23. Suggested Student Assessment.
Pretend you have just been elected to a United Nations anti–piracy council. Your first task is to issue a report to the general public on the status of piracy today and the council's recommendations for eradicating piracy. Since most members of the general public think of pirates as patch–wearing, buccaneers, you need to compare and contrast today's piracy with the old–fashioned kind and inform people about piracy concerns of today.
Be sure their reports include:
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a map of current piracy "hot spots"
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a comparison of the motivations of pirates today with pirates in past centuries;
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a comparison of the consequences of piracy then and now (e.g. the effects of piracy on trade);
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an overview of solutions used to curb piracy in previous centuries;
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an overview of solutions that have been tried or proposed to curb modern-day piracy;
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and your opinion as to the two or three most important steps that should be taken to eradicate modern piracy;
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mention the locations where you think the greatest anti-piracy resources should be devoted and explain why these areas are particularly important.
23. Write a report.
Research and report on the anti–piracy tactics of the International Maritime Bureau. Offer your opinion on how effective you think these tactics are and provide suggestions for other strategies that might work.
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Unit 10: shipping. Types of cargo. Containerization.
1. Types of cargo.
Cargo can be divided into the following types:
Cargo
Bulk General
Liquid Dry Containerized Non-Containerized Refrigerated
General cargoes comprise goods of the following types: bagged, baled, barreled, boxed, metals and machinery, heavyweights, goods in packages, containers and timber cargoes. General cargoes are usually transported differently packed. Proper means of fastening the cargo must be provided by lashing. Non-Containerized cargo presents most stowage problems, because each commodity has its own type of packaging and characteristics. General cargo is loaded by cranes and the ship’s own derricks. Non-Containerized cargo is carried in multi-deck vessels.
Loading and discharging container cargoes is done in the warehouses. After loading cargo inside the container it should be sealed. Container transportation is carried out by specialized ships as well as by usual cargo ships.
Cargo that is not in crates, boxes, bundles or bags, such as coal, iron ore, grain, fertilizers is known as bulk cargo. Transportation of bulk cargo requires special knowledge to deal with it, or special ships, such as ore carriers. Bulk cargoes are usually loaded in bulk evenly along the whole length of the ship with sufficient trimming from portside to starboard. The weight of the bulk cargo may be defined by means of a ship’s deadweight scale.
The cargo, which includes grain, iron ore, coal and sugar, is carried in self-trimming holds. It is unloaded automatically by buckets on a conveyor belt system or through large tubes.
The most important liquid cargoes are oil products. Liquid products comprise: fuel oils, petrols, kerosenes and lubricants. Lubricating oils are loaded into oil tankers, containers, thermoses and sometimes in casks and cans. Oil products are carried by oil tankers, which have some oil tanks, pumps and oil-conducting pipelines for loading and unloading liquid cargoes. The cargo is pumped on board at the loading port by shore pumps. At the discharging port the ship pumps the oil ashore using her own pumps.
Dangerous cargoes are classed as cargoes which owing to their inflammable or explosive nature are liable to spontaneous combustion, either in themselves or when stowed with other cargoes. The following liquid cargoes may be classed as dangerous ones: fuel oil, petrol, kerosene, lubricants, and acids. While stowing, such cargoes should be kept away from inflammable solids, from cargoes, which are dangerous when wet, or corrosive.
The first Mate draws up a cargo plan based on the information he has received of the cargo to be loaded. It is important that if the ship is to discharge at more than one port, the cargo for the first port of discharge is stowed in the upper part of the hold. In other words, cargo, which is to be discharged at the first discharging port, should be loaded last.
The first mate considers the stability of the ship when cargo is loaded. The ship must not be too stiff nor too tender to ensure that she will be safe in rough seas. The cargo must be securely stowed in the holds so that there is no possibility of the cargo shifting. Any movement of cargo in the ship might affect the ship’s stability and seaworthiness.
The handling of cargo into and out of the ship’s holds requires great skills. It is the work of the stevedores. When loading cargo the gang foreman (each gang is under the charge of a gang foreman) usually supervises in the ship’s hold. The gang member who stands on deck near the hatch to advise the crane driver or winchman is called the hatchwayman. The winchman operates the winches on board the ship.
The cargo is checked as it is loaded by a tallyman, and if it is necessary to measure the volumes of the separate items of cargo, this is done by a checker.