21st Century Seamanship

A career at sea or in a marine related business understanding the practice of seamanship. In recent decades, shipping has moved at a tremendous pace and created a need for a new up to date manual. This book, which was ten years in the making, positions itself as a manual for the modern day seafarer in the 21st Century.

Preface

This book has taken ten years to prepare and, as a few have commented, it was probably in the planning long before then, whether I realised it or not.

A career at sea or in a marine-related business requires amassing a terrific volume of knowledge and the art and practice of seamanship is perhaps one of the most encyclopaedic job descriptions there is.

When I went to sea, almost 30 years ago, many would talk of days gone by when no self-respecting Chief Officer would be without his Seamanship Manual, and when I was about 12 or 13, I remember still the day my own father gave me his copy of ‘The Boatswain’s Manual’. In recent decades, shipping seems to have moved at a tremendous pace and it left me wondering whether it was possible to capture such a broad scope in a single publication that appeals to the forward thinking seafarer. This is exactly where this book positions itself – a manual for the modern day seafarer in the 21st Century.

This publication takes the traditional values of centuries of good seamanship and blends them with today’s reality and it seems appropriate that it is first published in our company’s 275th year.

By its very nature, this book is exceptionally broad in its scope and further detailed study of the topics covered in this book is available in the 600+ publications Witherbys has in print today. However, in owning this book, you have shown that you want to know and understand more about your industry, an industry that quietly keeps the world moving, carries over 90% of world trade and is set to almost double in volume over the next 20 years.

I wish you every success in your endeavours and always a safe voyage.

Iain Macneil

Managing Director

Witherby Publishing Group

Foreword

The term ‘seamanship’ is much misunderstood by those who are not required to practise the art. Seamanship is also hard to define succinctly as the breadth of knowledge, skills and experience the term encompasses take many a lifetime to acquire.

When I arrived aboard my first ship a little over forty years ago, the ships that made up the world’s merchant fleets, the technologies employed on board and the regulations that governed the industry, and indeed the seafarers themselves, bore little in common with today. However, despite all the technologies that connect ship and shore and keep communications links open at all times, the fact remains that, once a ship puts to sea, it is primarily dependent upon the actions of the master and crew to safely and efficiently execute the voyage, bringing profit to the owner whilst making sure all aboard return safe and well on completion. All must depend on each other, in a variety of circumstances; the ability to perform the broad range of tasks required safely and efficiently, whilst being fully aware of the associated hazards and mitigating measures, is in the broadest sense ‘seamanship’.

The technological advances seen today have led to the launching of more and more specialist ships, all requiring equally specialist knowledge to operate them. There is a danger that the rate of technological advance outpaces the ability of the industry to train competent mariners to operate the increasingly complex ships on which they serve. The need for continued professional development for mariners is inarguable, but this can be difficult to achieve when many ships cannot provide access to the online references enjoyed by most other industries, a problem that has yet to be universally solved. That said, traditional knowledge and skills are still required as it is a stark fact that mooring accidents, lifeboat launching and enclosed space entry continue to kill and injure the unwary, as they have for many decades.

The inclusion in this book of significant incidents in sufficient detail to allow the reader to extract and apply the learning is so valuable as, without doubt, poor decisions and behaviours contribute to far too many accidents at sea. This book provides a solid foundation of knowledge to all those operating, managing and manning today’s merchant fleet. I hope that 21st Century Seamanship will be a reference that is ready to hand on every ship and in every shipping company reference library.

David Cotterell

Director, OCIMF

June 2015

Chapter 1 General Cargo Ship Types

Chapter 2 Tankers

Chapter 3 Other Ship Types

Chapter 4 Offshore Marine Operations

Chapter 5 Machinery and Equipment

Chapter 6 Pilotage

Chapter 7 Ship Handling

Chapter 8 Anchorwork

Chapter 9 Tugs and Towing

Chapter 10 Mooring Operations and Safety

Chapter 11 Waterways, River Transits and Canals

Chapter 12 Preparing a Ship for Ice

Chapter 13 Non-Standard Operations

Chapter 14 Stood by New Builds

Chapter 15 Paints and Coatings

Chapter 16 Drydock

Chapter 17 Lay-up of Ships

Chapter 18 Heavy Weather

Chapter 19 Participating in SAR

Chapter 20 Oil Spills/Pollution

Chapter 21 Practical Aspects of Salvage

Chapter 22 Main Conventions and Codes

Chapter 23 Recent Regulations

Chapter 24 Certification and Endorsements

Chapter 25 Business and Chartering

Chapter 26 Conflict and Issues Affecting Shipping

Chapter 27 Fines for Ships and Ships’ Staff

Chapter 28 In Port and Alongside

Chapter 29 Shipboard Inspections

Chapter 30 Surveys and Classification

Chapter 31 Systems of Work

Chapter 32 Permit to Work

Chapter 33 Enclosed Space Entry

Chapter 34 Health

Chapter 35 Housekeeping on Board

Chapter 36 Ships’ Equipment and Maintenance

Chapter 37 Lifeboat Release Mechanisms

Chapter 38 Fire-fighting

Chapter 39 Shipboard Drills

Chapter 40 Accident Investigation

Chapter 41 Stability

Chapter 42 Damage Stability

Chapter 43 Hull Monitoring and Inspection

Chapter 44 Energy Efficiency

Chapter 45 Ship Recycling

Chapter 46 Traditional Seamanship

Chapter 47 Wires, Ropes, Chains, Shackles & Slings

Chapter 48 Cranes and Lifting Equipment

Chapter 49 Checklists

Chapter 50 Tsunamis and Marine Phenomena

Index

Witherbys

Witherbys titles are developed using scripts developed by technical experts that are peer reviewed within work groups. Typically, they seek to improve understanding of the regulations, recommendations and guidelines issued by Industry.

Witherbys staff have significant expertise in the fields of navigation and hazardous cargoes as well as in the presentation of complex subjects in a graphic and easy to understand manner.