International Federation News

If you think the human element is the only cause of enclosed space deaths, think again.Enclosed space incidents are cited as the largest cause of on-duty fatalities in commercial shipping. The risks can’t simply be engineered out, but there’s a powerful coalition wanting action nonetheless.There’s a tendency to blame failure to follow procedures, they say. Investigations seldom focus on the practicality of those procedures or the influence of the operating environment and vessel design, they say.

The union Danish Maritime Officers (DMO) has set a new team, with a new director, new chairman and deputy chairman, and has the ambition to increasingly serve its member’s interests internationally.New chairman is Jens M. Sorensen, who has sailed training ships as a mate and navigator for 20 years and worked with anti-piracy as a risk consultant for more than a decade. The new deputy chairman is Jens Lundgaard, tow master with Maersk Drilling.“As current events clearly show, maritime personnel need a strong union.

A guide to maritime pilot transfer safety has been updated amid industry concerns about poorly rigged ladders causing severe injuries or fatalities.The ‘Shipping Industry Guidance on Pilot Transfer Arrangements’, produced by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) in partnership with the International Maritime Pilots’ Association (IMPA), features a new section with the International Maritime Organization (IMO)’s guidance on combination embarkation platform arrangements. Provisions for a ‘trapdoor arrangement’ in combination ladders…

Stunned residents of the Bahamas surveyed the wreckage of their homes and officials struggled to assess the number killed by Hurricane Dorian, as the storm bore down on the South Carolina coast, threatening record flooding on Thursday.The United Nations said 70,000 people in the Bahamas needed immediate humanitarian relief after the most damaging storm ever to hit the island nation.Aerial video of the worst-hit Abaco Islands in the northern Bahamas showed widespread devastation…

Swedish-Swiss multinational corporation ABB has completed its acquisition of intrion, with the aim of boosting its expertise in fast-growing logistics automation market.intrion is a privately owned company headquartered in Huizingen, close to Brussels, with approximately 120 employees and over a decade of experience in logistics automation solutions and services for the logistics, food and beverage and pharmaceutical industries.The acquisition was announced on July 24, 2018. The two parties agreed not to disclose the value of the transaction.Distribution and fulfilment centers are increasingly turning to robotic automation solutions to improve their efficiency, workplace safety and scalability to meet soaring demand.

ABB will acquire Intrion, a privately owned company headquartered in Huizingen, close to Brussels, with approximately 120 employees and over a decade of experience in logistics automation solutions and services for the warehouse and distribution, food and beverage, and pharmaceutical industries.Its expertise covers a full spectrum of logistics automation solutions including inline checking, product picking, packing, palletizing, conveying, storage, sorting and sequencing, and order picking. The two parties have agreed not to disclose the value of the transaction, which is expected to close in Q3/Q4 2018.“The acquisition is a milestone for ABB’s entry into the logistics market and will significantly advance our logistics robotics automation offering…

As robotics and autonomy gain inroads into various maritime and logisitics sectors, Lloyd’s Register Foundation and the University of York announced a $16m patnership to examine the safety of robotics and autonomous systems (RAS). RAS are likely to become pervasive, including driverless cars, the use of autonomous systems in hospitals and the maritime sector (for shipping and oil and gas platforms), and the use of robots in manufacturing and food supply chains. A 2016 report from…

Unsafe mixed migration by sea continues to claim many lives, despite the strenuous efforts made by Governmental and naval rescue services, often supported by merchant vessels, abiding by the long-standing tradition and legal obligation to go to the rescue of persons in distress at sea. The complexities of this humanitarian challenge were discussed on Monday (30 October) at a meeting hosted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), bringing together representatives of UN agencies, the maritime industry and European Union naval forces. For the rescued and seafarers alike, the experience can be harrowing. A modern merchant vessel is unsuited to carrying large numbers of survivors…

Brand owners and representatives from the international shipping industry have joined forces in signing an historic declaration of intent aimed at preventing the maritime transport of counterfeit goods. Leaders from global shipping firms, freight forwarders, brand owners – whose products are counterfeited – and industry organizations, representing both industries signed a joint "Declaration of Intent to Prevent the Maritime Transport of Counterfeit Goods" today in Brussels. It marks the first time the global shipping industry and brand owners have made a public commitment to work together to stop the transport of counterfeit goods on shipping vessels.

THE International Federation of Freight Forwarders' Associations (FIATA) has called for enhanced communication from  container  shipping lines ahead of the deadline by which new IMO regulations requiring verification of a freight container’s gross mass become mandatory. The non-governmental organisation, which represents an industry covering approximately 40,000 forwarding and logistics companies is calling on shipping lines to provide greater clarity on how they wish to receive the  data concerning the Verified Gross Mass of  a container when the amendment to SOLAS becomes effective on 1st July 2016. At a recent meeting in Cape Town…

Customs brokerage and trade compliance advisors, Livingston, say that to better reflect the company’s integral role in regulatory affairs for its clients, Livingston has appointed Candace Sider to the newly created position of Vice President, Regulatory Affairs Canada. Sider will be responsible for developing and implementing government affairs strategy, as well as the overall management of Livingston’s political engagement with federal and provincial officials, regulatory agencies and key policymakers. She will be Livingston’s primary representative with the Canada Border Services Agency, focused on regulatory changes that impact global trade, compliance and risk management.

Shantanu Bhadkamkar, Immediate Past Chairman of Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations In India (FFFAI) was unanimously elected as Chairman of International Federation of Customs Brokers Association (IFCBA) at the Board of Directors Meeting of IFCBA held in Seoul, Korea recently. Bhadkamkar is the Managing Director (Group CEO) of ATC Group,a leading Customs Broker & International Freight Forwarder in India. Apart from being Chairman of IFCBA and Immediate Past Chairman of FFFAI, he is the Sr. Vice – President of Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture (MACCIA, Vice –President of Association of Multimodal Transport Operators In India (AMTOI) and Immediate Past Chairman of Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP).

The Hydrographic Society of Korea (HySK) has been elected a member of the International Federation of Hydrographic Societies (IFHS), joining other national organizations representing Australasia, Benelux, Denmark, Germany, Italy, South Africa and the U.K. Based in Seoul, the HySK is headed by its President, Dr. Dae Choul Kim of Pukyong National University’s Department of Energy Resources Engineering, whose fellow directors are drawn from key sectors of the Korean maritime industry. The Society itself represents leading hydrographic surveying individuals and organizations throughout Korea and has recently concluded joint Memorandums-of-Understanding (MoUs) with the China Institution of Boundary & Ocean Studies (CIBOS) at Wuhan University and IFHS fellow-member…

The Hydrographic Society UK, supported internationally, is arranging a conference: ' Digital Hydrography on the Maritime Web'. The Hydrographic Society UK (THS UK), supported by both the International Federation of Hydrographic Societies (IFHS) and the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is arranging a two-day conference - 'Digital Hydrography on the Maritime Web - Embracing the challenges and opportunities' - which will review the progress made, and steps still to be taken by professional Hydrographers to support the move towards a maritime web, more commonly described as e-Navigation. The Organising Committee is now seeking expressions of interest form potential speakers who wish to contribute to this important debate.

Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) commend the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Legal Committee's proposals for on-board crime procedures. The International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Legal Committee recently adopted a proposal which CLIA co-sponsored on international standards for crime reporting, cooperation between governments, evidence preservation and care for victims. CLIA first offered the proposal to the IMO in 2011, marking the continuation of the Association's efforts to have such standards adopted globally. In addition to CLIA, other co-sponsors were the United Kingdom, the International Federation of Shipmaster's Associations, and the International Association of Airport and Seaport Police. The proposal was also supported by the United States.

The ECDIS Group's core message: Shipping companies should establish ECDIS-use guidance within their Safety Management Systems. The ECDIS Training Group is an industry body made up of leading international shipping organisations and co-ordinated by The Nautical Institute (NI). NI CEO Philip Wake MSc FNI described the document as ‘an invaluable point of reference for those keen to establish and follow best practice in relation to ECDIS’. ‘As our industry moves away from depending solely on paper charts, this guidance provides important clarification in terms of the competencies required for what has become a vitally important navigational and decision support tool,’ he explained.

The International Shipping Federation (ISF) concerned at low implementation levels of ILO Convention 185. Speaking in Manila, at a seminar organised by the International Federation of Shipmasters' Associations (IFSMA), ISF Director of Employment Affairs, Natalie Shaw, explained that the ILO Seafarers’ Identity Documents Convention (ILO 185) - which ISF helped to negotiate on behalf of employers in 2003 - was adopted as part of a package of measures following the terrorist attacks in 2001. “The wide ratification of the Convention would have materially assisted the welfare of seafarers as well as addressing the security concerns of port states.” said Mrs Shaw.

The International Shipping Federation (ISF), which represents maritime employers globally, says that the low level of implementation of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 185, concerning the facilitation of shore leave and crew transits, is a continuing source of disappointment. Speaking in Manila this week, at a seminar organized by the International Federation of Shipmasters' Associations (IFSMA), ISF Director of Employment Affairs, Natalie Shaw, explained that the ILO Seafarers’ Identity Documents Convention (ILO 185) - which ISF helped to negotiate on behalf of employers in 2003 - was adopted as part of a package of measures following the terrorist attacks in 2001.

Ever since two enterprising reporters for the Baltimore Sun decided, in 1997, to take a closer look at ship scrapping, first at a Baltimore shipyard dismantling a Navy ship, and subsequently an in depth review of scrapping conditions in Alang, India, the light of public attention has been shining on this oldest of maritime practices. With this scrutiny, the world of scrapping ships will be forever changed — hopefully for the better. Following the end of the Cold War, the Navy's downsizing its fleet, and the requirement to replace tankers with more modern and environmentally safer ships, the demand to decommission and dispose of obsolete vessels is increasing at a pace more rapid than the capacity exists to handle this demand. Certainly, this is true in the U.

The trend towards outsourcing of ship management services over the past 20 years has created a knowledge gap in shipping companies which once operated a top-to-bottom system to support their fleet. Rodger MacDonald, secretary general of the International Federation of Shipmasters’ Associations and course director of the Lloyd’s Maritime Academy Diploma in Ship Management says additional education is vital in helping seafarers make the transition to best-of-breed ship managers. “In recent years, competitive pressures have caused many shipowners to contract out some of their services to ship management companies. This has removed the opportunity for their employees who would like to develop a career in ship management, at a time when the industry is crying out for good managers,” he said.

rescue in severe weather. the eastern Mediterranean, in March 2006. and by the International Federation of Shipmasters' Associations (IFSMA). winds. picking up three crew members. Teklivka were lost. the scope of their normal duties. ship, descending to a liferaft filled with oil and water. during the rescue. November 30, 2007 in London. certificate citing the act of exceptional bravery performed.

Just three years after its introduction, the five-day Background to Shipping seminar from leading training provider Lloyd’s Maritime Academy is now established as a major foundation course for both experienced practitioners and industry newcomers. Enrolment is under way for the ninth seminar in the series, which takes place in central London from December 3-7 and, like its predecessors, is attracting staff from some of the world’s best-known shipowners, ship managers, and related service providers. Almost 200 delegates have attended the eight previous courses, with shipping professionals joined by support sector personnel ranging from bankers, insurers and lawyers to freight forwarders and port operators.

The inaugural IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea has been presented to two seafarers who risked their lives to save others in a dramatic rescue operation in gale-force winds. Second Officer Mustafa Topiwala of the 83,155 dwt Bahamas-registered oil/bulk ore carrier Searose G and Captain Zvonimir Ostric (who was on the vessel as onboard trainer at the time of the incident) were selected to receive the inaugural 2007 IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea, in recognition of their part in the rescue of survivors from the sunken vessel Teklivka, in the eastern Mediterranean, in March 2006. They were nominated by the Bahamas and by the International Federation of Shipmasters' Associations (IFSMA).