A NewsLink service for Dole Chile

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

SAFETY STUDY
CORROSION - THE HIDDEN ENEMY
A rescue boat fell into the sea while being
hoisted on board, due to a corroded wire rope.

NARRATIVE
After completing the weekly planned
maintenance routine on a rescue boat and its
crane, it was usual for the crew to lower the
boat to the water for training purposes while
alongside. The boat was lowered and
manoeuvred in the water for a short time and
then brought back to be hoisted on board. As
the boat was being hoisted, the wire rope
parted and the boat fell.
Fortunately, the company identified this as a
high risk operation and stopped the practice of
having the crew in the boat while hoisting or
lowering during training exercises. There were
no injuries, and the boat was not damaged.
On investigation, it was found that a new
wire rope had been fitted 14 months
previously, and it had passed a thorough
examination about five months before the
incident. It was also inspected/greased on a
weekly basis as part of the ship's planned
maintenance programme. Despite the checks,
the incipient corrosion was not discovered and
the wire eventually failed at the top of the steel
ball counter weight. The accelerated corrosion
was partly due to the harsh environment in
which the rescue boat and its crane were
located, at the aft end of the vessel. The ball
weight had a crevice at the top where the wire
passed through, and this formed an ideal trap
for sea water, salt and sulphur deposits from
nearby exhaust outlets to accumulate and
obstruct regular inspection.
The investigation discovered that unsuitable
grease had been applied, and this was not
effective in lubricating the wire core and
served to obscure the underlying corrosion.
The failed segments of the wire rope were
sent to a laboratory for testing, and the
subsequent report confirmed that the wire
rope failed through ductile tensile fractures of
wires wasted by corrosion. The laboratory also
confirmed that a contributory cause of the
failure was inadequate maintenance greasing
over a significant period of time.

LESSONS
- The inspection of all wire ropes should be
thorough, and should include the removal of
old grease to assess the condition of the wire
rope before re-coating with fresh wire
lubricant.
- Senior staff should regularly monitor
planned maintenance procedures which are
carried out by crew. Source: UK MAIB

Dubai Maritime Summit

expects large turnout
The most prominent officials and experts in the
maritime sector are expected to dock in Dubai
for the first-ever Dubai Maritime Summit 2014
to be held at The Address Dubai Marina on
October 27.
The summit is organised by the Dubai
Maritime City Authority (DMCA) under Sheikh
Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al
Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai and
Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, in
line with Dubai's commitment to become a
leading maritime hub.
The event's first edition, which will be hosted
by the BBC's international presenter Zainab
Badawi, will discuss the latest worldwide
industry developments including other issue
affecting the maritime sector.
With a focus on enhancing and upgrading the
components of the maritime sector, the
organising body invited official speakers
including the Director of International Maritime
Organisation Jo Espinoza-Ferrey, the Chairman
of International Association of Classifications

Societies Philipe Donche-Gay, the Marine

Director of INTERTANKO Dr Phillip Belcher
and the Chief Executive of Maritime London,
Doug Barrow.
A main focus of the conference is the
discussion on international maritime clustering
and the pioneering experience of Dubai in the
transformation toward a major global maritime
hub.
In a statement, DMCA said its cluster strategy
involved
modernising
its
maritime
infrastructure, operations and logistics, and
diversification of investment opportunities for
regional and international businesses.
Dr Abdullah Belhaif Al-Nuaimi, United Arab
Emirates' Minister of Public Works and
Chairman of the National Transport Authority,
and Sultan Bin Sulayem, Chairman of Dubai
Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation and
President of DMCA, are among the high level
speakers expected to attend.
The maritime summit is also set to open the
biennial Dubai Maritime Week.

Turkey, Cyprus in offshore gas

survey dispute

Indonesia prepares for rapid

upgrades of 24 ports

Counter-measures are being prepared by Cyprus

as it claimed that its southern coast was
encroached by a Turkish research vessel that
was surveying for gas deposits.
The Turkish ship was reported to be collecting
seismic data and was spotted entering the
exclusive economic zone on Monday, according
to Greek Cypriot authorities.
Turkish authorities have yet to respond to the
charges, although Ankara has never recognised
the Nicosia government's jurisdiction in the
exploration area off Cyprus' southeastern tip.
A suspension of peace talks between Greek
and Turkish Cypriots on the island was triggered
by the latest incident. The island was partitioned
by a 1974 Turkish invasion.
A Cyprus government spokesman was quoted
by reports as saying that the probable response
would include "political, diplomatic and legal"
measures, without elaborating. However,
Nicosia ruled out anything that would impact the
UN-monitored ceasefire line between the Greek
and Turkish Cypriot sides of the island.

State-owned owned port operator PT Pelindo

has said preparations are under way for repairing
24 ports in eastern Indonesia to accelerate the
implementation of a sea-toll construction project
initiated by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
Pelindo III spokesman Edi Priyanto said the
company was preparing to repair Tanjung Perak
Port in Surabaya, East Java, and Benoa Port in
Bali as the main ports directed to accelerating
passenger flows among the islands in eastern
Indonesia.
Pelindo said 11 major seaports and feeders
were being renovated to smooth passenger flows
from areas in western Indonesia to eastern parts
of the country and vice versa. Apart from
Tanjung Perak and Benoa, the nine other ports
are in Ambon, Biak, Bitung, Makassar, Menado,
Pare-pare, Sorong, Tarakan, and Ternate,
according to the Jakarta Post.
Meanwhile, 13 seaports are being specifically
designed to smooth the flow of goods. Apart
from Tanjung Perak in Surabaya, the ports
include Bagendang Port in Sampit; Batulicin
Port in Kotabaru; Bumiharjo Port in Kumai;
Lembar Port in Mataram; Tenau Port in
Kupang, and the container terminal in
Banjarmasin.

PAGE 2 - Wednesday, October 22, 2014

SHIPPING DATA

BALTIC EXCHANGE
Market snapshot: 1200 GMT October 21
Dry Index
BDI
1,090
Capesize Index
BCI
2,003
Panamax Index
BPI
1,032
Supramax Index
BSI
911
Handysize Index
BHSI
498
EXCHANGE RATES
New York (Tue Cls)
Fgn Currency USD in Fgn
in USD
Currency
Britain (Pound)
1.6121
0.6203
Canada (Dollar)
0.8906
1.1228
China (Yuan)
0.1634
6.1210
Euro
1.2725
0.7858
India (Rupee)
0.0164
61.1010
Indonesia (Rupiah) 0.000083
12045.00
Japan (Yen)
0.009359
106.8500
Norway (Krone)
0.1523
6.5675
Philippines (Peso)
0.0223
44.7800
Poland (Zloty)
0.3014
3.3200
Russia (Ruble)
0.0244
40.9544
Singapore (Dollar)
0.7865
1.2715
Ukraine (Hryvnia)
0.0772
12.9550

Ferry drifts from port during

foul weather
A large fast ferry cut loose from its berth in
Belfast Lough with 18 passengers and 55 crew
still aboard during foul weather on Tuesday.
"Tugs from the port were deployed to help
manoeuvre the ship back on to berth," a
company spokesman announced.
The incident caused the afternoon sailings
from Belfast and Cairnryan to be cancelled
while the evening schedule have not yet been
confirmed as off press time Tuesday. The vessel
can carry up to 1,200 passengers and 600
vehicles during its daily crossings.
A number of Irish Sea services were also
cancelled due to the severe weather conditions,
as the tail-end of Hurricane Gonzalo lashed
Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

China installs buoys in Pacific

Ocean: report
China has installed 17 sets of submerged buoys
in "key marine areas" of the western Pacific
ocean, state media said, a move that could
exacerbate territorial tensions in the region.
The mission carried out by the Chinese
research vessel Kexue "marks the first time that
China has put an array of submerged buoys on
such a big scale", Chinese state media reported
late Tuesday.
"The buoys will provide important scientific
statistics about ocean circulation and climate,"
Hu Dunxin, a scholar at the Chinese Academy
of Sciences, told Xinhua.
The vessel is expected to return to the region
next month "to conduct a deep sea environment
project", the report added.

WWII ships found deep in

'Graveyard of the Atlantic'
Two sunken ships from World War II - a
German U-boat and an American merchant
vessel - have been found deep in the ocean off
the coast of North Carolina, officials said
Tuesday.

ACCIDENT
TWO FATALITIES IN LIFEBOAT DRILL
An offshore energy company has
confirmed on Tuesday that two of its
workers were killed in an accident on board
a chartered oil rig off the Malaysian coast.
The accident occured during a nighttime
exercise when the safety harness attached
to a lifeboat broke. The men fell and
suffered fatal head injuries.
In a statement, the company said it was
"extremely saddened" by the accident that
happened during the weekend aboard a
jackup drilling rig operating offshore
Malaysia.
"Authorities were notified and an
investigation team is on board to determine
the cause in an effort to prevent future
incidents," the statement said.

The ships clashed in the Battle of the Atlantic

in July 15, 1942 and were lost for more than
seven decades in an area known as the
Graveyard of the Atlantic.
Researchers led by the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration's Office of National
Marine Sanctuaries discovered the vessels about
48 kilometres from shore.
The discovery of the German U-boat 576 and
the freighter Bluefields offers "a rare window
into a historic military battle and the underwater
battlefield landscape of WWII," NOAA said.
The ships were found 240 yards (metres)
apart, said the Agence France Presse.

CONVENTION

Nairobi Convention takes effect

in April 2015 - Skuld
The Nairobi International Convention on the
Removal of Wrecks 2007 has achieved the
requisite number of ten ratifications for it to
enter into force in April 14, 2015.
In a statement, Skuld P&I said the convention
provides a strict liability, compensation and
compulsory insurance regime for states affected
by a maritime casualty.
It makes the registered owner of a ship liable
for locating, marking and removing a wreck
deemed to be a hazard in a state's convention
area. Article 3(2) of the regulation requires
states to include its territorial sea within the
scope of the convention.
So far, three countries, (Bulgaria, Denmark
and the United Kingdom) have extended the
scope of the convention to their territorial sea,
Skuld announced in its web site.
In case any state does not exercise this option,
the convention will apply in the exclusive
economic zone but not the territorial sea.

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HI TECH
GLYCERINE IS A CLEAN ALTERNATIVE
MARINE FUEL: RESEARCH
After a year of research on GLEAMS
(Glycerine Fuel for Marine Sustainability)
project, Marine South East (MSE) has
concluded that glycerine is a viable and
low-emission alternative to marine fuel.
MSE has publicly demonstrated by way
of emission tests how glycerine could be
used as a fuel in compression ignition
engines.
"This development disproves the general
view that glycerine can't be used as a fuel
due to its physical and chemical
properties," the consortium said.
According to the research, the adoption
of glycerine fuel is favourable in defined
markets because of its non-toxic, clean
burning and safe characteristics. The
company said in a press release that it is
not possible to power the world's deep-sea
shipping fleet with the available quantities
of glycerine.
But at the same time it added that there
could be a massive increase in glycerine
supply from other organic renewable
means such as salt-stressed algae.
Glycerine could support a range of smaller
vessel types and shore applications
despite the fact that it is available in less
quantity. NSRP project aims to reduce weld
distortion
A National Shipbuilding Research
Programme (NSRP) project aims to reduce
weld distortion by using a new welding
process called HiDep (high deposition) Arc
Welding, which uses induction heating to
heat the weld joint ahead of the arc welding
torch.
The thermal profile of the weld could be
modified by adjusting the induction heating.
This will prevent the asymmetrical cooling,
which causes most weld distortion,
according to the project.
Instead of the arc plasma, which occurs
at the tip of the wire electrode, the process
essentially substitutes induction heating to
heat the metal being welded. Then the arc
plasma is used primarily to melt the
electrode.
There are two benefits from this new
process: significantly reduced distortion
and a substantial increase in welding
speed and productivity.