Safety Systems – Maintenance and training

-The master should ensure that all systems such as life saving appliances and fire-fighting equipment are properly maintained and that officers of the watch and other crewmembers are appropriately trained in the use of these systems. Regular drills should be carried out, especially at the early stages of a voyage.

The master should consider the use of a bridge equipment logbook and check lists in which status of bridge equipment and bridges procedures is recorded and signed by the responsible officer.

2. Answer the following questions

1. Why is the competence and vigilance of the officer of the watch the most direct means of avoiding dangerous situations?

2. What should be done in order to achieve a sound and efficient bridge organization?

3. What are the aims of these procedures?

4. Who issues the instructions?

5. What should these instructions include?

3. Role play

You are a newly joined officer. How can you make yourself thoroughly familiar with standing orders and any other directives before taking over a watch?

4. Make a summary for the following text

General principles of safe manning should be used fo establish the levels of manning that are appropriate to any ship.

At all times, ships need to be navigated safely in compliance with the COLREGS and also to ensure that protection of the marine environment is not compromised.

An effective bridge organisation should efficiently manage all the resources that are available to the bridge and promote good communication and teamwork.

The need to maintain a proper look-out should determine the basic composition of the navigational watch. There are, however, a number of circumstances and conditions that could influence at any time the actual watchkeeping arrangements and bridge manning levels.

Effective bridge resource and team management should eliminate the risk that an error on the part of one person could result in a dangerous situation.

The bridge organisation should be properly supported by a clear navigation policy incorporating shipboard operational procedures, in accordance with the ship's safety management system as required by the ISM Code.

Unit 2

1. Read and translate the text

Guidance on keeping a navigational watch with reference to stcw’95

1. It is essential that officers in charge of navigational watch appreciate that the efficient performance of their duties is necessary in the interests of the safety of life and property at sea and of preventing pollution of marine environment.

2. A sufficient number oа qualified individuals should be on watch to ensure all duties can be performed effectively.

3. All members of a navigational watch should be appropriately qualified and fit to perform their duties efficiently and effectively or the officer in charge of the navigational watch should take into account any limitations in qualifications or fitness of the individuals available when making navigational and operational decisions.

4. Duties should be clearly and unambiguously assigned to specific individuals, who should confirm that they understand their responsibilities.

5. Tasks should be performed according to a clear order of priority.

6. No member of the navigational watch should be assigned more duties or more difficult tasks than can be performed effectively.

7. Individuals should be assigned at all times to locations at which they can most efficiently perform their duties, and individuals should be reassigned to other locations as circumstances may require.

8. Members of the navigational watch should not be assigned to different duties, tasks or locations until the officer in charge of the navigational watch is certain that the adjustment can be accomplished efficiently and effectively.

9. Instruments and equipment considered necessary for effective performance of duties should be readily available to appropriate members of the navigational watch.

10. Communications amongst members of the navigational watch should be clear, immediate, reliable and relevant to the business at hand.

11. Non-essential activity and distractions should be avoided, suppressed or removed.

12. All bridge equipment should be operating properly and if not the officer in charge of the navigational watch should take into account any malfunction which may exist in making operational decisions.

13. All essential information should be collected, processed and interpreted and made conveniently available to those who require it for the performance of their duties.

14. Non-essential materials should not be placed on the bridge or on any work surface.

15. Members of the navigational watch should be all times be prepared to respond efficiently and effectively to changes in circumstances.

2. Answer the following questions

1. Why is it essential that officers in charge of navigational watch appreciate that the efficient performance of their duties is necessary in the interests of the safety of life and property at sea and of preventing pollution of marine environment?

2. How can you get to know that members of a navigational watch are appropriately qualified and fit to perform their duties efficiently?

3. How can you check that duties are clearly and unambiguously assigned to specific individuals?

4. How can you treat the clear order of priority?

3. Role play

You are a member of the navigational watch and you are assigned to different duties, tasks or locations. What should you do?

4. Comment on the situation

In determining that the composition of the navigational watch is adequate to ensure that a proper look-out can be continuously maintained, the master should take into account all relevant factors including the following:

• visibility, state of weather and sea;

• traffic density, and other activities occurring in the area in which the ship is navigating;

• the attention necessary when navigating in or near traffic separation schemes or other routeing measures;

• the additional workload caused by the nature of the ship's functions, immediate operating requirements and anticipated manoeuvres;

• the fitness for duty of any crew members on call who are assigned as members of the watch;

• knowledge of and confidence in the professional competence of the ship's officers and crew;

• the experience of each OOW, and the familiarity of that OOW with the ship's equipment, procedures and manoeuvring capability;

• activities taking place on board the ship at any particular time, including radiocommunication activities, and the availability of assistance to be summoned immediately to the bridge when necessary;

• the operational status of bridge instrumentation and controls, including alarm systems;

• rudder and propeller control and ship manoeuvring characteristics;

• the size of the ship and the field of vision available from the conning position;

• the configuration of the bridge, to the extent such configuration might inhibit a member of the watch from detecting by sight or hearing any external development;

• any other relevant standard, procedure or guidance relating to watchkeeping arrangements and fitness for duty.

Unit 3

1. Read and translate the text