due dates. Additionally, the tracking system without being connected, thereby saving costs.” module can fulfill document requirements for many of the existing quality standards, such as ISO and ISM. ZeeBORN Fleet Management Solutions -

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to the server and unpacks the data stream into a standard SMPT to send the email. What does this mean in terms of cost? The standard dial-up or Internet connection can take a few minutes to connect and then a number of minutes to transfer the data. With OCENS Mail, the data is compressed and then transferred in less than a minute, meaning less time on the satellite or cell connection and less cost. The program automatically dials, sends data and disconnects, which creates an inexpensive transfer of data.

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

“Keep IT Simple”

ZeeBORN Fleet Management (ZFM) is a robust software information management tool for fleet owners and operators. The software is scalable to meet the demands of any size company and offers a number of various modules, which can be purchased individually or entirely. Essentially, ZFM is meant to be a one-source tracking system of business activities within an organization. From the CEO to the janitor, every employee can input data into the system, which can be accessed by every module. ZFM also provides a “dashboard” that allows managers to review business activities in different segments of the company. “If a superintendent needs a part for a ship, they can check prices, get approval from accounting and then put

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Veson Nautical Corporation - Voyage Management Solutions

Veson Nautical delivers solutions for voyage management and is designed to assist owners and charterers manage some of the most complex issues in vessel operations. Veson’s Integrated Maritime Operations System 6 (IMOS6), the company’s most recent version, addresses chartering, operations, financials, planning, trading, demurrage and pooling in integrated and powerful modules. Most voyage software on the market deals with circumstances after the fact. IMOS6 by Veson creates a workflow process for decision and analysis based on real-time, updated information, such as port or vessel delays, ship

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SILVER BULLETS

and voyage details like positioning reports, bunkers, purchasing, disbursements, performance reports and laytime calculations. » Financial provides more control over the financial process by allowing accounting departments to streamline billing, tracking, processing and auditing transactions while working in conjunction with major accounting software. » Planning provides a tool for executives to test, analyze and modify assumptions about existing and proposed contracts, voyages, vessels and fleets, including cargo matching and job assignments. » Trading offers a comprehensive tool to understand exposure to trading decisions, risk monitoring and management as well as manage freight commitments, cargo contracts and forward freight agreements. » Pooling tracks pool operations and voyage results with partners and allocates vessels to assignments. It also tracks the historic performance of a pool, including vessels entering and exiting the pool. No matter what your specific needs, there’s a software solution out there that’s right for you – and at an affordMar Ex able price. All it takes is a little research.

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brokers’ fixtures and pricing. Streaming data from the Baltic Exchange, Weather Routing providers, or even oil refinery production and grain operators’ schedules can be uploaded quickly. Veson’s IMOS6 integrates its modules to create a powerful tool for planning and managing vessel operations. “The ability to review real-time information is critical in today’s business climate. Instead of reviewing islands of information, the IMOS6 integrated modules provide a quick understanding of opportunities, issues and problems, financial flows and commitments,” said John Veson, president and CEO of Veson Nautical. “Our ad hoc reporting tool allows executives to review eighty data sets of information based on how they want to see it, including revenues per charterer, per voyage or per quarter. The beauty is that the information can be sliced and diced in any manner an executive wants to see it.” The following is a quick review of the various modules: » Chartering encompasses pre-Fixture, Fixture Notes, including voyage estimator, cargo scheduler, time charter-out estimator, and contracts of affreightment. » Operations allows for fleet scheduling and voyage management. Managers can access schedules

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

The Workboat Academy’s 24-Month Workboat Mate Program

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MARITIME TRAINING

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Maritime Training: A Global Perspective TO SAY THAT THE BUSINESS of maritime education has come a long way in a very short period of time would not do justice to current conditions. Maritime education is being shaped by many factors, not the least of which is the dreaded STCW requirement, along with the rapidly flattening world that we live in. Today’s commercial shipping experience – afloat and ashore – is a much more cross-cultural event. Separately, an increased menu of required and optional curricula also requires innovative delivery vehicles to allow mariners and shoreside personnel alike to keep up. How all of that is coming together might just surprise you.

CMES: Online, Long Distance – And Leading the Way The scope of what can be accomplished online with a computer is something we all take for granted. Now that same computer has begun to impact the world of regulated, mandated STCW and U.S. Coast Guard requirements. Chuck Eser, Manager of Academic Affairs for

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By Joseph Keefe

New Technology and New Curriculum Combine to Tackle New Challenges

the Calhoon M.E.B.A. Engineering School (CMES), says, “This isn’t rocket science. Other industries have adopted distance learning standards – but it is new for the maritime industry and the Coast Guard.” In the case of the all-new CMES Distance Learning Management System, he might be understating the case just a bit. CMES set out on a simple mission: Create convenience for mariners and member companies and save money in airfare and travel expenses. Because distance learning applications were already in use at CMES, the power and utility of the vehicle were wellknown. The concept had been tested over time, on non-STCW courses, from the standpoint of member companies. With that baseline in place, the project team began building a robust and verifiable training tool intended to withstand the regulatory requirements for STCW applications. Ten months

later, the Coast Guard approved the first online distance learning management system. The first course to be packaged in this innovative distance learning environment was the CMES online Crowd Management program. Cruise lines, some with a fair bit of turnover in their unusually large crews, needed a way to train a lot of people to a required standard, quickly and without incurring huge travel expenses. As it turns out, CMES had the perfect answer. Getting that product to market was just a little bit harder. From the outside looking in, the one-year period in which CMES got the job done to the satisfaction of the Coast Guard and DNV might seem very short. Remarkably, the Coast Guard gave approval to the concept just three months after receiving the full package and vetting the course through actual online learning sessions (and other methods). It was determined that, among other things, the new learning system provided: » Validation of the privacy of the individual taking the course;

7/27/09 10:21:45 PM

MARITIME TRAINING

STAR & AMO: Preparing U.S. Officers for International LNG Service

The worldwide shortage of mariners has come home to the United States. That’s not necessarily big news, but when international shipping firms began am to recruit 10:27 Page 1U.S. mariners for their

flag-of-convenience LNG vessels, educators began to sit up and take notice. Meanwhile, the U.S. Maritime Administration also tied certain aspects of domestic LNG terminal approvals to the use of U.S. officers on these vessels. On the other hand, the U.S. had, at one time, been the leader in LNG transportation and technology development. Preparing U.S. mariners for service on foreign-flag tonnage goes far beyond satisfying technical requirements. In terms of U.S.-flag involvement with the LNG trades, that’s probably the least of anyone’s worries. The RTM STAR (Simulation, Training, Assessment, and Research) Center’s LNG training package was the first in North America certified to the SIGTTO (Society of International Gas Tanker and Terminal Operators) competence standards and was, at one time. only one of eight such facilities in the world and the only one in North America. Today, STAR’s efforts to expand opportunities for U.S. seafarers in the international LNG trades encompass so much more. According to Jerry Pannell, STAR’s

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Eser, a Distance Learning Management System is software that automates the training event and administration, launches the learning content, and then tracks and sequences the learner’s progress. A suite of functions (a) delivers the course, (b) manages the content and (c) manages interaction with the system and does the performance assessment. All of this was successfully demonstrated to the USCG to internationally recognized standards – for the first time ever. The Distance Learning System observes a strict 12:1 student-toteacher ratio. USCG auditors have unlimited privileges to come and go online as they please, monitoring courses, instructors and students at any time. That audit function exceeds what they would normally be afforded during “brick and mortar” classes – and is a lot cheaper. The only thing that cannot be done online is the final examination, but there are independent testing organizations (as many as 3,700 locations in the U.S. alone), who give proctored final exams. Whatever comes later will likely be based on what came first. And CMES was first out of the gate.

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» Verification (with biometrics) that the instructor is who he says he is and that he is there; » A backed-up system supported by redundant servers and IT on call at all times; » All actions logged (opening and closing a form, leaving a lecture, etc.), and » Electronic routing/signatures and a completely paperless system. It was important to the CMES team that, as revolutionary as the distance learning concept was, it still had to be as good as – and, in fact, better than – “brick and mortar” methods. Chuck Eser adds, “A lot of things are different, but some things are very much the same. Delivery of consistent course content, vetting instructors, verifiable privacy for students – all of these things need to be as robust as the traditional ‘brick and mortar school house.’ Then you need a process for continuous improvement.” The CMES Distance Learning approach allows for a self-paced environment in which the student interacts with the USCG instructor at his or her own speed, independent of other students who are also proceeding at their own particular rhythms. The system and course are DNV-audited. A CMES Distance Learning Manual lays out how the processes will be carried out. Course development, of course, also requires submittals to the National Maritime Center (NMC). This is not the first time CMES has used theqtr technology. to KM Sim Mar ExecAccording 08/09 18/6/09

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MARITIME TRAINING

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Director, Member Training & Officer Development, a myriad of factors beyond technical competence are equally important as U.S. mariners get ready to reboard LNG vessels after a lengthy exile. He added, “Today, compliance with statutory requirements such as training, experience and onboard observation time will not be enough.” Pannell is talking about social issues that range from cultural differences between mariners, dealing with multinational crews, conflict resolution, and a host of other similar factors. Pannell recently gave a presentation at the SIGTTO Annual General Meeting, which was entitled “Preparing American Officers and Industry for Emerging International LNG Shipboard Assignment and Operations.” That talk centered on the more technical aspects of LNG, but Pannell also insists, “One of the steps in the process is a seminar/workshop for

American officers preparing to sail on internationally flagged vessels. This addresses the cultural differences and nuances of sailing as an American in a multinational environment.” Those seminars include real-life accounts from an American Chief Engineer onboard Teekay vessels and an AMO Master who sailed with another international company. SG_Ad_1-4_A4_Portrait_print_USA.pdf 3/23/09 STAR and the AMO are also addressing new training needs as they apply to the transition of non-tanker officers to LNG terminal operations (to include pilots and tugs), the provision of additional training capacity to non-U.S. officers, and expanded research and development resources for the LNG industry. In the end, the STAR approach provides the needed acknowledgment that transitioning U.S. officers into an international flag-of-convenience setting will involve far more than technical compe-

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tencies. Indeed, it does.

Workboat Academy: PMI & MITAG’s Groundbreaking “Hawsepipe” Training

When the Workboat Academy recently celebrated the graduation of its second class of mates in Seattle, WA, the occasion marked more than just the rites of passage for another class of quality 2:11:35 PM officers. Instead, the new “Hawsepipe” program, a rigorous curriculum of classroom and on-the-job training aboard workboats, served notice that the program is producing impressive results and enviable metrics. PMI and MITAGS can now point to a measurable track record with their nascent program. A total of 73 of 91 original students (80 percent) have been retained – with 95 percent retention after completion of the probation period. Twenty-two students have already graduated and are off Seagull America Inc. 241 Water Street New York, NY10038 Phone: (646) 831-7552 Fax: (646) 822-4122 USA.seagull@sgull.com

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MARITIME TRAINING

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on board, the companies get to pick and choose the best.” The MITAGS-PMI Workboat Mate Program takes two years to complete, with 28 weeks of shore-based instruction and 52 weeks of onboard training. Graduates earn a Mate 1600 Gross Tons Near Coastal license, with a Mate 500 Gross Ton Oceans License with Towing Endorsement (if serving on tugs), STCW-95 Officer in Charge of a Navigational Watch, and an AbleBodied Seaman Limited endorsement. “PMI’s Workboat Academy has balanced the hawsepipe and a formal academy education into a blended methodology which includes on-thejob experience and classroom learning to produce well-rounded job candidates,” said Dale Sause of Sause Bros. Sause clearly believes in the well-structured program, but the program has been equally well received at sea. “The captains and mates onboard the tugs

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to jobs within the industry. More importantly – and unlike their counterpart traditional American maritime academies – all of these graduates will go to sea. With three classes already graduated and two more currently enrolled, the program is now wellestablished and yielding dividends for the partner companies. Gregg Trunnell, Director of Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), doesn’t need to read statistics to tell him what he’s known for a long time: The hawsepipe option for the upwardly mobile mariner is virtually gone. Uniquely positioned to get firsthand feedback from his clients, Trunnell has listened closely to the calls for a viable solution to what is now a full-blown manning crisis in the tug, salvage and offshore markets. What they’ve developed in response is the most innovative and collaborative officer training program to be introduced in this country in many decades. Deliberately frontend loaded, the initial eight-week sea phase identifies those who may not like going to sea. The opportunity to figure this out before a large financial outlay has been made is critical. From the sponsortug company’s point of view, this also occurs before the real investment in an individual

through a designated billet has been made. Trunnell points to Kirby Inland Marine’s training model and says, “We are very much like the Kirby model, whereby they have approximately 30 percent retention from their students in the program and 90 percent retention from the graduates.” Trunnell went on to say, “Everything we are doing is based on retention strategies.” Trunnell, founder of the Workboat Academy, made the ambitious program a reality, but only after close coordination with educational work groups, the USCG and industry. Today, the essential training billets for the workboat cadets include top organizations like Crowley Marine Services, Sause Bros., Western Towboat, Foss Maritime, Harley Marine Services, Dunlap Towing, K-Sea Transportation, Brusco Tug & Barge, Gulfmark Offshore, and NOAA. Trunnell added, “The quality of our trainees has been impressive and, because there are many more applicants than places

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MARITIME TRAINING

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

and supply vessels have been excellent mentors to the cadets once they bought into the program,” Trunnell said. A multimillion dollar, interactive, 330-degree Full Mission Tugboat Simulator is but one of many unique components of this new and exciting training vehicle. Trunnell says, “None of this is possible without the support of our clients. This is a partnership – and perhaps this is the most important part of what sets PMI’s Mate Program apart from all the others. Partnership, collaboration, call it what you want. It adds up to a happier seaman and a happier employer.”

Lloyd’s Maritime Academy: MBA in Shipping & Logistics

With so much focus on training for mariners, it is also important to remember that the safest ship in the world isn’t of much value if it isn’t making money. The current economic climate should be enough to drive that point home nicely, but if not, then the MBA in Shipping & Logistics now

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offered by Lloyd’s Maritime Academy (LMA) and Middlesex University should do the trick. This new and exciting curriculum is designed to equip current and future maritime leaders with the skills and knowledge they need to manage their business through still and stormy waters. The program consists of six modules delivered over two years. Fully accredited, LMA’s MBA program covers maritime administration, ship finance, risk management, economics and trade, maritime law, insurance, business strategy, human resource management, executive leadership, international marketing, brand establishment, logistics and supply chain management, project mastery, innovative practice and use of technology. Perhaps more importantly, online delivery of the course work means that executives can study at their own pace without having to travel to attend lectures or seminars. The Lloyd’s learning portal provides access to online lectures, group

MEBA eLearning: STAR Center: Workboat Academy: Lloyd’s Maritime Academy’s MBA:

interaction, networking opportunities and a variety of e-learning tools. The final Business Transformation Project allows students to analyze current issues affecting their company or industry, using real-world data and presenting realistic action points. The project is part of the program curriculum but potentially becomes an invaluable business tool as well. Specifically intended for managers in the shipping industry and related logistics businesses, the program is equally suited to those who work within the shipping community as a supplier or customer. The first session kicks off in October of this year with an application deadline of September 28. Although not yet full, numbers are capped, and LMA reports that interest in the course is strong. Applicants come from all over the world. Entry

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MARITIME TRAINING world of ocean shipping. And Lloyd’s Maritime Academy has found the ideal vehicle for bringing business savvy and competence to eager but far-flung maritime executives everywhere. All four learning programs have recognized that a career at sea – whether that means an offshore supply boat or a foreign-flag LNG carrier

– involves training that goes beyond technical competencies and ordinary delivery of that information. Collectively, they have brought the business of maritime education into the 21st century, where it belongs – right alongside the high-tech equipment plying every niche of this industry. MarEx

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requirements are stringent but specific. The very thorough application form guides the candidate through a rigorous process. This, combined with LMA pre-submission checks, has ensured a rejection rate of only five percent of those who apply. Where others have only begun to dabble in the online education format, LMA has for over 30 years provided the maritime industry with education through a variety of delivery methods. Its distance learning courses were initiated more than 10 years ago. To date, more than 5,000 maritime professionals have received LMA instruction in this way, and LMA’s e-learning platforms are currently serving 1,000+ clients on an annual basis.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

MEBA’s Chuck Eser readily admits that the online distance learning tool is not for all courses. For MITAGS and PMI, not every candidate is suitable for a career at sea. The STAR Center warns that technical competencies alone will not be enough in the increasingly multi-cultural

7/27/09 10:21:52 PM

MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS

Maritime Communications Shootout: No Room for Pirates Increased Capacity + Falling Prices = Fierce Competition

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By Barry Parker

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS COSTS CONTINUE to decline as more satellite capacity is placed into service, more applications are made available, and previously unexploited market niches are addressed by providers of equipment, applications and airtime. Across the maritime spectrum, the two most important drivers for communications choices are (1) extending business applications to vessels (including the burgeoning area of remote monitoring), and (2) crew retention. Fortunately, most providers now offer packages for crew calling. In a landscape of overlapping vendors – encompassing bundlers of airtime, hardware and onboard applications – a bit of legwork may be required to make an apples-to-apples determination of what is available, at what price, and who is the best provider. Sometimes, multiple providers may offer the best solution to a ship operator’s particular needs. Maritime buyers should first define their specific needs and then make a list of potential vendors who can address their major priorities before entering into discussions with solution providers.

New on Deck: Inmarsat’s “FB150” and Iridium’s “OpenPort”

offers data throughput of 432 Kbps. Providers have increased their marketing to owners of smaller vessels. Over the past year, two important developments have been Inmarsat rounding out its offerings with its “FB150” service (speeds up to 150 Kbps), and Iridium rolling out its “OpenPort” telephone and data service, capable of speeds up 128 Kbps but with an IP backbone. Unlike Inmarsat’s “birds” in orbits 23,000 miles above the equator, Iridium operates a network of dozens of satellites in orbits roughly 700 miles high. Resellers play an important role, working closely with customers and identifying and exploiting niches in the marketplace. Globe Wireless, a charter reseller of Iridium packages, has focused on smaller vessels that have been using an Inmarsat “Mini-M” for crew calling, offering incentives for Mini-M users to trade their equipment in for Openport terminals. Frank Coles, President and CEO of Globe Wireless, remarked, “For crew calling users, the Globe Wireless Mini-M Trade-In program makes perfect sense…Iridium OpenPort also allows three simultaneous phone calls, the crew does not have to queue to use the phone.” An Iridium spokesman, commenting on the rollout of OpenPort, told MarEx, “We have now successfully completed an extremely rigorous battery of environmental and network stress tests, along with sea trials under some very demanding conditions. As a result, Iridium is confident that Iridium OpenPort is a robust and reliable product.” He also stressed the role of Iridium’s service providers. “Most of them are integrating the hardware with their own proprietary application software programs for crew calling, email

Inmarsat, once a nonprofit but now share-listed and a member of the FTSE index, has broadened its product line. The original Inmarsat A has been phased out, replaced by the next-generation and GMDSS-compliant Inmarsat B (with both voice and data capabilities, at speeds up to 64 Kbps) and Inmarsat C. Now, a suite of higher-speed and more robust Fleet Broadband offerings are sold through a host of distributors and Inmarsat FB150 value-added resellers. Earlier this year, Inmarsat comEntry-level broadband for smaller vessels. Description A package suitable for use onboard smaller pleted a satellite repositionmaritime platforms” ing program that brings http://www.inmarsat.com/About/Newsnear global coverage to room/Press/00024319.aspx users of its Fleet Broadband, which supports an Internet High-altitude L-Band Satellites Protocol (IP)-compliant Said to be “under $5,000” Equipment Cost infrastructure. Pacific service Varies Airtime Cost was inaugurated in February Up to 150 Kb/second Data 2009 following deployment of a third new-generation Simultaneous voice and SMS service Voice satellite. At the upper end, IP Backbone Fleet Broadband “FB500”

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Iridium OpenPort Opens up new market segments, specifically luxury yachts, tugs, fishing and cruising vessels for which traditional marine Satcom systems have been out of reach. http://iridium.mediaroom.com/index. php?s=43&item=858 Medium-altitude L-Band Under $5,000 Varies Up to 128 Kb/second Three simultaneous users IP

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MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS More Capabilities at Lower Prices

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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management, Internet browsing and SMS,” he added. Smaller vessels, with less room for large antennas (and less time for installation) have been able to upgrade from earlier-generation satellite services or, for some, get onboard for the first time. Importantly, the emerging IP compatibilities enable vessels to tie to the public Internet and to private company networks. Kyle Hurst, FB150 Product Manager at Inmarsat, told MarEx, “The interest in the FB150 service has been unprecedented. We expect to have the first commercial installation this summer and, as terminals have been shipped globally, uptake is likely to be exceptional from the start.” In mid July, the first FB150 install was announced – aboard the 2009-built OSV “Miclyn Enterprise” – presently working in Southeast Asia. KVH Industries serves the transportation business and the military with a range of satellite communications products. KVH offers maritime users a range of antennas for Inmarsat Fleet (a product line introduced in the early 2000s) and now Fleet Broadband, combined with airtime packages for voice, fax and data transmissions through the new IP-compliant Inmarsat satellites. Marketing Director Chris Watson explains: “The TracPhone FB150 is a great solution for smaller vessels that have never been able to support any level of Internet access.” Noting that FB150 does not support fax, he says that the FB250 and FB500 are better choices for larger commercial and leisure vessels. Watson says that “Many customers for Fleet Broadband are switching over from older systems and services such as Inmarsat B and Inmarsat Fleet, which are larger, slower and cost more.” Inmarsat’s Hurst added, “There has been significant interest from the coastal merchant sector with demonstration events in Athens and Hamburg recently, and I am told that there have been significant orders for equipment to the target leisure and fishing markets in Asia, the U.S. and Europe.”

Indicative of how prices have dropped in recent years, high-volume users of Fleet Broadband will pay under $1.00/minute for voice calls under KVH plans. Inmarsat’s Hurst offered insights on how pricing strategies can drive adaptation by new users: “The pricing is best compared to mobile phone pricing. With Inmarsat, you have pay-asyou-go, prepay, and group plans, which allow fleets of vessels to use the same pool. With these kinds of options, we expect people who have not previously used Inmarsat in the fisheries and leisure areas, and merchant operators who have used Mini-M and Inmarsat-B, to become FB150 users.” Inmarsat, in describing its FB150 service, says terminal pricing will address the needs of the sub-$5,000 hardware sector. Equipment makers are ready. Thrane & Thrane’s (T&T) Maritime Business Vice President, Casper Jensen, describing its new, type-approved solution for FB150, said, “SAILOR 150 FleetBroadband is built to stand up to the extreme environments that workboats and fishing boats often operate in.” The unit, which began shipping in late June, offers “competitively priced hardware and airtime, simultaneous voice and data capability, IP connectivity for email and Internet/ Intranet access, a rugged IP handset, and digital satellite phone service.” Resellers play an important role in connecting the big fleets. Consider AND Group, based in the north of England, which was conducting trials of a crew email application using Iridium Open-

7/27/09 10:22:29 PM

MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS Port and was soon to begin testing a messaging application on ships owned by Zodiac Maritime, with a potential rollout across Zodiac’s 125-vessel fleet. A large German owner, Peter Dohle Schiffahrts, has been testing a crewcalling application provided through Vizada, a large distributor for Iridium (and others, including Inmarsat). The Iridium OpenPort service supports an “always on” data connection and three telephones that could be used simultaneously.

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Ku Band VSAT: Gaining Bigger Share by Shrinking the Footprint

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Maritime VSAT once connoted eight-foot dish antennas, costing in excess of $100,000, mounted on a few larger vessels whose owners could pay upwards of $10,000/ month. Now, shrinking equipment dimensions and pricing are broadening the market. Reflecting on bundling and marketing dynamics generally, industry veteran John Minetola, a top executive handling American sales at antennaspecialist Intellian Technologies, told MarEx: “Intellian will sell its S60 (60 cm VSAT, 24 inches) with airtime, but we also sell it as bare equipment. To sell to VSAT airtime providers, we do not bundle airtime with our larger antennas because we don’t want to compete with our own customers and vessel fleet owners prefer to buy through the airtime provider.” Between airtime and equipment, Minetola explained that buyers will tend to shop for the solution with more variables. In May, Intellian indicated a suggested retail price of $25,000 for the S60. Intellian is also developing and marketing a line of TV antennas, and John Minetola added: “Our research into TV antennas does spill over into the VSAT design. We have a more simplified method for satellite tracking that increases

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dependability by making it more solid-state and based on algorithms, rather than fragile mechanical and sensorbased. We use algorithms to more precisely control aiming motors, track satellites and reacquire signals if they are lost due to shutdown or rough seas.” Marlink, a big communications provider based in Oslo, offers the Sealink VSAT service. Tore Morten Olsen, Marlink’s CEO, told MarEx: “Following the increase in Ku-band coverage to include major shipping regions around the world, VSAT has become more affordable for smaller vessels. Ku-band antennas are typically smaller than C-band antennas, making them cheaper to install. Furthermore, Ku-band service costs are cheaper than C-band VSAT. These factors mean that Ku-band VSAT services appeal to a much broader market.” In recent months, Marlink has announced contracts with Norway’s Solstad Group (OSVs) and the ferry business of Italian owner Grimaldi. KVH has also targeted the VSAT segment of the market, offering a “mini-VSAT” service through TracPhone V7 equipment on the Ku band platform (owned by network provider ViaSat). KVH’s Watson said, “Our fully integrated hardware and service is ideal for commercial, leisure, and military/government maritime applications.” Dealers were quoting prices around $30,000 for the TracPhone V7. Watson, based at KVH’s Rhode Island head office, cited the smaller, 60-centimeter antenna as “85 percent smaller by volume and 75 percent lighter than a standard one-meter VSAT system.” In addition to the obvious advantage of requiring minimal deck space for installation, Watson also cited the ability to install the antenna while the vessel is moving instead of taking the ship out of service

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MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS

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for the dockside installs needed with larger antennas. In a similar vein, John Minetola pointed out that with Intellian’s large R&D group, “Lower manufacturing costs and clever designs will enable us to target smaller commercial platforms such as oil support vessels and tugs, while our innovation will endear us to larger vessels and VSAT inte-

grators.” The equipment makers are moving in multiple directions. T&T is working in conjunction with KVH on a version of the KVH TracPhone V7 and mini-VSAT Broadband service, with Sailor branding. KVH’s Watson explained that the mini-VSAT service (which supports

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Advanced Shiphandling in Manned Models Massachusetts Maritime Academy offers the USCG approved Advanced Shiphandling in Manned Models course. This training meets STCW 95 requirements for assessing Management Level Deck Officers.

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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MARITIME COMMUNICATIONS download speeds up to 2 Mbps) offers seamless roaming and switching between satellites automatically and without manual intervention. He added that KVH can accomplish this because the satellites, from one vendor, all utilize common protocols. Billing and service are also completely integrated, he explains, unlike others who have cobbled together a product from multiple vendors instead of designing a unified package. VSAT is typically billed at a fixed monthly amount.

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

On the Horizon: Switching, Monitoring and Happy Hands

Besides creating an “apples-to-apples” hardware pricing comparison, customers must also evaluate likely usage patterns to determine optimal variable pricing. For example, on vessels with heavy usage patterns, fixed monthly pricing, or per MB-based pricing, may calculate out to be more economical than “pay-as-you-go” choices. Beyond this, today’s maritime communications is far more user-friendly with the new generation of equipment, contributing to the twin objectives linking ships with the shore, and keeping crews happy. Though it’s possible to surf the Web with the new, lower-priced product offerings, heavy duty Internet usage (e.g., streaming video of music or sports events) still might not be viable economically. As one blogger on the Panbo. com electronics blog, aimed at the yachting market, put it, “It's nonsense to think you can afford to watch realtime stock prices flutter by or view your Webcam with your OpenPort Internet connection.” Be that as it may, the world of email, satellite communications and Internet connectivity is now available at reasonable prices to even the smallest platform. In the maritime communications shootout, vessel owners and operators are the winners. MarEx

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Intellian’s Minetola stressed the importance of rapid switching between satellites, “We switch satellites as fast as you can switch channels on a TV remote control.” He also talked about remote monitoring, saying “We have some novel ideas that tie into a current trend in monitoring VSAT and networks from shore.” Marlink’s Tore Morten Olsen amplified on this theme, adding that “The need to stay connected to the shore is growing at a rapid pace, from engineers carrying out essential maintenance and diagnostics to crew members keeping in touch with friends and relatives. Broadband is a critical part of the offshore business.”

Pricing Comparisons

Maritime Operational Research

Developing Practical Solutions for Today’s Toughest Piloting Challenges The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) is a proven worldwide leader in the area of Full-Mission Ship Simulation (FMSS). With over twenty years of experience, and state-of-the-art simulation technology, MITAGS’ expert staff can program a model of virtually any port/ vessel combination in the world. Multiple, large-scale simulators allow tug masters, captains, and pilots to work together in the same scenario as part of a highly-accurate, interactive environment. In fact, ship simulation is now the most practical and cost-effective way for professional mariners to develop safe operational limits for vessel transits within restricted waters.

A variety of factors can be assessed within the virtual scenario; including: n Environmental Conditions (such as Wind, Waves, Current, Visibility, etc.). n Shallow Water and Bank Effects. n Ship-to-Ship Interactions. n Mooring, Terminal, Channel, and Storage Arrangements.

For additional information on Maritime Operational Research, please contact Captain Robert Becker via e-mail at rbecker@mitags.org.

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ENHANCING SAFETY

From the Top Down:

Enhancing Safety Through Culture Change J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

By Robert Pater, Strategic Safety Associates

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

The maritime industry can be tossed by rolling waves of injuries, both shipboard and shoreside. Mariner accidents can drain proﬁts and erode productivity, teamwork and morale. In addition to high Jones Act payouts in the U.S., missteps and mishandling can result in costly equipment damage, raise operating costs – and put future contracts at risk. The bad news is that many executives are seemingly adrift when implementing strategies aimed at higher-level safety performance, cost-control, and cultural change. Interventions to cut pervasive injuries often work only to a certain point. Beyond that, even well-intended actions can run aground, wasting limited resources and time, or even backfire. The good news is that safety at its highest level – joining enhanced performance with efficient cost-control – has been resoundingly achieved in the maritime industry by Alaska Tanker Company (ATC). And if they can do it, so can you. Shipping oil between Alaska and the Lower 48, ATC (www.aktanker.com) is the safest tanker company in the world – and the recipient of the gold Benkert Award, the U.S. Coast Guard's highest environmental honor. In the past seven and a half years, ATC has logged over thirteen and a half million hours without a lost-time injury. Not surprisingly, the company has excellent systems for loss control and safety. But it wasn't always that way. When Anil Mathur took over as CEO in 2001, ATC's record was average. So how did ATC climb to its current level of success? It changed the culture. It began with executive-driven leadership. According to Anil, "We initially developed a series of management-led interventions that were highly prescriptive. As our culture improved and evolved, the need for these kinds of strong interventions went away. We've now reached a stage

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in our culture where our workforce ‘owns’ safety. I truly believe all accidents are preventable."

Navigating the Course: What Kinds of Injuries? Common maritime injuries tend to be “soft tissue” or "personal": slips/trips/falls, strains/sprains (e.g., back injuries) and damage to the hands, wrists, fingers or arms. Contributing factors include: » exposure to the environment (temperature extremes, high winds, rain, ice) that lowers » body temperature, heightens discomfort, fogs glasses, creates slippery decks, etc. » turning valves, or changing them out » traversing ladders » consistent motion of the vessel – listing and rolling, vibration, etc. » using heavy tools » operating and maintaining equipment » entering and leaving the dock – tying/untying lines, hooking up to terminals, etc. » oil and grease on surfaces » changing elevation » working long hours, often with interrupted sleep patterns. The list goes on and on – all lying in wait even for mariners who are young and fit, and not all are.

7/27/09 10:22:48 PM

ENHANCING SAFETY Avoiding the Shoals: What Not to Do

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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that result in a breakdown (just as metal fatigues). Strategy: Be wise. Think beyond strenuous lifting or slippery decks. Focus on small changes that leverage into significant improvements in soft-tissue strength, control and balance. Develop strategies that address seemingly minor exposures – lifting light loads, climbing low heights, traversing dry as well as wet decks – before they result in an injury. Shoal 2: Assuming engineering fixes will save the day. Even in land-based sites, it's almost impossible to control all exposures. People still manage to trip crossing dry decks in calm seas (or clear parking lots) as well as injure their shoulder/back/knees when lifting relatively light loads. It's not possible to control maritime exposures through design-only interventions. Strong, safety-focused systems, processes and behaviors are what is needed. Strategy: Be improvement-focused. Experience has shown that the best results come from combining work/ tool modifications with behavioral improvements – what we call ergonomics, which we define as improving the fit between crew and work. We do this by (1) bringing tasks "closer" to workers through cost-effective ship design and tools, and (2) enhancing mariner skills for making small physical and judgmental adaptations that reduce the buildup of tensions and stresses.

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Regrettably, many companies have barely dented the hard problems of soft-tissue injuries or slips/trips/falls. Approaches to loss-control typically include signs or verbal reminders ("Pay attention when you lift something heavy!"), personal protective equipment such as lifting aids or footwear, training that doesn't focus on specific maritime applications, or disciplining workers for getting injured. While these strategies may help to a point, they haven't engendered breakthrough-results in most companies. Anil Mathur contends that the right mindset, skill set and tool set are critical to high-level safety performance. In this vein, here are five shoals that are shipwrecks-in-waiting, along with strategies for steering around them. Shoal 1: Treating soft-tissue injuries (strains/sprains, back injuries) as acute, single-source problems when instead they are predominantly wear-down issues that build over time. Think of soft-tissue injuries as "the straw that broke the camel's back." In reality, many get hurt from relatively low-risk tasks they've done thousands of times before (stepping down, bending over to tie a shoe, etc.). While trying to close a heavy valve might seem to have precipitated the back pain – and can certainly be a contributing factor – it's often the myriad number of smaller tensions over time

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J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

ENHANCING SAFETY

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Shoal 3: Believing changes in awareness or motivation alone will somehow "fix" these problems. Without question, motivation affects safety, but it is not enough. Specific mental and physical skills are needed to prevent strains/sprains, slips/trips/falls and hand injuries. Strategy: Be strategic. Transfer needed skills, not just "awareness." Experience in the maritime industry worldwide has shown that the following mental and physical skills are critical for injury prevention. Mental Skills: » Personal stress control (not allowing excess physical or emotional attention to "wag the dog."). Over-tension can lead to the soft-tissue danger zone, just as a taut cord is easier to cut than one that's slacked. Further, unmanaged stress can upset physical balance. » Team connection – doing tasks seamlessly with others. For example, safer two-person lifting can be coordinated by employing small eye confirmations and verbal gestures. » Thinking forward, cumulatively and 24/7, as in "what can go wrong here," as well as realizing that small levels of tension can build into nagging soft-tissue problems. » Ability to better direct attention. Upgrade attention

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skills such as scanning for best options (e.g., safest path), selecting where to focus, sustaining attention on priorities, switching back to an important task when distracted, and sequencing parts of a task for greatest efficiency and safety (e.g., securing load against the body, seeing condition of steps, sighting handrails, situating feet for best balance, spying where stairs end). Physical Skills: » Ability to maximize personal leverage and strength through best alignment, position and connected movement. » Significantly improved balance and coordination » Improving flexibility and range of motion » Strategies for fatigue reduction » Synchronizing breath with tasks (e.g., when bending down to pick up/lift, most people hold their breath, thereby increasing pressure on the lower back while significantly weakening balance. The right training can reduce this at-risk habit and enable greater lifting strength). » Developing methods for practical recovery, employed as early as possible, to steer away from potential major problems; for example, should you begin to

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ENHANCING SAFETY

Robert Pater is Managing Director of Strategic Safety Associates and creator of the MoveSMART® system for preventing strains/sprains, slips/trips/falls and hand injuries (www.movesmart.com). He has worked for many years with Alaska Tanker, BP Shipping and many other companies worldwide.

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THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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safety to become frustrated or even give up. Anil Mathur reveals, "I didn't believe for many years that others had the same commitment to safety as I did because of the lapses I saw between their words and actions. I now realize that through advocacy, inquiry and recognition, one can form strong partnerships in safety." Strategy: Be inclusive. Deputize everyone as a safety advocate. But, according to Anil, what's most important is to be true to yourself as a leader: “Don't go down the safety journey unless you truly believe in it yourself. Embarking on this journey with only superficial commitment produces deep cynicism in the workforce. Safety pays many dividends, but the irony is that, if those dividends are your sole motive, your safety drive will most likely fail." With the right leadership and training, personal injuries in the maritime industry can be overcome and safety performance can exceed the highest expectations – and generate higher crew engagement, morale and efficiency. MarEx

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

fall, how to reflexively regain vertical balance without straining muscles. All the above are tangible, easily transferable skills, proven to significantly reduce soft-tissue injuries and slips/ trips/falls. The MoveSMART® system for injury prevention, as applied within ATC, transfers these skills. Anil Mathur says, "MoveSMART® is the program most favored by our sea staff. Our work environment aboard tankers in the Gulf of Alaska is full of ‘slips, trips and falls’ hazards. MoveSMART® is a practical program that helps them execute their tasks without getting hurt." Shoal 4: Thinking “inside the box” that strains/ sprains, hand injuries and slips/trips/falls are unrelated problems requiring never-the-twain-shall-meet solutions. One company attributes all tool drops onto feet as caused by an incipient slip or trip. In reality, such incidents have a base of common causes that include attention breakdowns, balance disturbances, failure to think through approaches and bailouts in advance, suboptimal position and alignment, lack of synchronized breath control and more. Strategy: Be efficient. Simultaneously address root causes of strains/sprains, slips/trips/falls and hand injuries. Shoal 5: Becoming a Lone Ranger. It's easy for some executives who have sighted the Valhalla of high-level

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Timberland Equipment Limited

P.O. Box 490, 459 Industrial Avenue Woodstock, Ontario, Canada N4S 7Z2 Tel.: (519) 537-6262 Fax (519) 539-5853 email: sales@tewinch.com Web Site: www.timberland.on.ca

7/28/09 1:56:31 PM

Maritime Training & Education Directory

J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

MT&E DIRECTORY

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

American Military University

AMO - RTM STAR Center

Broaden your mariner skills by enrolling in online degrees in Transportation & Logistics and over 100 other degrees and certificates at the American Military University. Learn more through http://www.apus.edu/openhouse/schedule. We accept transfer credit earned in approved courses from maritime academies such as the Global Maritime and Transportation School (GMATS) and accredited institutions of higher learning. Contact us to determine the eligibility of your courses. Classes start monthly. AMU is a member institution in the regionally accredited American Public University System

RTM STAR Center is the primary training provider for mariners represented by AMO and the top choice of maritime professionals. Located near Fort Lauderdale, Fla., STAR Center is ISO 9001:2000 certified and provides stateof-the-art simulation, SIGTTO-certified LNG training and a full range of Coast Guard certified courses.

The Calhoon MEBA Engineering School is a private educational facility for training members of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, as well as all maritime industry professionals. Since 1966, CMES has provided quality training and has worked steadily to develop the necessary courses to satisfy emerging technologies and regulatory training requirements.

American Military University American Public University System 111 W. Congress Street Charles Town, WV 25414 T: +1 (877) 755 2787 info@apus.edu www.apus.edu

RTM STAR Center 2 West Dixie Hwy Dania Beach, FL 33004 Toll-Free: +1 (800) 445 4522 T: +1 (954) 921 7254 email@star-center.com www.star-center.com

Calhoon MEBA Engineering School 27050 St. Michaels Road Easton, MD 21601 T: +1 (410) 822 9600 (x338) F: +1 (410) 822 7220 info@mebaschool.org www.cmes.cc

Castle Shipboard Security Program

Coracle

Global Maritime and Transportation School

The Castle Shipboard Security Program is a joint venture of the SIG SAUER Academy and KSL Consulting, a professional maritime consultancy group. Castle is dedicated to training both professional and recreational mariners to protect themselves against the ravages of piracy and terrorism.

Coracle (www.CoracleOnline.com) provide professional development services to the maritime industry including eLearning, podcasting and iPhone app development. Coracle is the exclusive online provider for the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers: the internationally recognized body representing shipbrokers, managers and agents. As the leading maritime podcaster, you can listen to our audio via ShippingPodcasts.com

Castle Shipboard Security Program 1314 E Las Olas Blvd.,Unit 308 Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33301 T: +1 (954) 529 6124 KSLtraining@yahoo.com www.sigsaueracademy.com/castle

Coracle Online Ltd Browns Farm • Belchamp St Paul Sudbury, Suffolk • CO10 7DQ – UK T: +44 (0) 1787 278013 info@coracleonline.com www.CoracleOnline.com twitter.com/jtweed

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Calhoon MEBA

The Global Maritime and Transportation School (GMATS) at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy is a World Leader in Professional Maritime and Intermodal Transportation Education and Training. Located in Kings Point, New York, we are an ideal location for training and conferences. We offer more than 140 professional education and training programs. In addition, GMATS specializes in developing customized education and training programs that meet the specific needs of any transportation organization. With nearly 4000 students annually attending its programs, GMATS has become an important supplier of maritime and transportation training for personnel from numerous government, military, and commercial entities.

Global Maritime and Transportation School 300 Steamboat Road - Samuels Hall Kings Point, NY 11024 T: +1 (516) 726 6100 gmats@usmma.edu gmats.usmma.edu

7/27/09 10:23:05 PM

2009 World Maritime Day Parallel Event Friday, October 16, 2009

Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers West 23rd Street and the West Side Highway New York, NY 10011

F eat uring : D elegat e Conf er en Ce

Climate Change green Ship exhibitiOn Call for exhibitors of marine equipment and related products/services Student SCienCe Fair Contest for science projects pertaining to climate change affecting the oceans, lakes and rivers WOrld maritime day parallel event evening reCeptiOn

for more information, go to www.uscg.mil/worldmaritimeday or Contact CDr Charlie rawson at +202 372 1353 or email at worldmaritimeday@uscg.mil for information on corporate sponsorships and exhibitor packages contact: Carleen lyden-Kluss at +203 255 4686 or email at executivedirector@namepa.net

organized with cooperation from

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J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

MT&E DIRECTORY

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Lloyd’s Maritime Academy

Maritime Protective Services

Massachusetts Maritime Academy

Using several delivery methods to match your needs - seminars, advanced level training masterclasses and distance learning certificate, diploma, postgraduate diploma and MBA courses as well as in-house corporate training programmes - we are confident we have a learning solution for you. Why not let us help you to achieve your potential?

MPS specializes in maritime security training and consulting. We earned the status of Recognized Security Organization in three countries and have been approved as a Maritime Security Consultant by Bureau Veritas. Our government-approved MTSA/ ISPS Code courses employ a blend of lectures, multimedia presentations, interactive activities, and individual and group exercises. They have been approved by MARAD or the Coast Guard in the US and by MCA or Transec in the UK and are accredited by Florida Institute of Technology. VSO/SSO course components are STCW-compliant.

The Center for Maritime Training at MMA provides courses for professional mariners and others in the maritime industry and government sectors. This training includes STCW courses, advanced professional training, course renewals and emergency management programs. We also offer the Advanced Shiphandling in Manned Models program, a unique training module designed for senior-level officers and pilots. Custom training can also be arranged to help your company achieve its training objectives.

Lloyd’s Maritime Academy 6th Floor, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E 5DR, United Kingdom T: +44 (0) 20 7017 5000 F: +44 (0) 20 7017 7854 lma@informa.com www.lloydsmaritimeacademy.com

Maritime Protective Services, Inc. T (U.S.): +1 561 330 2020 F (U.S.): +1 561 330 2260 T (UK): +44 (0) 1202 684686 F (UK): + 44 (0) 1202 684687 info@mpsint.com www.mpsint.com

Massachusetts Maritime Academy 101 Academy Drive Buzzards Bay, MA 02532 T: +1 (508) 830 5000 comments@maritime.edu www.maritime.edu/cmt

MITAGS

PMI

Quality Management International, Inc.

The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) exist to enhance the professionalism of mariners through the development of quality maritime advancement, training, education, and safety programs. MITAGS is situated on an 80 acre campus located in Linthicum Heights, Maryland, minutes from major transportation facilities; the Baltimore Washington Airport and the adjacent Amtrak train station.

Maritime Institute of 692 Maritime Boulevard Linthicum, Maryland 21090 Toll-Free Admissions: +1 (866) 656 5568 Toll-Free Academic: +1 (866) 656 5569 www.mitags.org

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The Pacific Maritime Institute is a nonprofit vocational training center for individuals seeking to enter the maritime profession and for professional mariners seeking to advance their careers. We provide quality training using new technologies and teaching techniques –we prepare our students skills to succeed in today’s merchant marine.

Pacific Maritime Institute 1729 Alaskan Way South Seattle, WA 98134-1146 Toll-Free: +1 (888) 893 7829 admin@mates.org www.mates.org www.workboatacademy.com

Quality Management International, Inc. provides expert training and consulting services to the maritime industry. With over 20 years experience working with USCG, an ever-expanding list of RABQSA certified lead auditor and USCG/MARAD certified VSO/CSO/PFSO and VSO Refresher courses and outstanding consultants and instructors, QMII is your best choice for training and consulting.

Quality Management International, Inc. PO Box 271 Exton, PA 19341 T: +1 (800) 666 9001 info@aworldofquality.com www.aworldofquality.com

7/27/09 10:23:20 PM

MT&E DIRECTORY Sea School

STC B.V.

Netherlands Maritime University

STC B.V. is a full subsidiary of the STCGroup. The STC-Group conducts the regular activities connected to vocational education on various levels. The STC B.V. conducts commercial activities in the field of maritime professional training, consultancy and operational research. STC utilizes state-of-theart simulators and highly skilled and experienced staff. Most activities are tailor-made to the specific requirements of the customer.

The Netherlands Maritime University, part of STC-Group, offers two unique education programs for the maritime cluster and maritime related companies;

Sea School 8440 4th Street North St. Petersburg, FL 33702 T: +1 (800) 237 8663 hqstaff@seaschool.com www.seaschool.com

STC B.V. Lloydstraat 300 • 3024 EA Rotterdam The Netherlands T: +31 10 4486060 F: +31 10 4486029 info@stc-bv.nl www.stc-bv.nl

Netherlands Maritime University Lloydstraat 300 • 3024 EA Rotterdam The Netherlands T: +31 10 4486060 F: +31 10 4486061 info@stc-nmu.eu www.stc-nmu.eu

Seagull America, Inc.

SUNY

Texas Engineering Extension Service

Seagull is the world leader in computer based training (CBT) modules based on statutory regulations and industry requirements. The Onboard Library is “a classroom at your fingertips” for comprehensive onboard maritime training. All courses are self-directed, multi-media computerbased training. Each course has defined learning objectives and is organized into short, accessible chapters. The content is delivered through sound, illustration, animation and informative text. A multiple choice learning assessment is carried out at the end of each course. A final report indicates how much training has been completed, the length of time spent and the final assessment score. Described in the following section, the Training Library feature within the Seagull Training Administrator lists all available Seagull CBT courses.

State University of New York Maritime College, Maritime College prepares students for careers in the maritime industry, government, military, and private industry and boasts a 100% career placement rate. The first maritime school in the country, Maritime is a four-year college located at historic Fort Schuyler in Throgs Neck, New York. Solid academic programs, coupled with a structured cadet life in the regiment for both men and women prepare students for careers through a strong curriculum and a handson, team building approach to learning.

TEEX’s Certified Safety and Health Official certificate program (CSHO) has proven beneficial to professionals in the fields of human resources, risk management, safety, health and environmental protection. CSHO tracks include general industry and construction safety, with specialty tracks in oil and gas, petrochemical, aviation, emergency response and, now, maritime safety. TEEX is committed to providing maritimespecific training to include topics in OSHA standards, crane safety, confined space, and fall protection.

Seagull America, Inc. 241 Water Street New York, NY 10038 T: +1 (646) 831 7552 F: +1 (646) 822 4122 seagull@sgull.com www.sgull.com

SUNY Maritime College 6 Pennyfield Avenue Throgs Neck, NY 10465 Admissions: +1 (718) 409-7221 Professional Training: +1 (718) 409-7341 www.sunymaritime.edu

Texas Engineering Extension Service Texas A&M University System 301 Tarrow College Station, TX 77840-7896 Toll-Free: +1 (877) 833 9638 Tel: +1 (979) 458 6800 www.teex.com

• Post graduate ‘Diploma Management Studies in Port, Shipping and Transport Management.’ Duration; 8 months. The course participants are well prepared for management positions in the shipping and transport industry.

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

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• Master degree in ‘Shipping and Transport.’ Duration; 1.5 years

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Created in 1997, Sea School, the College of Nautical Knowledge, offers 53 USCG approved courses at 7 campuses along the U.S. Eastern seaboard and Gulf. With free bunks at its Charleston & Panama City schools, and free bunks and meals in Mobile, it has gained the reputation as an economical choice for mariners moving up the advancement ladder. The free meals in Bayou La Batre come courtesy of Son of a Sea-Cook Workboat Cooking School. Newest courses offered include Repel Boarders, VSO, Western Rivers Routes, Quick Advancement to 500 GRT Master & Master of Towing Vessels.

7/27/09 10:23:31 PM

MT&E DIRECTORY The Oxford Princeton Programme, Inc.

THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

University of Wisconsin - Superior

The USF OTIEC offers the OTI 5400 Train the Trainer in Maritime Course. The course has been designed for all people working in the Maritime Industry who either want to learn more about workplace safety and health hazard recognition or who want to become OSHA authorized trainers for the 10 and 30 hour Maritime courses.

The Transportation and Logistics Management major is a nationally accredited program that includes a liberal arts foundation, a full business administration curriculum, transportation and supply chain management courses and internships.

USF OTI Education Center 2612 Cypress Ridge Blvd; Suite 101 Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 T: +1 (813) 994 1195 F: +1 (813) 994 1173 www.usfoticenter.org

University of Wisconsin at Superior 801 North 28th Street Superior, WI 54880 T: +1 (715) 394 8230 admissions@uwsuper.edu www.uwsuper.edu/acaddept/dbe/trans

The Oxford Princeton Programme Oxford, UK: +44 1865 250 521 Princeton, NJ: +1 609 520 9099 Singapore: +65 6837 8030 Calgary, AB: +1 403 284 0365 info@oxfordprinceton.com www.oxfordprinceton.com

Port and Marine Transportation courses taught by licensed marine managers. Small classes ensure individual quality education at an affordable price.

Tanker Mas MasTTer

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The Oxford Princeton Programme, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of education and training solutions in the energy, commodity and derivatives markets including tanker ownership, chartering, operations, laytime and demurrage. Choose from courses on oil, power, natural gas, bunker fuels, petrochemicals, trading, hedging, risk management and more. Instructor-led, in-house, web-based.

University of South Florida OSHA

Tanker MasTer Florida-based shipping Company with field office in Argentina requires: Superintendent Tanker Operations for Argentina Qualifications: Master Mariner (international trade) experience: • Minimum 3-4 years sailing on oil/ chemical tankers • Experience in dealing with Oil Major vetting inspections onboard and preparation of vessels for vetting, training crew in ISM code and Tanker operations. Strong knowledge of TMSA and procedures for implementation in office and onboard. Past experience with Spanish-speaking crew preferable. Bi-lingual English/Spanish, a must. send resumes to ravenship@gmail.com

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Piracy Debate

What About the Mariners? THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE CLAUS BIHL, MAERSK TRAINING CENTRE

Standard of excellence

Executives Tackle Safety

Changing Culture From the Top Down

SATCOM & Software

Inextricably Linked: Undoubtedly Important July-August 2009

Cutting-Edge Maritime Education:

Where, What & Why It’s Important

 Global SaleS and Support  extenSive ranGe of productS and ServiceS  onGoinG product development

V O L U M E 1 3 , E D I T I O N 1 0 , J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9

clockwise from top left ScHelde naval patrol 9113 damen aSd tuG 2810 damen faSt crew Supplier 5009 damen platform Supply veSSel 7216 damen Stan patrol 4708 damen cutter Suction dredGer 450

D A m e N s H i p YA r D s G o r i N c H e m industrieterrein Avelingen west 20

4202 ms Gorinchem

p.o. Box 1 4200 AA Gorinchem

Managing Director,

Maersk Training Centre

member of the DAmeN sHipYArDs GroUp phone +31 (0)183 63 92 67 fax +31 (0)183 63 77 62

americas@damen.nl www.damen.nl

the Netherlands

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