Editorial (26)
Throughout these three series of Alert! bulletins we have written a lot about health, safety and wellbeing, but not so much about environment and quality which, combined, make up the acronym of HSEQ, yet each of these can affect the safe operation of a ship and the safe and timely delivery of its cargo. Add to that the increasing problem of security, then we have the essentials of an Integrated Management System (IMS).
A successful IMS depends on addressing the human element. For any IMS to work effectively, you need to look at the organisation as a whole, together with the working and living environments of the people who work for the organisation, both ashore and afloat. Regulation is required to ensure safer and secure shipping and cleaner oceans; and for the setting of common standards for ship and system design and build, for the education and training of the various stakeholders, and for operational procedures. The seafarer also needs to be protected through regulation that can provide him/her with a safe and secure working environment, decent working and living conditions, fair terms of employment and a healthy lifestyle. (Alert! Issue 10
But, in the maritime context, it is not just about regulation, standards and operational procedures; it is as much about nautical and engineering common sense. It is so easy to become obsessed with the detail of rules and regulations, of checklists and of statistical reports etc, that we can forget how easy it is to apply the norms of common sense, of professionalism and of good practice
In order to maintain quality, prevent incidents or pollution, or keep ships and their crews secure, there is a need for effective systems and processes and for health, safety, security, quality and environmental awareness to be combined with good working practices. It is incumbent upon senior management to provide the resources necessary to safeguard the health, safety, security and wellbeing of all staff, both ashore and afloat, and to ensure that other people affected by the operation are aware that the company is fully complying with the appropriate health, safety, security and environmental legislation and regulations.
But these resources and procedures need to be easy to apply. This not only takes leadership and commitment from the top down; it is a continuing process of implementation, feedback, analysis and planning. Fundamental to the success of this cycle of improvement is the involvement of the User; taking a human-centred approach to HSEQ is the key to success.
