T ime for t r a ns pa r e ncy about accident s


By Peter Broad FIIMS, IIMS President


It is with interest that I read ‘Grey Matter’ in the IMarEST ‘Marine Professional’ publication issue1/2022.


In Michael Grey’s one page article he has highlighted ‘Time for transparency about accidents’.


Michael is quoting the


InterManager’s secretary general Captain Kuba Symanski by asking ‘the very plain question as to why “sub-standard equipment that kills people” continues to be in production and installed on ships.’


I would like IIMS members and readers of this Report Magazine to consider this statement.


I think, in reality, most safety equipment is built to the required standards of SOLAS or European ‘Wheel Mark’. This is irrespective of whether the equipment is built in Europe or built in Asia for installation on board new vessels.


For international trading commercial vessels Classed with an IACS member it is a requirement that the safety equipment is designed fit for purpose, installed on board under survey, and tested by an attending class surveyor before the vessel can receive the ‘Cargo Ship Safety Certificate’ and the associated ‘Record of Equipment for Cargo Ship Safety’. Then the ISM Certificate, ‘shall’ require the Owner or Technical Managers to provide meaningful onboard training and familiarization for their crews in all aspects of the ship’s operations, and especially the Safety Equipment.


So, if this is the procedure for the certification of equipment through the supply chain that is then installed correctly onboard and


tested and shown to operate correctly at the time a vessel is delivered (new), how and why do these accidents keep happening?


Accidents may happen because of equipment failure, but equipment failure happens because of:


• Lack of planned maintenance onboard; • Poor onboard


maintenance management;


• Lack of maintenance budgets; • Lack of onboard crew training and familiarization with the equipment;


• Lack of crew experience; • Lack of crew training; • Lack of control and management from the owners or technical managers head office.


As professional marine surveyors we must all observe different aspects of ships operations, but in the cases of a hull and machinery claim or, accident investigation, we should always try to consider ‘why’ something has happened. The root cause is not often easy to establish, but perhaps there is a common theme – ‘lack of leadership’, ‘lack of experience’, lack of maintenance’, or all of these?


So, in summing up, it is generally not considered fair or reasonable to ‘blame’ the “sub-standard equipment that kills people”. The equipment was probably not sub-standard by design, but became, or has become sub-


standard by external factors that have influenced its deterioration to a point of failure. This is what causes fatalities.


The Report • September 2022 • Issue 101 | 33


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