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  FLASHLIGHT - July 2008           Edition No: 75

Past editions can be viewed on http://www.asiaconference.biz

The 2008 Asian Marine Insurance and Surveying Forum
13 & 14 November 2008
Novotel Century Hong Kong Hotel

Theme 'The carriage and care of steel cargoes'

Early bird rates available.

CPD Certificates, accepted by all Marine Surveying Professional Institutes, will be issued upon request. (Delegates earn 1 IIMS CPD point.)

Those interested in attending should contact Mrs Lulu Zuniga-Carmine at Asia Conference Ltd: marine@asiaconference.biz

Those interested in giving a paper at the conference should contact Mike Wall at mikewall@pacific.net.hk
(Speakers earn 3 IIMS CPD points.)

******

Quote of the month ...

How much easier it is to be critical than to be correct.
Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

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CONTENTS (for full stories, select a headline)

At the Bow

FLASHLIGHT is a free monthly emailed newsletter circulated to more than 5,000 people involved in marine surveying around the world. It is circulated to anybody who wishes to receive a copy, eg, Marine Surveyors, P&I Clubs, their correspondents, Underwriters, Professional Institutes, Admiralty Lawyers, etc. It is a collation of articles relevant to our profession taken from various publications together with contributions from readers. Please pass it on to any of your contacts who you feel might be interested in receiving it. If you do not wish to be included in the circulation list, please contact the Editor at the email address below. Letters, opinions and articles relating to our profession are welcomed for the newsletter.

New readers this month:

Dave Pyett, Marine Surveyor, Sydney, Australia.
Tanya Britton, Operations & Claims Manager, Austral Asia Line, Australia.

[Top]

Spindrift

Red Sea ferry owner acquitted

The Owner of ferry operator El Salam Maritime Transport, Mamdouh Ismail, has been found not guilty of manslaughter by an Egyptian criminal court.

Several news outlets have reported Sunday’s verdict. Al Salam Boccacio 98, owned by El Salam, sank in the Red Sea two years ago, killing more than 1,000 people.

Ismail's son, also a company executive, and three other defendants were also acquitted.

But the captain of a ferry who failed to conduct a rescue of survivors was given six months in prison.

Angry relatives of the dead struggled with security forces after the verdict and denounced judges and defendants, the BBC reported.

Fairplay 24 has been unable to reach anyone at El Salam for comment. But Jon Whitlow of the International Transport Workers’ Federation called the acquittal "inexplicable”.

He added: “The investigation into the disaster revealed a trail of incompetence, greed and flagrant disregard, not just of national and international legislation but also common sense.

“The decision to let the owners and company executive decision makers off without having to take responsibility for the consequences sets a dangerous precedent."

Al Salam Boccacio 98 sank in the Red Sea on 3 February 2008 after a fire broke out. Water from firefighting reactions caused the starboard side to become flooded; the drain pipes were blocked with trash.

The ship began to to list and eventually capsized and sank. An Egyptian parliamentary report in April 2006 concluded that the ship's owners and the maritime authorities had entered into a “wicked collaboration”.

Release plea in Hebei Spirit case

The all-India Port & Dock Workers Federation has called for South Korea's government to release two Indian seafarers “unlawfully” detained at Daesan's port since December 2007.

Captain Jasprit Chalwa and Chief Officer Syam Chetan from the tanker Hebei Spirit were detained after a crane barge accidentally collided with an anchored tanker at the port.

Although they were acquitted by a Korean court in the accident, authorities refused to release them, citing Korean ocean pollution laws.

LA official convicted in bribe case

A former Los Angeles City official has been convicted of taking bribes from Evergreen Marine to secure extra space for the line at the port in 2005.

Leland Wong, who was a city commissioner at the time, faces up to 10 years jail after a jury found that Evergreen’s Ren-Gung Shyu had paid $100,000 into a Hong Kong bank account. Wong was found guilty on 14 charges involving bribery and associated offences and innocent of another seven charges of corruption.

In his defence, he argued that the payments had been to pay for consulting work with Evergreen and that he had kept associates informed about them.

(With thanks for Fairplay Daily News: news@fairplay.co.uk)

In Brief:

Airbus ship: the French operator Louis Dreyfus has taken delivery of the City of Hamburg,, the second off two ships used to transport components of the Airbus A380 aircraft between the UK port of Mostyn, and Hamburg, Cadiz and Saint Nazaire. City of Hamburg flies the French intentional flag and sails with French officers. a third ship in the series Ciudad de Cadiz is due to be delivered next year.

Seismic action: some 30 engineers and technicians working onboard seismic research vessels in the French CGG Veritas fleet took strike action last month in protest at the company's plans to impose an annual 210 day work regime in place of the agreed 177 days. The action affected nine ships in the fleet.

Swift closure. Maersk and Teekay have announced the end of their Swift Tankers joint venture just is months after its launch. Maersk is to acquire Teekay's 50% share in the company, which operates a total of 24 intermediate product and chemical tankers.

Scandlines cuts: the Baltic ferry operator Scandlines has announced 100 job losses from its shore based staff in Denmark and Germany. The redundancies form part restructuring of the company.

Pollution penalties: stiff penalties have been imposed by a court in the French port of Marseilles on the masters and owners of two ships accused of pollution the country waters.

Taiwan tax: Taiwan is set to become the latest country to introduce a tonnage tax scheme in response to pressure from shipowners.

Aid approved: the European Commission has approved a revised scheme of support for the French shipping industry under which owners are given social security payment

exemptions for seafarers serving on ships, flying the national flag. Brussels said doubts about whether the scheme complies with state aid guidelines were removed in April, when France adopted a law opening up the posts of ship's master and chief mate to EU and EEC nationals.

Dunkirk doubles: : the French port of Dunkirk is developing a 20 year plan to double general cargo through put to around 45m tonnes a year. Its seeks zero waiting times for ships, helped by' competitive maritime, river and rail logistics, as practiced in Rotterdam' The port has also undertaken dredging work following access difficulties experienced by large bulk carries.

Finland states: the European Commission has warned Finland that it is facing legal Acton for failing to implement EU port state control regulations. Brussels says Finland has failed to fully transpose into national law the 1995 EU directive on ship inspection and detention procedures.

Marshall mark: the US based company the runs the Marshall Islands ship registry has announced that the flag has passed the 40m GT mark. According to IRI, the Marshall Islands fleet has risen from 626 ships of 18.5m GT at the end of 2003 to 1,736 ships of 40m GT in May this year.

Euro attack: German Socialist MEP Willi Piecyk has slammed the European Commission's' action plan to create an integrated European maritime policy, arguing that it contains 'few concrete measures and should be more ambitious in its aims'.

SeaFrance slows: the French ferry operator SeaFrance is seeking to combat rising fuel costs by putting two of its biggest vessels, the Rodin and Berlioz, on reduced speed for 60- 80% of crossings.

COSCO Busan owner blames US Government

THE owner of the 5,447 teu container ship COSCO Buson, which hit San Francisco's Bay Bridge last November, spilling some 50,000 gallons of oil, has responded to the US lawsuit filed against it for breaking environmental laws by blaming the US Government for the bunker spill. It alleges it licensed an unfit pilot It is also claiming for more than US$60 million spent cleaning up the spill.

Following reports in the press concerning the medical history of pilot John Cota, who was on board the COSCO Busan at the time, its owner, Regal Stone, has alleged that he was medically unfit and incompetent to perform the duties required by his United States Coast Guard licence.

The US National Transportation Safety Board disclosed in April that Mr Cota had taken a lengthy list of prescription drugs.

Mr Cota insists that his medicines were not factors in the casualty and has pleaded not guilty to two counts of breaking US federal

Cutting emissions

Det Norske Veritas COO Tor Svensen called for the industry to band together to prevent regulators from imposing 'damaging new requirements' on shipping.

Mr Svensen said DNV estimates that the industry could cut its C02 emissions by as much as 50 by adopting such measures as weather routeing, improvement to engines, propellers, hulls and coatings, optimising energy consumption, and closer co-operation between charterers and owners.

Additional operating improvements could cut emissions by up to 70% if there is'real commitment' by major players in the industry, DNV added.

'The shipping industry needs to establish ainbitious targets for 'tS C02 emissions; Mr Svensen argued. 'The introduction of noncarbon based fuel is likely to be the crucial factor determining whether shipping ultimately rnanages to substantially reduce 'tS C02 emissions:

He urged the industry to invest in research into alternative power sources, including wind, solar panels, sustainable biofuels, fuel cells and nuclear energy.

And he also stressed that shipping is the most energy efficient means of transportation. 'Shipping is part of the solution. By moving more cargo from air or trucks and even rail to ships, the overall emissions will be reduced" he said.

BV bids to cut Slips and falls

THE CLASSIFICATION society Bureau Veritas is claiming that slip, trip and fall accidents onboard ships could be cut to 'almost nothing'.

The claim was made last month as BV announced newly developed guidelines seeking to reduce the number of accidents to seafarers and surveyors during the inspection and maintenance ofships' structures.

The guidance is directed at shipyards and designers and aims to ensure safe 'user centred design for means of access onboard ships of any type.

'It has the potential to reduce the incidence of common slips, trips and falls during access from the current level of more than 40% of non fatal shipboard injuries to almost nothing,' BV stated.

'Our experience in the off shore industry has shown that a detailed focus on user centred design of the details of access means, such as ladders and hatchways, can reduce common accidents to almost zero,' said marine division director Bernard Anne.

BV's guidelines are based on extensive research including questioning of actual users that identified the most risky means of access as ladders, openings (vertical and horizontal) and elevated passageways.

Main causes of accidents included: lack of handles; location of openings; lack of space for surveying or working safely (on platforms or around ladders, for instance) and for using means of access in comfort; and poor marking of hazards.

BV will incorporate the guidance in its rules, and says the next set of guidelines will focus on the safe design of machinery spaces.

US 100% scanning plan causes concern

THE shipping industry and Governments around the world are becoming increasingly alarmed the implications of the unilateral US requirement for 100 percent security scanning by 2012 of every inbound container to be conducted at the port of loading overseas.

The International Chamber of Shipping, said it recognised that 'security was very serious priority, but maintained that it could be achieved far more effectively by the US continuing to support the "risk based" approach which had been adopted by the international community at the World Customs Organisation.

Industry and governments alike were extremely concerned about the practical implications of the measure and its potential to disrupt the flow of world trade, it said. "Apart from the huge costs and logistics involved in scanning every box loaded on a ship, such a measure would almost inevitably exacerbate port congestion, which at several container terminals around the world is already near crisis point.

Cruise line pays for sackings

THE cruise ship company NCL America will pay $485,000 to seven former crew to settle allegations that it discriminated against employees with Middle Eastern backgrounds on board its vessel the Pride of Aloha.

The case was brought against the company by the US Equal Employment Opportunity commission after six of the men were reportedly fired when one of them asked other crew member about the location of the security office and other key points on the ship. A seventh man resigned. While agreeing to settle NCL America continues to deny that it acted improperly against the crew members.

NCL America has also agreed, among other things, to revise its policies to ensure a workplace that promotes equal employment opportunity and to provide training for its managers and employees on the company's equal employment procedure.

Cutting accidents by design

GUIDELINES to reduce the number of accidents to seafarers and surveyor during maintenance of the ship's structures and inspections have been developed by the classification society Bureau Veritas (BV).

They provide requirements and best practice advice for the user-centered design of the means of access on board ship of any type. Aimed at shipyards and designer, they have the potential to reduced the incidence of commom slips, trips and falls during access from the current level of more than 40 percent of none-fatal shipboard injuries to almost nothing. Many of the ideas have come from BYs experience in the offshore industry.

Ferry safety campaign to continue indefinitely

Ferry industry body lnterferry and IMO have signed an agreement extending their joint campaign to reduce ferry fatalities by 90 per cent in developing nations.. The original two-year agreement has been renewed indefinitely following "major progress" in running demonstration projects in Bangladesh as a pilot for taking the safety, initiative world-wide lnterferry said that this commitment to ongoing co-operation would be crucial in helping to prevent thousands of avoidable deaths.

Although domestic ferry operations were outside IMO's official mandate and interferry had no members in the world's poorest nations, each recognised a humanitarian duty to share the developed world's experience.

Initial funds have been raised for key elements of the Bangladesh pilot programme, which is based on proposals from a working group including the national maritime administration and local operators.

Work is now well advanced on two of the main recommendations., a crew training DVD is being finalised for trial and weather forecasting requirements are due to be assessed by a US team.

Argon leak in hold kills three

Three port workers have died at Port Everglades, Florida, apparently overcome, in a hold filled with argon gas. it appears they made the classic mistake of one going in and being overcome, and then being followed by would be rescuers who also died. The leak reportedly came from containerised cylinders of the gas.

An investigation Into the incident on the Antigua and Barbed flag cargo vessel Modeleine is now under way.

New ruling on disability

IN three recent cases the Philippines Labour Commission has ruled that total disability is not determined by the number of days of treatment but by grading from doctors. This was based on the premise that the fact that complainants are incapacitated for more than 120 days does not in itself entitle them to the maximum disability benefit.

Although these cases are not precedent setting, they will hearten shipping bodies which have been warning that the 120 day rule could lead to companies turning away from Filipino Seafarers due to a surge of large Injury and illness compensation claims..

Recently the crewing industry lost an appeal to the supreme court seeking to overturn aa growing number or rullings that find a seafarer entitled to compensation for 100 per cent disability after 120 days of treatment rather than compensation being assessed on the scale of disability.

Huge fine for oil discharge

Egyptian based shipping company National Navigation (NNC) has been fined a total of US$7.25 million for the falsifying of oil record books and log six of its vessels over several years. The practice came light last November when the US Coast.
Guard found evidence of illegal ocean discharge of sludge and oil bilge water on an NNC ship.

NCC pleaded guilty to 15 felony counts, including making false statements to federal officials and violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships.

The US justice Department said that $2 million of the fine would fund environmental projects in Oregon.
Under a plea agreement, National Navigation also must develop, fund and implement a fleet- wide environmental compliance programme.

EU acts on certificate recognition

The European Commission is warning the UK, Cyprus, and the Czech Republic that they will face possible legal proceedings for "failure to adopt as agreed national legislation on the mutual recognition of seafarers' certificates issued by the member states".

The Commission says it has decided to act against the three countries for failing to transpose fully into national law a 2005 directive on certificate recognition that seeks to allow seafarers from within the EU to sail on ships of any EU member state. The next step would be for the EC to take the case to the European Court off justice.

EU directive challenge fails

A legal challenge by an Intertanko led group of shipping industry bodies to the European directive on criminal sanctions for ship source pollution has failed. However, there is considerable uncertainty in the international shipping community as to where the European Court of justice's decision leaves the matter.

The court ruled that the validity of the directive could not be assessed in the light of either the MARPOL convention or the convention on the Law of the Sea. lntertanko and its partners had argued in the English High Court that the directive ran counter to both conventions. The matter was then referred to the European Court of justice.

In a joint statement' after the ruling, the coalition said that although there was no possibility of an appeal, there were the options for nonEU states to commence proceedings before the international Tribunal for the Law of the Sea or, indeed, the International Court of justice.

Norway disaster: NCL fined

Norwegian Cruise line (NCL) has been fined US$1 million for gross negligence which caused a boiler explosion on its ship Norway in 2003. The company was also ordered to pay $13.75m preliminary restitution the amount NCL said it had already paid to the families of eight crew members killed and to the 10 injured by the explosion. The steam turbine powered ship was built in 1962 as the transatlantic liner France. It eventually went for scrap in India last year.

NCL said in a statement that it was hopeful that the resolution of the recent misdemeanour charge "will bring this unfortunate Incident to a conclusion". However, there will be a further hearing which will consider if more restitution needs to be provided.

Yards warned on ship quality

Concerns over the quality of many of the new ships being built around the world at present were raised last month.

The surge in orders and the development of new yards in nontraditional building nations, coupled with growing unease at the impact of skill shortages in the sector, have driven fears that many of the vessels now coming into service will have very limited life spans and could rapidly develop safety problems.

And last month's annual meeting of the Lloyd's Register Asia's China National Committee heard calls from leading shipping industry figures for shipbuilders and suppliers not to let the current boom distract them from the top priority of constructing quality vessels.

Zhang Guangqin, president of the China Association of National Shipbuilding Industry, said that with rising costs already threatening to curb demand for new ships, any slip in building quality could undermine the market.

'Quality issues are the best excuses for ship owners to stop ordering and, with so many challenges emerging for the yards to manage, strengthening quality management should be the most urgent and important task; he told the meeting.

George Sarris, head of one of the largest shipping groups in Greece, urged classification societies to play a more proactive role in establishing quality safeguards and systems to support yards in China where some 30% of the order book at the end of last year had been reportedly contracted to yards that have yet to build a ship.

He praised shipyards for their ,unprecedented achievement' in meeting the demand for new tonnage but warned that 'certain precautions now have to be taken to ensure that it serves as the foundation for a better and more illustrious future'.

And he warned: 'It is very important always bear in mind that it takes mar years to build up a reputation and on] one instant to ruin it.'

Mr Sarris told a conference earlier this year that many newly established shipyard yards are simply'copy pasting specifications existing designs or combinir them in ways that make no sense.

(With thanks to the Shipping Telegraph, journal of NAUTILUS)


[Top]

Contributions

Getting paid!

This piece is intended to stimulate debate on a contentious subject for marine surveyors and other small and medium sized enterprises.

It is often the case that a survey company will receive an appointment to attend a casualty at short notice in a remote location incurring significant costs. The surveyor does the best for the client reporting in a timely manner by phone or email, quickly returning to base to publish a report as fast as possible. The marine surveyor may then have to wait many months to be paid. Wouldn't it be nice if the client responded in the same way as the survey company with respect to payment?

We had an email recently from one of our readers relating to an invoice of US$5,000+ which had not been paid for more than a year by a large client firm. Despite making representations to various people in the organisation, they had still received no payment. We had also telephoned the company concerned to find out if there was any problem with the service the marine survey company had given. Our calls were not returned. Another case of the big guy screwing the little guy?

Cash flow is the life blood of small and medium sized companies. Many of these companies are being held to ransom by larger companies. The key to this situation is trying to mix the type of work which you do so that you have good cash flow from some clients and can bear waiting for payment from others. Underwriters, insurers and P&I Clubs are often tardy in paying up in the case of casualty investigations. There seems to be a policy of not paying the service providers until the case is eventually closed, with the marine survey companies having to carry sometimes large disbursements, eg, airfares, hotel expenses, etc, sometimes for years, not months. This is unjust. Just because the broker has not been paid by his client does not mean that the surveyor should have to wait. If there was a legal requirement to do so we're pretty sure that the broker would also be pushing to be paid quickly.

The question is what do we do about this situation? The bad debtors know that we are a fragmented profession of small companies being Independent (note the capital I!). In other words it is a case of 'divide and conquer'. The optioins are:

1. Do not issue your report until you have been paid. This is the general practice with small and pleasure craft. Why not apply it to commercial vessels?

2. Add a surcharge (the amount or percentage depending on how long you believe it will be before you get paid) to your invoice stating that if the invoice is paid with in x days a discount of the equivalent surcharge will be given to the client.

3. Hire debt collectors to do the work for you. One would have hoped that you could impose terms based on 'no cure, no pay' but unfortunately these people expect a fee up front and are rarely successful, ie, good money chasing bad.

4. Insist on being paid a large proportion of the costs up front. Many companies do this for clients they do not know. S&P Brokers do not like this practice and usually will not underwrite the fees. They can't have it both ways!

5. Take legal action against the offenders - which is expensive, time consuming and often results in losses as the complainant does not recover all the costs. This is why it is usually the last option.

There is another option which we suggested some seven years ago when FLASHLIGHT started up. We suggested that we could compile a black list of bad debtors. However, one of our readers, who has since retired, suggested that the clients might not be paying as they felt that they did not receive an appropriate service from the marine survey company. As this would take some research work on somebody's part, the list was never floated.

However, some years ago there was a case of a large company not having paid a survey company for a year. The survey company concerned threatened to go public that the client had a cash flow problem. If they had done so the client would never have got another surveyor to work for them or at the very least they would have been asked to pay up front for any service. The invoice was paid in a matter of hours. As we go to press we have also just been informed that the company mentioned in the third paragraph has since been paid as a consequence of the possibility of being named and shamed.

Your thoughts and opinions on the above would be much appreciated, ie, do we start a black list which would be confidential to those contributing or do you believe we should name and shame?

Mike Wall


[Top]

Midships

ISM

The whole principle of ISM was to identify accidents and near misses so that accidents could be prevented in future. I would estimate that 90% of the ships we survey do not identify near misses or record accidents. A quick check of the medical treatment log reveals treatment for injuries sustained as a consequence of accidents, many of them significant. This is a clear indication that the principles of the ISM system have failed and that it has become purely a paper exercise.

For rules and regulations to succeed in their intentions it is necessary for both the correct application and enforcment. Where is it? Your opinion would be welcomed.

Mike Wall

[Top]

Scuttlebut

ISPS

Conflicts continue to develop with respect to the implementation of the ISPS Code. Each month, we will be listing some of the ways that the code interferes with normal ship operations which in some cases could be considered as hazardous together with transgressions of interest .....

Your editor and his staff do many condition surveys on behalf of different clients around the world. Part of such surveys is a brief audit of the ISM and ISPS systems. In many cases, the application of ISPS is a joke in that anybody can walk on and off the ship without being challenged. In some places you cannot access a ship from the quayside because of ISPS, necessitating boarding from a launch via the pilot ladder on the other side of the vessel. We recently had to board a capesize bulker in lightship condition via the pilot ladder, something which is a challenge even for a younger man, whilst the Charterers' agent was allowed to access the ship via the power station and gangway. I wonder if the powers that be took into consideration the dangers to those needing to access ships when thinking up this code.

[Top]

Insurance News

London P&I reports net loss

CHAOTIC market conditions have hit mutual insurers as London P&I Club reported a net loss in its annual report.

Turbulence in the investment market towards the end of 2007 accounted for some of the trouble, according to John Lyras, chairman of the A Bilbrough managed Club. This, combined with a high level of claims and the dollar's devaluation, led to free reserves falling to $90M.

The London club reported its first deficit for five years, with a post-tax loss of $30M. This was compared to a $450,000 profit for the year 2006-2007.

Overall claims fell by $8.5M, compared to the previous year, however the 2006/7 financial year included claims from the MSC Napoli to remove all 2,204 containers which had remined on board and secondly to remove the wreck.

Gross claims paid in the year were in excess of $210M, while at the same time the Association recovered more than $114M from reinsurers which includes the group's International Pool.

The most challenging aspect of the Association's operations was in relation to investment performance, according to the manager's review. The results were described as “disappointing” by the A Bilbrough chief executive Paul Hinton.

The club’s investment portfolio delivered only a breakeven result during 2H07, after achieving a 13% return that contributed to $30M a year earlier. “The year end snapshot coincided with a low in the markets,” said Club chairman John Lyras.

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Correct about crew quality

The Swedish P&I Club, a major marine insurer, has voiced alarm at a sharp rise in the number and cost of claims over the past year and says that an increasing number of them are the result of navigational error and machinery breakdowns.

It puts marine crewing quality as the key factor behind these incidents.


Wig & Gown

Where does responsibility stop?

A 59-YEAR-OLD Croatian master has been sentenced to 14 years in prison in Greece over a contentious verdict of drug smuggling.

Captain Kristo Laptalo was sentenced in Patras yesterday after spending almost a year in custody in Greece. Two other crew members were released.

The captain and mate of the Belgian-owned, Bahamas-flagged reefer Coral Sea were arrested at the Greek port of Aigion in July 2007 after 51.5kg of cocaine was found in the ship’s cargo of bananas. The cargo had been loaded in Ecuador and part of it had been discharged during a call in Italy. Aigion had not been on the ship’s itinerary when it sailed from Guayaquil.

Sea Sentinel’s report at the time said that coastguards seized the ship after a tip-off. The captain and crew denied any knowledge of the drugs, and in November Laptalo’s lawyer said he was confident of an acquittal.

At this month’s trial, testimonials were given to Laptalo’s good character, and the Aigion harbourmaster, a witness for the prosecution, said he did not believe that Laptalo and two members of his crew could have hidden drugs on the ship.

The mayor of Dubrovnik in Croatia has repeatedly appealed to Croatian President Stipe Mesic to intervene on Laptalo's behalf.

The ITF said in a London press release today that the verdict was “unexpected and impossible to reconcile with the evidence heard in court”.

“This is not a proud day for Greek justice,” commented ITF general secretary David Cockroft.

Predrag Brazzoduro, the Croatian transport workers' union representative and ITF Croatia co-ordinator.Brazzoduro, called the verdict astonishing.

"We were all shocked when Captain Laptalo was found guilty of something that he couldn't control," he added. "The court has sentenced a 59-year-old man to spend most of the rest of his life in jail solely on the basis that he was the captain, so must be guilty”.

(With thanks for Fairplay Daily News: news@fairplay.co.uk)

[Top]


Education and Training

Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself!
(Don Robertson)

You can find more short courses in the USA in the Marine Surveyor's Web Site at http://www.marinesurveyor.com/educate.html

[Top]

Epistles

None this month.

[Top]

People

THE London office of Thomas Miller P&I Ltd and Thomas Miller Defence Ltd is moving to 90 Fenchurch Street with effect from August 4. All telephone numbers, email and website addresses will remain unchanged.

www.ukpandi.com

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IMO back In London office

After nearly two years of working in temporary accommodation, the International Maritime Organisation is operating once again from its headquarters on London's Albert Embankment. these have had major refurbishment to bring them up to modern standards.

Although the IMO building is largely unchanged. externally internally the changes are dramatic, incorporating the very latest technological, IT and communication facilities and state of the art security and occupational health features.

[Top]

Books and Videos

Hatch Covers - Operation, Testing and Maintenance' by Mike Wall.(ISBN 13: 978 1 85609 344 6 ISBN 10: 1 85609 327 1) Cost GBP50. Published by Witherby Seamanship International, 4 Dunlop Square, Deans Estate, Livingston EH54 8SB, United Kingdom
Email: info@emailws.com
www.witherbyseamanship.com

The definitive textbook on hatch covers.....

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Guidance on eating well at sea

A handy new guide to healthy eating at sea is now available. The Seafarers' Food Guide, produced by maritime fitness consultants The Physical Initiative, highlights the importance of good nutrition onboard ship and ashore. The advice is based on studies of thousands of seafarers' lifestyles, and is matched to job, age and lifestyle routine.

The guide warns: 'The combination of imbalanced eating and low water intake is resulting in many thousands of seafarers developing greater increases in body fat and weight than should be the case'

The 30 page guide costs £1.00 from The Physical Initiative Ltd, Oswaldkirk Bank, York Y062 5YA, Tel: 01439 788118, email: Androw(LDphysicalinitiative.co.uk

But can be acquired for free from the same address if you work for the following: P&O Ferries (Dover, Irish Sea and North Sea), Carnival UK/M0 Cruises, Maersk, Shell, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Princess Cruises, Cunard Seabourn Line.

******

'Total Loss' by Paul Gelder (ISBN 978071 1 36987835) Cost GBP8.99 from Adlard Coles Nautical. www.adlardcoles.com

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'Cairn Line of Steamships and Nautical Teles Beyond Leith' by Gilber T Wallace. Cost GBP24.95. From Gilbert T Wallace, Caineskk, 3 Milton Gardens South, Edinburgh EH15 3PG.

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'The Thames: A photographic journey from source to sea' by Derek Pratt (ISBN 978 0 71368832 0) Cost GBP19.99. Published by Adlard Coles Nautical. www.adlardcoles.com


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Conference Reports



(ED: If you intend to attend a conference which you believe would be of interest to our readers, we would be grateful to receive a short synopsis.)

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IMO Conventions

IMO regularly updates its web page with new and amended conventions:  http://www.imo.org/

Here you can browse through the various publications that are available and buy those which interest you. To navigate the publications you can either select one of the categories or use the advanced search.

For those of you who might also be interested, UK M Notices are available at:  www.mcagency.org.uk

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Future Events

13 & 14 November 2008.  The 2008 Asian Marine Insurance and Surveying Forum.  Novotel Century Hong Kong Hotel.  Theme 'The carriage and care of steel cargoes'

Those interested in attending should contact Mrs Lulu Zuniga-Carmine at Asia Conference Ltd: marine@asiaconference.biz


(Ed:  If you have a marine related conference coming up, let us know so that we can mention it.)


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Web Sites

FOR OUR REGULAR READERS, NO NEW WEB SITES THIS MONTH:

We are no longer publishing our list of useful web sites for marine surveyors due to the eventual size of the email being sent out.  If you wish to receive the list, please contact the editor at the email address below.

If your (marine surveying) company has a web site, let us know and we will try to mention it.  Below are some web pages we believe might be useful to marine surveyors:
 

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From the Poop Deck

The Sailor's Prayer

O God, I ask you to take me into your care and protection, along with all those who go to sea in ships. Protect me in the dangers and the perils of the sea and even in the storm grant that there may be peace and calm with in my heart. Take care of my loved ones in the days and weeks and months when I am separated from them. Keep me true to them and keep them true to me. Every time that we have to part, bring us together in safety and in loyalty again. Amen.

With thanks to the Aposteship of the Sea, Incheon, Korea.

*****

About one billion:

The next time you hear a politician an use the word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising
agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in
one of its releases.

A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.

B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.

C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were Living in the Stone Age.

D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.

E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.

*****

You have to be old enough to remember Abbott and Costello, and too old to
REALLY understand computers, to fully appreciate this. For those of us who
sometimes get flustered by our computers, please read on...

If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their famous sketch,
"Who's on First?" might have turned out something like this:

COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den and I'm thinking about
buying a computer.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: No, the name's Lou.

ABBOTT: Your computer?

COSTELLO: I don't own a computer. I want to buy one.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: I told you, my name's Lou.

ABBOTT: What about Windows?

COSTELLO: Why? Will it get stuffy in here?

ABBOTT: Do you want a computer with Windows?

COSTELLO: I don't know. What will I see when I look at the windows?

ABBOTT: Wallpaper.

COSTELLO: Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.

ABBOTT: Software for Windows?

COSTELLO: No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write
proposals, track expenses and run my business. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?

ABBOTT: I just did.

COSTELLO: You just did what?

ABBOTT: Recommend something.

COSTELLO: You recommended something?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: For my office?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: OK, what did you recommend for my office?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yes, for my office!

ABBOTT: I recommend Office with Windows

COSTELLO: I already have an office with windows! OK, let's just say I'm
sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal. What do I need?

ABBOTT: Word.

COSTELLO: What word?

ABBOTT: Word in Office.

COSTELLO: The only word in office is office.

ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO: Which word in office for windows?

ABBOTT: The Word you get when you click the blue "W".

COSTELLO: I'm going to click your blue "w" if you don't start with some
straight answers. What about financial bookkeeping? You have anything I can
track my money with?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: That's right. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: I need money to track my money?

ABBOTT: It comes bundled with your computer.

COSTELLO: What's bundled with my computer?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: Money comes with my computer?

ABBOTT: Yes. No extra charge.

COSTELLO: I get a bundle of money with my computer? How much?

ABBOTT: One copy.

COSTELLO: Isn't it illegal to copy money?

ABBOTT: Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money.

COSTELLO: They can give you a license to copy money?

ABBOTT: Why not? THEY OWN IT!

(A few days later)

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: How do I turn my computer off?

ABBOTT: Click on "START".............


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Disclaimer:  Articles and reports reflect the views of the individuals who prepared them, and, unless indicated expressly in the text, do not necessarily represent the views of the editor.  Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this publication is accurate, the editor makes no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or correctness of such information.  The editor accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any loss, damage or other liability arising from any use of this publication or the information which it contains.  The contents of the publication are the responsibility of the editor alone.

News, views, enquiries, suggestions, articles and letters for inclusion in future editions of FLASHLIGHT may be sent to:

Mike Wall
Tel:  +852 2259 3150
Fax: +852 2259 3151
Email: mikewall@pacific.net.hk

 
     
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