The 4,200km River Niger was the backdrop for the Worldwide Ferry Safety Association’s (WFSA’s) 11th Annual International Student Design Competition for a Safe, Affordable Ferry. Having previously encouraged student naval architects, designers and engineers to devise workable, safe and affordable ferry solutions for waterways including the Amazon, the Brahmaputra, the Pasig River, the Chao Phraya […]
It seems that, no matter how many times the maritime and offshore sectors flag the problem, enclosed space fatalities just won’t go away. A recent report from the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) reveals that, of 1,611 standard vessel inspection reports uploaded to its Common Marine Inspection Documents (eCMID) and Common Marine Inspection Documents for […]
Learning from this tragedy could prove an invaluable lesson in risk mitigation with complex maritime operations, writes John Butler In the early morning of 26th March the container ship Dali struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore forcing its dramatic collapse which was captured and circulated on television and social media across the world. […]
A hidden danger that has plagued the maritime industry has once again come into the spotlight. Seemingly innocuous compartments, cargo holds and fuel tanks, vital for storage and operation on board any vessel, have become graveyards for far too many seafarers due to a lack of attention, regulation, and understanding. A recent surge of enclosed […]
Maritime search and rescue (SAR) processes have evolved significantly in recent years, boosted by cutting-edge technologies such as AI and object recognition software. However, the task of sorting and storing global SAR incident response data in one central hub has proven more vexing. As Caroline Jupe, CEO of the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), highlights: […]
The sinking of the Titanic was a tragedy that shook the world. The widespread outrage over the disaster led to sweeping changes on the requirements of lifeboats on board a vessel and the establishment in 1914 of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) which still governs maritime safety today. It […]
Andorra-headquartered AYK Marine batteries is emerging as one of the prime disruptors in the marine battery industry thanks to innovation in design, safety and driving down production costs. AYK, established by marine battery pioneer and electrical engineer Chris Kruger in 2018, is seeing a surge in demand since opening a new state-of-the-art automated manufacturing plant in […]
Ferry companies, which carry both large and varied numbers of vehicles and a multitude of passengers, could be particularly at risk from fires breaking out on board. This is likely to grow as more and more EVs, powered by lithium-ion batteries, are adopted for private and commercial use. The large numbers of passengers carried on […]
Lightning strikes may not get the attention bestowed on fire safety at sea, but they can inflict equally devastating damage upon vessels, personnel and offshore structures. An estimated 3-8 million+ lightning strikes occur globally each day, equating to a frequency of 44-100 strikes per second (these can be viewed in real time at the site […]
Hull stress monitoring has been a feature of commercial shipping since the 1990s, but according to Terje Sannerud from marine structural monitoring specialist Light Structures, it is today finding applications for improving ship design, insightful maintenance and potentially extending the period between dry-dockings allowing for cost savings without compromising ship safety. Ships can become damaged, […]
A report released by Intercargo has found that the biggest contributor to loss of life among mariners in the dry bulk sector is cargo liquefaction. The recently published Bulk Carrier Casualty Report 2013-2022, which was submitted to the International Maritime Organization in May, has just been made public. The document demonstrates that while overall […]