Safer Transportation News

Marine Engineering and naval architecture students provide a fresh perspective on design, safety and innovation, too. When most of us board a passenger ferry, thinking about the safety and stability of the vessel will rarely cross our minds. Typically, those thoughts are obscured by other “more important” things, along with the distractions of electronic devices that keep us so pre-occupied that we even tune out the essential safety briefing that occurs during departure. While the record of U.S.

Dr. Donald Liu, executive vice president and chief technology officer, ABS, has been awarded the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Meritorious Public Service Award in recognition of his contributions to marine safety. Rear Admiral Paul Pluta presented the award to Liu on behalf of the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard at this year's Offshore Technology Conference in Houston. It is the second highest public recognition award given to a civilian by the organization. "Dr. Liu's outstanding leadership and dedication to marine safety and environmental protection are most heartily commended and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard," said Pluta.

South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries launched its first V-Max VLCC or very large crude carrier at its Ulsan shipyard on Thursday. The V-Max is designed with features to improve existing tanker safety and to offload directly into ports with shallow anchorages. Concordia Maritime, an affiliate of Sweden's shipping conglomerate Stena, financed the project, known by the name Stena V-Max, based on an initial three-year charter from U.S. independent refiner Sun Oil. The president of Sweden's Concordia Maritime said his company expected to take delivery of a second V-Max VLCC from Hyundai Heavy in July. Hyundai was awarded the order three years ago to construct the world's first two Stena V-Max VLCCs, which are designed for a 30-40 year life span.