Decisions, decisions…
An essential skill for anyone in a position of responsibility at sea is the ability to make decisions based on information presented to them; this may be as part of the normal operational activities of the ship or during emergency events.
Whilst a number of STCW courses are now required to be completed by key members of a ship’s staff to cover obvious emergencies, such as fire fighting, command and control, and crowd management, there are a number of areas which are less obvious and which may need to be addressed if we are to successfully manage the growing risks to safe and efficient operations presented by factors such as system complexity, and retro-fit issues.
Alarm systems onboard are required to differentiate information presented to the operator, even when displayed chronologically. This is generally achieved by visual indication through the use of pre-set levels or groups; the expectation is then that the operator understands the information presented and prioritises responses and curative actions accordingly. It is well known that the ability to prioritise effectively is gained and developed by experiencing suitable events, hence the requirement for onboard drill regimes.
By carrying out machinery breakdown, reversionary control and emergency response drills on a regular basis these events may be practised. As a result the participating staff develop the ability to make decisions and take appropriate actions to deal with a diverse range of situations presented, as long as this form of training is undertaken in such a way to promote these actions rather than merely repeatedly performing the same actions in a routine or checklist type response to drills.
Operators must know what needs to be done in various circumstances and to know why it is being done in order to adapt the specific response and the actions taken to suit individual situations. Within the commercial sector of the industry little opportunity exists to conduct drills in this format and to the required high frequency due to prevalent operational conditions, the most effective execution of these activities being essentially the exclusive reserve of the naval sector.
The reversionary control of machinery for example tends to be restricted to a task within the ship's planned maintenance system, allocated to a member of the engineering or navigational staff, to select the mode and function test the equipment by operating through the full range whilst in port. However, there are a number of elements that may be introduced into the ship’s operating and maintenance regimes which may lead to an overall improvement in the crew's ability to gain and develop these essential decision making skills, an example being the regular emergency response drills; while remaining representative of potential incidents must be diverse in nature and encourage ‘on the spot thinking’ with generic use of checklists as appropriate.
Obsolescence and the implementation of retroactive regulations necessitate retrofit to systems. However, unless replacement systems and equipment are properly designed, integrated and installed, taking cognisance of the full functionality of the original systems, operational issues often arise as a result of the interaction of the upgrade, enhancement or replacement with the original or other retrofits.
Another of the key skills required of seagoing technical staff is the ability to fully understand the service systems provide and to establish procedures for the operation of often complex systems which have been retrofitted, in such a way as to ensure that an equivalent service to that provided by the original is delivered. This can only be achieved through the development of a thorough understanding of system engineering principles and their application.