Safety Energy Conference 2022
Nordic Engineer Officers Federation Safety Energy Conference 25. October 2022 Hotell Hasselbacken - Stockholm
The purpose of this conference where all the Nordic maritime Authority and Umbrella workers organisation participated, was to spotlight the safety and regulatory gaps in connection with alternative energy sources on propulsion and manoeuvring of ships.
NMF President – Odd Rune Malterud started the conference whit the background and statement based on UN sustainable Goal who have a gap we have to close: Life on waters!
The politician has only the External environment is in focus - internal environment are forgotten - especially for the engine crew and emergency personnel who will operate and process all types of green energy. And the fact that is the Chief engineer responsibility that the vessel is complying with all the regulations of MARPOL and/or other relevant regulations.
The IMO roadmap to zero emission is between 2050 and 2100 but we need the competence now - and lates in 2030!
Our challenges are:
• Safety Culture & Risk Understanding
• New energy sources
• GHG Competence
• Certification and Manning
• Fatigue, Mental Health
• Design, Weight, Safe Storage, Stability, Fire & Explosion Barriers
• General Operation and Scrubbers
• Internal air and contact contamination
• Extended maintenance
• Pressure & Temperature, Flash Point - Energy Density
• Break Down of engine
• Fire Fighting Systems - Evacuation Systems, Search and Rescue
• Bunkering, Charging infrastructure
• Derating
• Criminalisation
• Frankenstein Fuel (Chemicals & Plastic)
• Ballas water (Chemicals) Bilge Water
And to reach our common Goal we have to use the international management code for the safe operation of ships and for pollution prevention (ISM code) and the content of the code:
Implement – Practice – Maintain – Training – Communicate – Development
It’s critical to cooperate to make the STCW/F Convention and the Code review and revision to be an establishment of a mechanism that would allow for continuous improvements to follow all technological, regulatory and operational developments to better ensure the safety of the human element and provide for greater environmental protection.
Whit focus on Standard Training - Vessel Specific Training - Familiarization
Furter on it was a present the ITF MSC document Safety dynamics of ship’s energy sources who stated;
The competence of the energy sources Characteristics, the ships Construction & Design, the Environmental effectiveness, the Fire and explosion risks and Health and safety issues end in a Recommendations for Furter work on this issue.
And to safeguard a Sustainable manning we must have mandatory regulations who include;
• A robust training scheme that guarantees the highest level of safety culture
• Appropriate training that covers communication, risk analysis, operation and emergency situations
• Knowledge about construction and design and relevant regulations
• Adequate fire detection and fire-fighting equipment
• Availability of proper lifesaving appliances
• Provisions of adequate personal protection equipment for all personnel
• And a career paths for ALL maritime workers
The STCW education must still be based to manually operate functions of the ship, but to meet the new green technology and energy sources seafarers need competence at;
• Energy and environmental competence
• Analyses digital information
• Override the logarithms and operate the ship manually
• Simulator operations
• Simulator use of failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA)
• Multidisciplinary communication
• Leadership
• Explosion, fire and First Aid knowledge
• Cyber security
• Condemnation of terrorism
• Competence of UNCLOS, SOLAS, MARPOL, Polar Code, The Svalbard Environmental Protection Act and the Tourism regulations, national regulations.
And we also need to change STCW, especially, Reg. I/1.1.15 Definitions and Clarifications Amendments:
Propulsion power means the total maximum continuous rated output power for propulsion and manoeuvring in kilowatts, of all the ship’s main propulsion machinery regardless of energy source which appears on the ship’s certificate of registry or other official document;
Summing up: Political views must be reconciled with technical facts, and the history, mathematics and technical competence must be included to achieve common environmental goals!
All the invited speakers who was; Swedish Transport Agency, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Maritime Inspections and Survey - Ship Technology team, Norwegian Maritime Authority Director General of Shipping and Navigation and the Danish Maritime Authority Director of Maritime Regulation and Legal Affairs hold a lecture about what they have done, or the plan they have to close this safety gap and how they manage to give the necessary competence to all involved personnel before they starting operate.
It was also a short presentations from Faroe Island and Iceland, and support speaks from Nordic Transports workers’ Federation, Nordic Navigators Congress, European Transports workers’ Federation, Nautilus Federation and International Transport Workers’ Federation SSC – MSC. Who all stated how important it is to include the union’s, get the ownership and reach the goal safer and faster
In the following panel debate it was a great agreement among all the participated persons to cooperate on this issue across the border, and it’s already settled meetings to following up whit the goal to make nationals/Nordic policy and submit to IMO to get a word wide mandatory regulations to close the safety gap, achieve a sustainable manning and ensure equal conditions of competition.