GlobalSantaFe Receives ISM Certification

Houston-based GlobalSantaFe Corporation announced it has become one of the first offshore drilling contractors to receive the full International Safety Management (ISM) certification for its shore-based facilities and self-propelled offshore rigs. The ISM certification is a requirement of the United Nations-led International Maritime Organization's Safety of Life at Sea regulation, soon to be mandatory for all self-propelled offshore drilling vessels operating under member-state flags. The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) audited GlobalSantaFe for compliance to the code. Robert Kremek, president of ABS Americas, presented the company's first ISM Document of Compliance certificate to GlobalSantaFe executives in a ceremony held on December 18 in Houston. "We have always been absolutely committed to the safety of our people and the marine environments where we operate," Bob Rose, GlobalSantaFe chairman, said. "The ISM certification is further evidence of our commitment. In fact, we have chosen to implement the ISM standards throughout our entire worldwide fleet of drilling rigs. This is over and above what is required." The purpose of the ISM code is to provide an international standard for pollution prevention and the safe management of ship operations. The ISM certification requires each company operating self-propelled offshore drilling vessels more than 500 gross tons to demonstrate a safety management system that protects its offshore crews, marine environments and the vessels. The six GlobalSantaFe drilling vessels that met the ISM code include the famed Glomar Explorer, the Glomar C.R. Luigs, the Glomar Jack Ryan, the Glomar R.F. Bauer, the Glomar Celtic Sea, and the Glomar Grand Banks. Each one of these rigs has been awarded a Safety Management Certificate.