TrainingNews

ICS: Seafarers Won't Lose Jobs to Automation Yet

By MarEx 2018-10-16 18:47:30

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has released a new study on the potential effects of autonomous ships on the role of seafarers, indicating that there will be no shortage of jobs for seafarers, especially officers, in the next two decades. The report, conducted by the Hamburg School of Business Administration, states: “If by 2025 very optimistically some 1,000 ships will be fully autonomous and some further 2,000 vessels semi-autonomous, this may possibly reduce demand for seafarers by 30,000 –...

Maritime’s Journey to Digital

By MarEx 2018-09-26 17:56:45

The maritime industry has usually been slower when it comes to transformation. However in recent years, the digitalisation and automation of its supply chain has significantly changed shipping from the inside. Disruptive technologies are expected to take centre stage even more in the coming years to make improvements on issues of capacity, data integrity, connectivity and standardisation. For example, only last month Maersk and IBM introduced their global blockchain solution TradeLens with 94 organisations participating. Big changes with big...

Quicker and Easier Than Falling Asleep?

By Captain Richard Madden 2018-09-22 20:58:55

Harry Potter asks his godfather’s spirit, “Does it hurt?” after he’d passed away. The answer Sirius Black gave was, “Dying? Not at all. Quicker and easier than falling asleep.” That answer may be familiar to enclosed space victims. The air we breathe consists of several major components. Oxygen, critical for human life makes up about 20.9 percent of that air. That majority of air is made up of nitrogen – close to 78 percent. The remaining one percent largely...

Coltraco Ultrasonics Signs Women in Maritime Pledge

By MarEx 2018-09-12 20:05:05

Coltraco Ultrasonics is proud to have signed the Women in Maritime Pledge: "We are committed to building an employment culture that actively supports and celebrates gender diversity, at all levels, throughout our organization, and our industry." This comes as the ITF estimates that women make up only two percent of the world’s maritime workforce. Coltraco is proud to support gender parity and equal pay. Carl Hunter, CEO, and Clare Hunter, Head of Marketing & Communications, were delighted to attend the...

USMMA Alumni Release Commemorative Video

By MarEx 2018-09-12 18:02:00

Alumni of the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) have released a video to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the institution and memorialize midshipmen who have died in service to their nation. Over the summer, the USMMA Alumni Association and Foundation (USMMA-AAF) has been executing a campaign designed to remind the nation how vital the Academy is to both national security and global commerce, and of the importance of maritime security in turbulent times. "We really hope this anthemic video...

USMMA Names Academic Dean and Provost

By MarEx 2018-09-12 10:07:51

The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point (USMMA) announced today that John R. Ballard, Ph.D., has been named the new Academic Dean and Provost at the federal service academy. In this position, Dr. Ballard will serve as the chief academic officer and principal advisor to the Superintendent in all matters relating to the academic program and faculty. He will also co-chair the educational priority working group for the recently released USMMA...

Texas A&M Accredited to Teach Dynamic Positioning

By MarEx 2018-09-11 18:57:48

The Offshore Service Vessel Dynamic Positioning Authority (OSVDPA) announced that the Texas A&M Maritime Academy at Texas A&M University at Galveston is the first maritime academy in the nation accredited to provide OSVDPA courses to its cadets. In announcing the accreditation, OSVDPA Executive Director, Aaron Smith said, “The OSVDPA Board of Directors and our staff are very excited to issue this accreditation. Going into the accreditation process we obviously knew of A&M’s reputation as a great maritime training institution, but...

Seagull Maritime Launches New English Reading and Listening Test

By MarEx 2018-09-11 17:18:16

The Manila amendments to STCW Convention and Codes require reliable and transparent evidence of the maritime English communicative competency level of all seafarers. In essence, all crews need to hold the appropriate certificates that demonstrate competency. In response to this Seagull is now offering a new English Reading and Listening Test that can be run as an extra add on feature in CES (Crew Evaluation System), our comprehensive online tool for knowledge testing of seafarers. Using a...

The Value of Drills: CSL Welland Crew Saves Man's Life

By MarEx 2018-09-01 19:37:28

On August 25, the 16-member crew of CSL Welland was involved in a rescue operation that saved a man’s life while transiting through Lake Ontario off the coast of Olcott, New York. Crew members on watch in the CSL Welland wheelhouse noticed objects floating in the water. Captain Wilson Walters was immediately notified and communicated the information to the Coast Guard. As the crew members kept watch, it became apparent that the objects were in fact two people. The captain...

Report: Alcohol Consumption Involved in Deckhand Drowning

By MarEx 2018-08-11 18:22:38

The U.K. Marine Accident Investigation Branch has released it's report into the November 2017 death of a deckhand on the fishing vessel Illustris. He had spent the afternoon and evening ashore and had just returned to the vessel. His fall was not witnessed, and he was not missed until the following day. The postmortem examination report indicated a probable cause of death as drowning, with a contribution of acute alcohol toxicity. At the time of the accident, Illustris was berthed...