Soichi Hiratsuka News

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) today announced that its group company MOL Marine Consulting, Ltd. (MOLMC) has acquired certification for its Bridge Resource Management (BRM) training program from Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (NK), effective May 30. MOLMC is the first company in Japan to upgrade its BRM training program to meet all the requirements of the model course 1.22 (five-day course) established by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The certification reflects MOLMC’s effort and dedication to developing a world-class BRM training program. MOLMC President Soichi Hiratsuka received the certificate from NK Executive Vice President Koichi Fujiwara on June 2 in a presentation ceremony at NK headquarters.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. announced that the training ship Spirit of MOL has recently completed its final training voyage. Since its first training voyage in 2007, more than 2,200 cadets from such countries as India, the Philippines and Russia have been trained aboard the ship. It also made important contributions to society through activities such as relief efforts after typhoon disasters, and received an award from House of Representatives of the Philippines, Lloyd’s List Safety at Sea International Awards 2008, and others.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. The event opened with a strong message from MOL Chairman Akimitsu Ashida and President Koichi Muto, who said, "Safe operation is key to winning credibility and trust from our customers in the severe business environment surrounding our company. Senior Managing Executive Officer Soichi Hiratsuka (also Director-General of the Safety Operations Headquarters) , other MOL executives and staffs also participated in the conferences and actively exchanged opinions with seafarers through presentations, group discussions, and so on, focusing on three main themes: elimination of fatality and injury, elimination of collision and grounding and elimination of machinery troubles resulted in dead ship.