Today the MAIB has published its report on the grounding of oil/chemical tanker Ovit on the Varne Bank in the Dover Strait September last year. The Chief Inspector has released a statement saying: This is the third grounding investigated by the MAIB where watchkeepers’ failure to use an Electronic Chart Display Information System properly has been identified as one of the primary causal factors. There are over 30 manufacturers of ECDIS equipment, each with their own designs and little evidence that a common approach is developing. Generic ECDIS training is mandated by the International Maritime Organisation but it is left to Flag States and ship owners to decide whether or not type-specific training is necessary and, if so, how it should be delivered. However, in this case, despite dedicated training ashore on the system they were to use, the bridge team were unable to navigate their vessel safely because their system knowledge was inadequate. For all shipping companies, navigation is a safety-critical function and failure to navigate effectively can and does result every year in pollution, loss of vessels, and loss of life. It is to be hoped, therefore, that the next generation of ECDIS will embody features making them less vulnerable to the vagaries of human performance to achieve a better level of assurance that safe navigation is being consistently achieved.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 08:49:45 +0000
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