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The
National Association of Marine Surveyors, Inc.
The NAMSGlobal eNews |
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The
National Association of Marine Surveyors, Inc.
The NAMSGlobal eNews |
March 12, 2010
Greetings Website Visitor
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NAMSGlobal eNews NAMSGlobal National
Office William C. Hansen,
President
Website and Printed Membership Booklet Uninspected Towing Vessels In The U.S. Ethics And The Marine Surveyor Lives At Risk With Misdeclared Containers USCG - Towing Vessel Stability USCG - Improper Assembly Of Shaft Seals Coast Guard Eyes Standards For Box Packing Clarksons Resumes Ship Valuations Emissions Standards for Category 3 Marine Diesel Engines USCG - CO2 Fire Suppression Systems - Proposal Cargo Robberies Are "Wreaking Havoc" |
National Office Message - Upcoming Deadlines The National Office would like to remind everyone of the National Conference East registration deadlines which are nearly upon us. Hotel reservations at the host hotel must be made by March 26th to take advantage of the reduced room rates. You may make your hotel reservations by clicking here. You may also call the host hotel at 843.723.6900. Be sure to mention the NAMS Group Code, NMS, to get the reduced rate. And conference registration must be made by March 29th to take advantage of the reduced conference rate ($445.00 v $495.00). A copy of the registration form is attached to this message. A copy of the conference program is also attached to this message. Additional conference program information will be published as it is received. Lastly, and to our Surveyor Members, we want to remind you that your 2010 dues must be paid by March 31st. Payments made after that date will incur a 25% surcharge.
NAMS Applicants, New Members, Changes In Status & Committee Assignments
Website and Printed Membership Booklet The WebCom (website & communications committee) wishes to encourage all Surveyor Members to take advantage the Supplemental Information field in the Surveyor Member profile on the NAMS website. Here each Member Surveyor may use up to 125 characters (including spaces, punctuation, etc.) to describe their services, expanded travel areas, or other information they desire to communicate to the website visitors. For examples of this use, please see the Surveyor Member profiles of Paul Anstey (FL), Norman Antrainer (LA), Michael Baxter (IA), or Tom Benton (OK). The Supplemental Information field might be especially useful for international Surveyor Members to advise website visitors if they travel to neighboring countries. To take advantage of this website feature, just email the national office (office@namsglobal.org) with the information you would like in the supplemental information field on your website profile. Also, as a reminder, please review your personal profile on the NAMS website and make sure all information is correct. Your personal profile on the NAMS website is driven by the online membership database. Also, the Printed Membership Booklet is now being compiled and the database information is what will be in the Printed Membership Booklet when it is published in a few weeks.
Parker C. Emerson, NAMSGlobal
Retired Life Member,
2009/ 2010 Prospectus from the International Institute of Marine Surveying Diplomas In: Yacht & Small Craft Surveying, Marine Engineering Surveying, Marine Industry Surveying, and Cargo Surveying IIMS Level 2 Diploma in Marine Surveying Practice Accepting applications until 31 March (After this date, the courses will close). IIMS Student Membership is included in the price. Whilst on the IIMS Diploma you will be a student member of the Institute and on completion will lead to an invitation to join the Institute. Make sure you visit the website at: www.iims.org.uk
SUNY Maritime Surveyor Series
If you are interested in these classes you should Contact: Margaret Poppiti, Administrative Assistant, Department Professional Education & Training Website: http://www.sunymaritime.edu
March 22-24, 2010, Hilton Stamford, the Connecticut Maritime Association's (CMA) Shipping 2010 program. Please visit the following link: http://www.shipping2010.com/confer2010.html and to register. The full package promises three days of business, market intelligence, technical and operational imperatives and dynamic networking.
March 11-14, 2010, American Society of Appraisers is giving the ME 208
Marine Equipment Appraisal course in Norman Laskay, ASA, NAMS-CMS and Capt. Joseph Rodgers, ASA, NAMS-CMS will offer the 4-day MTS course ME208 Marine Survey. This course is designed for the marine professional who wants to learn more about the appraisal side of the industry and the non-marine professional who wants basic knowledge of the industry. The course may be taken as a three-day seminar or, with an optional three hour exam on the fourth day, as an accredited course. Course/seminar includes a field trip to a shipyard to inspect a vessel under the guidance of two expert surveyors. Continental breakfast and lunch will be provided. Manual included. Register before February 11, 2010 for discount rate. You will learn:
March 9-10, 2009 TSAC Meeting, The Towing Safety Advisory Committee (TSAC) and its
working group on revision of NVIC 04-01, sponsored by the US Coast Guard,
will meet in
March 17-19 2010, The 5th
April 12 - 13, 2010 and April 15 - 15, 2010, Madison, WI SHIPS Small Power Watercraft Damage Evaluation Seminar. These two seminars (two days each) will be held at American Family Insurance Company Corporate Training Facility in Madison, WI on the above dates. The course is approved for 12 CE Credits for SAMS members and adjustors in Texas and Oklahoma. For more information, please visit http://www.shipsinc.com/forms/seminar_information.aspx.
April 25 – 27, 2010, NAMSGlobal 48th Annual National
Marine Conference East. Conference theme: In Pursuit of Excellence.
Conference Chair, Janet Peck, NAMS-CMS. Location: The Embassy Suites
Historic For hotel reservations phone 843.723.6900. In order to receive the special group rates, you will need to make your room reservation by Wednesday, March 26, 2010, and identify the group and dates of the events. NAMS Group Code: NMS
April 28 and 29, 2010, ACI’s 4th Maritime Risk Management Conference in
For Information Or To Register, Contact: Marisa Magtultol Telephone: +44 (0)20 7981 2503 Email: mmagtultol@acieu.ne
May, 17-19, 2010, The 2010 Clean Atlantic conference. The three-day conference will focus on environmental and wildlife issues, and a significant portion of the panel discussions will be focused on the upcoming Salvage & Firefighting regulations. More information will be posted at the website: http://www.cleanatlantic.org
August, 22 - 24 ,2010, NAMSGlobal 42nd Annual National Marine Conference
West: Conference Chair, Lorne Gould, and NAMS-CMS. Location: Radisson
Hotel Fisherman’s Wharf,
Uninspected Towing Vessels in the
The Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau is being formed in anticipation of the USCG SubChapter M regulations governing the towing vessel industry. TVIB has recently launched it’s website: http://thetvib.org/. Presently, most TVIB is a Not-For-Profit member-owned corporation with an elected Board of Directors. It will have several membership levels, including Auditor/Surveyor, Affiliates, and Associates. The primary purpose of TVIB is to accredit third-party auditors/surveyors that work under certain USCG accepted organizations that will conduct third-party audits and/or surveys of towing vessels under Subchapter M. TVIB proposes to train and accredit surveyors and auditors of towing vessels that tow either alongside or push ahead on all inland waters of the U. S.(east, west and gulf coasts), and all rivers including the Western Rivers. These third-party auditors and surveyors will perform the third-party audits and surveys on behalf of the USCG in the application of the new Subchapter M regulations, which will govern the towing vessel inspection process. TVIB plans to provide and maintain an audit tool (checklist) for use by all auditors assessing compliance with requirements of Subchapter M. TVIB will work closely with the towing vessel industry and the USCG to ensure that the goals and processes of TVIB remain aligned with the needs and intent of the USCG for the application of Subchapter M standards. Todd Rushing of TVIB reports that “The current structure of TVIB is based on the DRAFT version of Subchapter M that was made available to the industry by the USCG in March of 2008. When the Notice of Proposed Rule Making and subsequently the Interim or Final Rules are published, it may be necessary to make changes”. The new TVIB website has more details about the organization.
When enough participants join, meetings will be held to continue
developing the association.
Ethics and the Marine Surveyor, Essay by Guy Matthews, NAMS-CMS The exercising of ethical conduct has always been an important and sometimes critical consideration for this marine surveyor and adjuster who spent the better part of the past 53 years involved in commercial marine and energy insurance works with a late in life brush with the quixotic yacht insurance establishment. There are more sources of ethical guidance for the surveyor than there are attorneys. One prominent admiralty law-ethicist correctly observed that the fundamentals of professional ethics are learned in or before kindergarten. My personal two favorite sources of ethical advice for the surveyor and adjuster are: 1. The multiple admonitions of Elizabeth Queen Swilley Matthews RN (1896-1982) who repeatedly sermonized, “Always tell the truth, work hard and don’t get greedy.” 2. The BSA Law Modified for Marine Surveyors and Adjusters — "A marine surveyor and adjuster is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, Reverent and Concise." It is difficult to set out a Code of Ethics for commercial associations as indicated by the committee written- one and a half page NAMSGlobal Code of Ethics which is less ethics and more a directory of business practices for NAMSGlobal surveyors. Claims handling and surveys are now highly influenced by attorneys, engineers and supercilious technicians, some of whom tempt the surveyor by their willingness to take ethical shortcuts in the pursuit of greed. It is virtually impossible to compose a comprehensive code of ethics applicable to the full scope of marine surveying thus putting the onus of ethical performance on the conscience on the individual surveyor. My most recent decade convinced me that the ethics of the commercial marine business and the yacht insurance business are quite different i.e. a commercial marine client is much less likely to outright deceive the surveyor or adjuster than are a few of the individual yacht claimants. In my earlier incarnation as the manager of a large commercial marine surveying company, I took the position that all clients were honest until proven otherwise. In the yacht insurance business such a position could be disastrous. Listed below are a few of the multiple ethical issues which today face the marine surveyor and adjuster: • valuations—independently arrived at vs. expediency, • use of overlong common survey forms, which are absent objectivity and originality, • the failure to reward good works and willingness to ignore poor works, • business obtained on reasons other than competency, • surveyors who take advantage of some state’s lax licensing laws to become adjusters, • fee bases and • questioning if SAMS surveyors have a place in NAMSGlobal. A true ethical introspection would address the possibility of merging NAMSGlobal with SAMS. Please accept these comments in the light hearted manner in which they are intended -- mostly cocktail time conversation. There has to be some advantage in getting old.
We note
the people over at BMT Marine & Offshore Surveys have been drawing
attention to one of the marine growth industries of our times. They told
an audience of insurance people in Examples
given of recent losses included a containership that had been laid up for
most of the summer off BMT says these examples pose the questions: are ship owners informing underwriters about what they are doing with their ships, and are they putting commercial considerations ahead of the safety of ships and crew? Under
conditions recommended by the London Joint Hull Committee, underwriters
have to agree to location and lay-up arrangements, including proper
supervision and marine survey. A list of 400 approved lay-up locations was
compiled by the In the
1980s, some 300 ships were laid up in the benign conditions of Mr. Jackson, speaking for BMYT also referred to the "indiscriminate anchoring" of vessels in non-designated anchorages outside port limits-- thus avoiding paying port dues -- along the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. Between 150 and 200 vessels were involved. "We have already seen several collisions. There is a real potential for serious incidents, especially in poor weather conditions." Also. if a vessel is in "warm lay-up with some machinery working, to all intents and purposes the vessel is still active," and safe manning and other certificates should be maintained. BMT Marine
& Offshore Surveys will be running further CII accredited seminars in
Lives At Risk With Misdeclared Containers Shippers continue to put lives at risk by providing
the wrong information about the weight of cargo, despite intensive efforts
by lines to spell out the dangers of overloading containers. Three years
after the grounding of the MSC Napoli and the collapse of a container
stack on the feeder ship Annabella exposed the prevalence of misdeclared
cargoes, the problem remains widespread. “It is still an issue that
concerns us,” said Harald Nijhof, senior general manager at Maersk Line’s
South Europe Liner Operations Cluster in
USCG - Towing Vessel Stability The US Coast Guard posted Lessons Learned 01-10 regarding the importance of operating vessels with full regard for the vessel's stability letter. Investigation of the 2006 sinking of the tug Valour revealed that, contrary to its stability letter, it was operated with open cross-connections between port and starboard fuel tanks. When the tug rolled in heavy weather, the cross-connection allowed for excessive transfer of fuel to the lower tank, exacerbating the roll and resulting in the sinking of the tug. (2/18/10). Courtesy: Bryant’s Maritime Blog – Bryant’s Maritime Consulting dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com Website - http://brymar-consulting.com © Dennis L. Bryant
USCG - Improper Assembly Of Shaft Seals The US Coast Guard issued Lessons Learned 02-10 regarding the dangers that may result from the improper assembly of shaft seals. A towing vessel had a new shaft seal installed. During assembly, three-quarter inch bolts were used rather than the M20 metric bolts that were called for. The two sizes are very similar, but not the same. The bolts soon loosened, allowing the seal assembly to separate from the flange mounting service. When astern propulsion was applied, water passed up the shaft into the engine room, resulting in flooding. The master intentionally grounded the vessel to avoid sinking. (2/18/10). Courtesy: Bryant’s Maritime Blog – Bryant’s Maritime Consulting dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com Website - http://brymar-consulting.com © Dennis L. Bryant
Coast Guard Eyes Standards For Box Packing The Coast Guard is seeking comments from the public on
methods for securing cargo in transport vehicles and freight containers.
It wants to determine if a standardized approval or certification process
or improved performance criteria for flexible strapping securing systems
is needed. Under current
Clarkson Resumes Ship Valuations Clarksons has resumed publication of secondhand ship values for the first time in 15 months as liquidity returns to the sale and purchase market. The world’s largest shipbroker has started 2010 afresh by publishing guide prices for containerships, tankers and bulk carriers. (Lloyd’s List, 1/12/2010.) Courtesy AIMU Weekly Bulletin.
Emissions Standards for Category 3 Marine Diesel Engines The firm of Blank Rome in its Maritime Developments Advisory has issued the following note: On December 22, 2009, the U.S Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) announced that it finalized regulations implementing emission
reductions from large marine diesel engines—so-called Category 3 marine
diesel engines—for U.S.-flag vessels. Category 3 engines are marine
diesels with per cylinder displacements at or above 30 liters and are
mainly used as propulsion engines on large oceangoing vessels such as bulk
carriers, cruise ships, tankers, and container ships. In addition, EPA
announced that these regulations will implement MARPOL Annex VI, which was
signed into law in the United States on July 21, 2008 and which will apply
to both U.S. and foreign-flag vessels. Once the Emission Control Area
(ECA) proposed by Read the entire Advisory at:- http://www.blankrome.com/siteFiles/maritime0110-1.pdf Courtesy Maritime Advocate Online, a weekly digest of news and views on the maritime industries, with particular reference to dispute resolution. To contact the editor Bevis Marks, send an e-mail to: editor@avoarchive.com
USCG - CO2 Fire Suppression Systems - Proposal The US Coast Guard proposes to amend its regulations for fire suppression systems on several classes of commercial vessels. The amendments would clarify that approved alternatives to carbon dioxide systems may be used to protect some spaces on these vessels and would set general requirements for alternative systems. Additionally, new and existing carbon dioxide systems, when used in spaces that can be accessed by persons on board the specified commercial vessels, would need to be equipped with lockout valves and olfactory additives to protect persons in the event of a carbon dioxide discharge. Comments on the proposal should be submitted by May 25. 75 Fed. Reg. 8431 (February 24, 2010). Courtesy: Bryant’s Maritime Blog – Bryant’s Maritime Consulting dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com Website http://brymar-consulting.com © Dennis L. Bryant
Reconsideration of the award for salvaging the bulker
“Ocean Crown” off
Cargo Robberies Are "Wreaking Havoc" Thieves
are swiping tractor-trailers filled with goods, triggering a spike in
cargo theft on the nation's highways. Truckloads containing $487 million
of goods were stolen in the
Slow Steaming May Fuel Engine Damage Increasing use of slow steaming and super-slow steaming has prompted concerns from insurers about possible damage to main engines designed for high-speed, full-load operation if they are operating at low power for extended periods. International Union of Marine Insurance president Deirdre Littlefield said that insurers were “concerned” about the impact on machinery from the growing trend of slow steaming, now being strongly advocated by a number of operators as the way forward to combat high fuel prices until seaborne trade picks up. “Many large, high-speed diesel engines are designed to operate only at sustained high service speeds,” she said. The concerns arise from the trend among ship operators, particularly container lines, to adopt slow steaming as a strategy to reduce fuel consumption and adjust capacity. When slow steaming first emerged, leading engine manufacturers voiced fears of possible long-term damage because they warned that engines were not designed to operate at low loads. But as the practice has spread, engine suppliers, including MAN Diesel and Wärtsilä, have issued guidance to operators about how to limit potential damage and recommended operating procedures. (Lloyd’s List, 2/1/2010.) Courtesy AIMU Weekly Bulletin.
A Dutch-led project looking at the impact of badly loaded containers and poor lashing has reported that more can be done to prevent cargo accidents happening. The Lashing@Sea project has released some of the findings of four years’ research amid heated debate over badly declared container loads leading to incidents on the Husky Trader, MSC Napoli and Annabella. The Dutch government is set to make several recommendations to the International Maritime Organization and the International Association of Classification Societies to try to improve safety. The project findings were revealed as the International Chamber of Shipping and the World Shipping Council issued guidelines aimed at improving safety by ensuring containers are properly packed, labeled and weighed. While containers that are stacked in accordance with design and safety parameters were found to have no stability anomalies, poorly declared cargoes could lead to unsafe dynamic conditions up to three times as severe as originally thought. (Lloyd’s List, 2/2/2010.) Courtesy AIMU Weekly Bulletin.
Container lines and terminal operators should make an example of shippers who provide the wrong information about the weight of a container. That is the message from both the TT Club and the International Cargo Handling Co-ordination Association, which continue to highlight the dangers of misdeclarations and seek ways of cracking down on a problem that puts both lives and ships in danger. The shipping industry should not look for outside assistance in tackling a practice that is thought to be widespread but is nevertheless very hard to quantify. The issue of misdeclarations has come to the fore again in recent weeks following investigation of an accident involving the feeder ship “Husky Trader”, with a container stack collapsing because boxes thought to be empty actually contained cargo. In that particular case, the shipper was not to blame, with the mistake attributable to a software glitch, but the incident once again drew attention to the danger of both under and over declaring the weight of a container. Evidence of actual weight could be required, where such facilities exist, or the terminal, in collaboration with its shipping company customers, could arrange to check weight. However, the continuing concern that the club would focus on is that the essential responsibility of the shipper to declare cargo is being blurred by suggesting that nodal points in the supply chain, such as terminals, assume this responsibility, whereas they can only provide a check on the truth of what is declared. Ports could ask the shipping lines if they want every container routinely checked before it is loaded, or to pick out those that should be weighed. The two sides would then have to agree about what to do with those containers whose weight does not match that provided by the customer. (Lloyd’s List, 2/10/2010.) Courtesy AIMU Weekly Bulletin.
The Master of Towing Vessels Association (MTVA) represents the interests of U.S. Coast Guard-licensed masters, mates and pilots of towing vessels (Oceans, Near Coastal, Great Lakes/Inland & Western Rivers), with a focus on safety issues, licensing and certification, training, and professional qualifications standards. http://towmasters.wordpress.com
Union Pacific Tests 3-Mile Long Train – In the latest
push by freight carriers seeking economies of scale, Union Pacific
Railroad this month tested an ultra-long 18,000-foot double-stack train on
a run from
Cargo Conventions
Compared A well done to the firm of Hill
Dickenson for publishing a comparative guide to the clauses of
Yachtbuilder International Magazine's is available to view on their website. There is no log-in; it opens instantly when you click on the front cover at: www.yachtbuilderinternational.com Or even faster if you paste the following link into your browser's menu bar: http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/841087af
Navigating Cargo Claims Newcomers to the world of subrogated cargo claims are very
quickly made aware that the http://www.cozen.com/cozendocs/outgoing/whitepapers/Cargo_Claims_Whitepaper.pdf Contact: jreis@cozen.com Courtesy Maritime Advocate Online a weekly digest of news and views on the maritime industries, with particular reference to dispute resolution. To contact the editor Bevis Marks, send an e-mail to: editor@avoarchive.com
1. The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the various authors and / or other content providers published in the National Association of Marine Surveyors, Inc. (NAMS aka NAMSGlobal) eNews do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of this Association or its officers and directors, or the official policies of the Association. Copyright Statement 1. The author of each and every article published in this eNews owns his or her own words. 2. The articles reprinted in this eNews may NOT be redistributed in any other media without the express consent of the original source. Submissions Policy An article may be submitted for possible publication in this eNews in the following manner.
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