Posted: March 27, 2013
TRACE certification sends strong message for GAC Egypt
Underlines commitment to ethical business practice
Gulf Agency Company (Egypt) Ltd is the latest GAC company to become a member of anti-bribery body TRACE International, underlining its strong commitment to ethical corporate conduct.
“TRACE International, Inc. is a non-profit group that offers practical and cost-effective anti-bribery compliance solutions for multinational companies which are required to demonstrate transparent business practices regardless of pressure, local law or custom.
GAC Egypt’s certification comes after a stringent due diligence review of every aspect of its operations and key managers, highlighting the company as a beacon of compliance and stability.
The GAC Egypt Management Team with their TRACE certificate
Managing Director Capt. Mohammed Badawi (pictured, holding the certificate) says: “TRACE certification is yet another recognition of our integrity, a reflection of our transparency as well as an endorsement to our Code of Ethics.”
About GAC Group
GAC is a global provider of integrated shipping, logistics and marine services. Emphasising world-class performance, a long-term approach, innovation, ethics and a strong human touch, GAC delivers a flexible and value-adding portfolio to help customers achieve their strategic goals.
Established since 1956, GAC employs over 10,000 people in more than 300 offices worldwide.
Sign up for GAC’s free HOT PORT NEWS email for daily updates from ports around the world and RED HOT PORT NEWS for free SMS alerts of breaking news at www.gac.com/hpn.
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http://www.allaboutshipping.co.uk/2013/03/21/trace-certification-sends-strong-message-for-gac-egypt/
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Posted: August 23, 2011
Suppliers deliver new systems to colleges, academies and ship operators as guidelines on ship-to-ship transfers and vessel handling are set to increase demand for innovative bridge simulators
Colleges with 360 degree simulators are the main beneficiaries when ship managers follow guidance on training for vessel handling and ship-to-ship transfers (STS). The guidance regarding STS training comes from the UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), which has called for practical courses to help mitigate the safety and environmental risks arising from these operations.
Training centres have invested heavily in new simulators from suppliers including Kongsberg Maritime, Transas and Ari Simulators in response to the rising demand for training on modern bridge equipment. The National Maritime College of Ireland (NMCI) in Cork claims to have the world’s largest bridge simulator suite, supplied by Kongsberg Maritime and utilised by GAC Training and Service Solutions (GTSS) for its STS courses.
According to Clive Hotham, who lectures for GTSS on its simulator-based STS operations course, training requirements for these activities will become mandatory in the future.
“Any situation in which ships are in close proximity to each other or moving at speed poses very real dangers, including vessel damage, injuries to the crew and environmental implications,” he says. “This makes ship-handling experience critical, especially in delicate operations such as mooring or STS. At the moment, specialist training for STS professionals is voluntary. But the MCA has started issuing guidance on the subject and it never seems long before guidance becomes law. I have no doubt that it will become mandatory that the master, at least, has been on some sort of training course.”
There are advantages with using 360 degree screens as they add a high level of reality to the training. “Simulator training enables a progression of challenging scenarios and such a flexible and varied range of conditions that we can clearly see if our trainees are operating in a safe manner,” explains Mr Hotham. “It also allows us to train them to recognise when they should make the decision to abort the operation because of poor weather or other problems.
“Once an exercise has begun, participants tend to forget it’s a simulation. This is particularly useful when we throw things at them that we hope would never happen, like engine breakdown or steering failure. They experience the full stress of the situation in a safe environment, allowing us to train them to react appropriately.”
NMCI’s simulator also has the capacity to link two bridges together, as in real world ship-handling scenarios. “We have eight or nine ships in our electronic tanker fleet, and with just a phone call we can obtain more from Kongsberg Maritime’s database,” adds Mr Hotham. “For clients running a lot of courses it’s even possible to train in simulations of their own real-world ships. In a simulator you can change the time, weather and seasons as you wish – summer to winter, day to night, sunny to thundery.”
In another deal, Kongsberg Maritime will supply eight Polaris ship’s bridge simulators to academy Vlaamse Dienst Voor Arbeidsbemiddeling en Beroepsopleiding (VDAB) in Zeebrugge, Belgium. The VDAB facilities will help train crew for local shipowners, including two of the world’s major dredging companies, Jan De Nul and DEME.
The Polaris simulators will allow students to train in a large number of sailing areas and over a broad range of disciplines including navigation, manoeuvring and ship handling, plus search and rescue operations. Starting in August, Kongsberg is due to deliver two Polaris DNV B bridges with 225 degree visual systems and six Polaris special task stations, each equipped with a 30 degree visual system. The installation will also include an instructor station and a secondary instructor or debriefing station.
Kongsberg Maritime recently helped shipowner Ezra Holdings open a suite of simulators in the EMAS Academy, the first of their kind in Singapore. The new facility includes a full-mission offshore vessel simulator with fore and aft bridges and a Kongsberg K-Poss dynamic positioning simulator. There are also two anchor handling simulators and one for training engineroom personnel.
Transas Marine will be delivering a full mission simulator to Kimberley TAFE Broome Maritime in Western Australia. The simulator will be used to train pilots and tug masters, who will operate in a new port development. The centre’s range of services will be expanded further through a research project. For this, Transas will develop rotor tug ship models and will integrate real drop-in panel and steering controls from Schottel for advanced training of masters and integration with pilots in live situations. The Transas simulator will have a number of replaceable panels including a set of controls for anchor handling vessel manoeuvring and all associated offshore training. The facility will have a configurable design for the main bridge console, so trainees will be able to use real steering controls from Sperry Marine and Raytheon Anschütz integrated bridges.
The system is based on a Navi-Trainer Professional 5000 ship handling simulator. The visualisation system will have the highest level of realism, featuring wind-generated sea state and variable swell models. There will be accurate vessel and wave interaction, full scene and environment reflection, and three dimensional bow waves and propeller wash. New grounding, synchronous rolling, broaching and other modelling features will be included.
Ari Simulation has supplied simulators for Indian shipowner Great Offshore for offshore vessel and crane handling. The facility can recreate the bridges found on anchor handlers and platform supply vessels operated by Great Offshore. It can be integrated with Poscon controls and dynamic positioning. Great Offshore will use the training centre to simulate ship handling, crane operations, heavy lifting, towing and navigation. The main simulator has nine plasma displays providing a 270 degree field of view. The aft bridge simulator has ship handling and engineering controls.
German company Safebridge has signed an agreement with Sperry Marine to provide online training for users of its VisionMaster FT ship navigation systems. Safebridge’s software allows students to train on all the watch modes found on the Sperry Marine bridge products supplied to the vessels they work on. It enables seafarers to access hands-on training at any time, so long as they have internet access. Users are taken step by step through a number of modules, replicating the use of the actual equipment, and are shown how to use each feature in various simulated scenarios.
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Posted:
Training companies Seagull and Videotel have developed new programs covering the regulatory changes on solid bulk cargoes. New rules on the loading, discharge and transportation of cargoes such as coal and iron in bulk carriers became mandatory under Solas from the beginning of this year. The regulatory changes, made through the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) code, replace the Code of Safe Practice for Solid Bulk Cargoes (BC Code); they have to be followed by all bulk carriers.
Seagull’s computer based training (CBT) module introduces best practices and sets out optimum safety measures for the loading, discharge and carriage of solid bulk cargoes, as set out under the IMSBC code. It incorporates 12 chapters dealing with different aspects of the new code and is aimed particularly at seafarers of Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping STCW Management and operation level who are involved with cargo operations.
“This is also a very useful tool for management at the shore-based offices of owners and operators, since it can give staff in these locations a very detailed view of the issues involved in loading, discharging and transporting these types of cargoes,” says Jim Dibble, managing director of Seagull’s maritime IT subsidiary.
Seagull’s CBT module outlines the correct procedures and methods for stowage of solid bulk cargoes and the compatibility of different ones, with aspects relating to ship and crew safety, and environmental protection. It covers the precautions required for transporting dangerous cargoes, including those that are liable to self heat, and combust; how to maintain the structural stability of a ship by eliminating stresses on bulkheads and other components; and how to ensure the safety of onboard personnel.
Taking about two hours to complete, Seagull’s IMSBC Code module gives practical examples of real situations that have occurred on bulkers in the past, says Capt Dibble. “We have illustrated the dangers of non-compliance with actual accidents or incidents that have occurred within the industry,” he explains. “Introducing real scenarios helps focus the minds of seafarers on the task in hand, which will ensure the safety of themselves and their colleagues, as well as the safety of the vessel itself.”
There are assessments at the end of each chapter to provide trainees feedback on the level of understanding they have reached. The results of these can be examined by a company’s training administrators, via databases, so that they can keep track of trainee progress and the level of comprehension that has been achieved.
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Posted: February 2, 2011
Christer Sjodoff Group Vice President of GAC Solutions
Christer Sjodoff, who is the Group Vice President of GAC Solutions, did an interview with Marine BizTV recently. Marine BizTV is a free to air global maritime channel. In the interview Mr Sjodoff talks about the partnership between GTSS and the NMCI. Christer believes that this venture helps both parties deliver world class courses by combining NMCI’s lecturers with GAC’s long established knowledge of the maritime sector. read more…
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