Maritime Training News

CIMAC and the Maritime Battery Forum have published the second paper on the environmental impact of batteries in deep-sea shipping concluding that the transition to battery-powered deep-sea vessels is no longer constrained primarily by technical or regulatory limitations but rather by the human and organizational readiness.Class societies, flag states, and international standards organizations have all developed rules and guidelines that sufficiently address the technical and safety requirements for implementing battery systems on ocean-going vessels.However…

Safety management system procedures were not effectively implemented when the Spirit of Tasmania I’s second engineer was seriously injured in a fall during engine maintenance earlier this year, the final report from an Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) investigation confirmed.The accident occurred during a routine oil change on one of the ship’s main engine turbochargers, while it was berthed in Geelong, Victoria, on March 6.Problems encountered during the work led to the decision to replace the turbocharger’s bearing housing cover plate.

Holland Shipyards Group has sealed its first contract with the Dutch Ministry of Defence.The yard will construct two advanced floating training platforms, Uhlenbeck and Thetis, designed to support a wide range of maritime training operations for defence personnel. The contract also includes a 15-year maintenance period.Both Uhlenbeck and Thetis are concrete structures built on pontoons and will be moored in Den Helder.The Uhlenbeck platform (60 x 13.8 m) is tailored to provide operational dive training.

CALL FOR STUDENT  RESEARCH POSTERS!The 16th Annual Maritime Risk Symposium invites undergraduate and graduate students from colleges and  universities worldwide to participate in the 2026 Maritime Risk Symposium Student Research Poster  Contest. The poster competition, sponsored by the CCICADA Center based at Rutgers University, will be  held online with winners invited to present their posters at the Maritime Risk Symposium on June 2-3, 2026  in Houston, Texas, USA. The Maritime Risk Symposium…

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch has published a report into the uncontrolled launch of a fast rescue craft during a training exercise.At 1645 on August 23, 2025, the crew of the passenger/car ferry Lord of the Isles were carrying out an exercise involving the launch of the vessel’s fast rescue craft (FRC) using stored power. The FRC fell 9m to the water on launching. There were no injuries, but the FRC was damaged beyond repair and had to be replaced.At 1558, Lord of the Isles departed Lochboisdale, South Uist, Scotland on a scheduled service to Mallaig on the mainland.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), a public university with undergraduate degree programs focusing on science, engineering, technology, math, and business has been recognized as the top public higher education institution in the state for graduate earnings, according to the latest report from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education.The Academy’s #1 ranking confirms that its graduates achieve the highest salaries among peers statewide, highlighting the institution’s reputation for academic excellence…

A gas tanker had just left its berth at the Port of Brisbane, Australia, when it lost propulsion for two minutes as two of its three electrical generators were not properly configured, an ATSB final report has confirmed.On March 15, 2025, the 100-metre, Liberian-flagged Gaschem Homer departed the BP Products berth in the Port of Brisbane, under the conduct of a harbour pilot.While it was being turned towards the port’s entrance, it experienced an electrical blackout, resulting in the total loss of all propulsion and steering control.Power was able to be restored after about two minutes…

Leading shipping companies are joining forces to combat ocean plastic pollution through the launch of the Maritime Association for Clean Seas (MACS): a new industry alliance driving measurable reductions in plastic and operational waste at scale.Founded by Seven Clean Seas (SCS), an ocean impact organisation, MACS unites founding members including Berge Bulk, X-Press Feeders, and others from across the global maritime value chain.While the maritime sector contributes only a small fraction of ocean plastic pollution…

Bunker Suite reports the successful completion of the first Electronic Bunker Delivery Note (E-BDN) trial onboard the Lady Clara in mid-October in Rotterdam.Developed entirely by Bunker Suite, the E-BDN platform replaces traditional paper-based workflows with a secure, fully digital process designed to streamline operations, enhance automation, and strengthen data integrity. The system ensures that all information is processed consistently and transparently, minimizing human error and mitigating the risk of fraud."Our E-BDN solution brings automation and security to the forefront…

Human trafficking remains one of the most lucrative and devastating crimes in the world, second only to the illicit drug trade. Today, an estimated 50 million people are living in modern slavery.To combat this crisis, Invisible Traffick, a Northern Ireland–based charity, is providing both in-person and online training to help maritime professionals recognize the warning signs of human trafficking and make the invisible, visible.Invisible Traffick’s founder and CEO, Gayle Bunting…

Cornwall Marine Network has hit a milestone as it announces it has created 5,000 new marine sector jobs in the region.Cornwall Marine Network is a not-for-profit marine trade organization that supports marine businesses in Cornwall UK through a unique combination of innovation support, skills training and apprenticeships as well as securing grant funding to help businesses grow.“There is no other privately owned non-profit marine network in the UK or Europe that has achieved the size, scale and impact that we have.

Lloyd’s Register (LR) has collaborated with Italian ferry operator GNV to deliver the third edition of its training program dedicated to fleet energy efficiency and decarbonization. The three-day course, which took place November 10-12 at the MSC Training Centre in Sant’Agnello, Sorrento, involved approximately 50 members of the technical and operational staff from across the fleet, including Captains, Chief Engineers, Chief Pursers, First Engineers and Deck Officers. The aim was to strengthen skills in energy management…

McAllister Towing’s newest tractor tug, the Gerard McAllister, was delivered from Washburn & Doughty, the fifth in a series of six 84-metric-ton bollard pull, low-emission tractor tugs. She is McAllister’s 42nd tractor tug and the 13th with over 80 metric tons of bollard pull, underscoring the company’s continuation toward a more powerful, hi-tech, and sustainable fleet.Driven by 6,770 horsepower in her CAT engines, the Gerard McAllister is built to handle the largest ships arriving on the U.S. East Coast.

In a previous article, we explored how shrinking attention spans demand new approaches to training. But atten-tion is only part of the story. Memory itself is changing. Today’s mariners, like the rest of us, live in a world of instant answers, with tools like Google, Siri, and now AI agents and copilots. Instead of storing knowledge, the reflex is often to look it up. This profound shift changes what training should emphasize. Rather than focusing exclusively on rote memorization…

The UK offshore renewables sector has been put through its paces in a major emergency response exercise designed to test coordination among industry, government, and emergency services during a large-scale offshore incident.Organized by the Offshore Renewable Energy Emergency Forum (OREEF), the triennial TRIREX exercise — titled Exercise Blyth — brought together Ocean Winds, Police Scotland, HM Coastguard, Esvagt, Vestas, and other stakeholders at the Moray East Offshore Wind Farm to conduct realistic emergency response drills.The two-day exercise…

Finnish technology group Wärtsilä and Sinocrew Maritime Services have inaugurated an advanced maritime simulation and training centre in Beihai, China, to support the next generation of seafarers in the Asian cruise industry and advance the adoption of decarbonization technologies.The Beihai International Seafarer Training Center (BISTC) will provide simulation-based training focused on cruise ship operations and sustainable maritime practices. The project aims to equip seafarers…

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and class society RINA have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a technology demonstration center and to collaborate on maritime innovation, digitalization, decarbonization, and talent development.The technology demonstration center will be part of RINA’s Open Innovation Hub in Singapore and serve as a collaborative platform to co-create and trial innovative solutions for maritime digitalization and decarbonization.

The World Shipping Council (WSC) has released the third edition of the WSC Whale Chart, a global voyage planning aid that maps where slower ship speeds and route changes can help protect whales from ship strikes and reduce underwater noise.The WSC Whale Chart brings together all known mandatory and voluntary ship-strike and underwater noise reduction measures worldwide, including speed restrictions, routing measures and seasonal protection zones. It is the first tool of its kind to make this global information available in a single source…