Introduction to Ships

A ship is any large floating vessel capable of crossing open water that travels the world's  oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as research, service and fishing.   Around 90% of world trade is carried by the international shipping industry.   Ships have been the leaders in transportation and are the safest and fastest way of  transporting goods from one place to another.  There are over 81,000 ships that make up the world fleet which act as the working power  behind the maritime industry.  

Shipping Industry facilitates domestic and global manufacturing and trade via transportation of commodities and finished products which also providing for the delivery of goods directly to consumers.  

Other Marine Fields related are  

• Harbour, Port and Terminal 

• Tug boat service 

• Pilot service 

• Marine operators (i.e., Chartering, Freight forwarding, Brokerages and Management)  

• Offshore oil and gas industry 

• Maritime lawyer 

• Marine insurance, P&I- Protection and Indemnity insurance 

• Classification society 

• Shipyards and Docks

There are so many types of ships depend on their servings of different purposes and carriage of different goods.  

Below stated are the twelve categories of ship types.  

The International Maritime Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for measures to improve the safety and security of international shipping and to prevent maritime pollution from ships. It is also involved in legal matters, including liability and compensation issues and facilitation of international maritime traffic. 

Abbreviation: IMO 

Formation: 17 March 1984 

Type : United Nations specialized agency 

Headquarters: London, United Kingdom 

Head of IMO: Current elected Secretary-General 

Member: 175member states and three associate members 

Formal name of IMO: Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO) until 1982  

IMO white list: A list of countries considered by IMO to be conducting their maritime training and certification in accordance with the requirements of STCW 95. 

Six IMO Chief Conventions are as follow;  

1. The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (1974) 

2. The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (1973 / 78) 

3. The International Convention on Standard of Training, Certification and Watch keeping for Seafarers as amended (STCW-78) 

4. The International Convention on Load Line Convention (1966) 

5. The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships (1969) 

6. Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (1972)

www.imo.org/ 

The only tripartite U.N agency, since 1919 the ILO brings together governments, employers and workers of 187 member states, to set labour standards, develop policies and devise programmes promoting decent work for all women and man.  

The unique tripartite structure of the ILO gives an equal voice to workers, employers and governments to ensure that the views of the social partners are closely reflected in labour standards and in shaping policies and programmes.  

The main aims of the ILO are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment opportunities, enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue on work-related issues.

www.ilo.org/ 

The flag state of a merchant vessel is the jurisdiction under whose laws the vessel is registered or licensed, and is deemed the nationality to the vessel.  

The flag state has the authority and responsibility to enforce regulations over vessels registered under its flag, including those relating to inspection, certification and issuance of safety and pollution prevention documents.  

Effective enforcement, by the flag state administration, of the implementation of international agreements and national regulations that are in force on board the vessels entitled to fly the State’s flag, whether they are.  

Each flag state has set up its own flag state control system;

• In Australia, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) provide flag state control.  

• In Hong Kong, the Marine Department is responsible for flag state control. 

• In India, the Directorate General of Shipping is responsible for flag state control. 

• In the United Kingdom, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is responsible for port state control.

• In the United States, the Coast Guard, under the authority of various federal laws, regulation and international conventions and treaties, the Officer in Charge Marine  inspections is responsible for the inspection of the US flag vessels to ensure compliance operating throughout the world.  

• In Myanmar, Department of Marine Administration is responsible for flag state control.  dma.gov.mm/ 

Port State Control is the process by which a nation exercises its authority over foreign vessels when those vessels are in waters subject to its jurisdiction.  

The port State control system aims to verify whether foreign flagged vessels operating in waters of the State comply with applicable international conventions. When vessels that are not in substantial compliance with applicable laws or regulations are identified, the PSC  system imposes actions to ensure they are brought into compliance.  

Inspections are focused on those vessels most likely to be substandard, based on identified risk factors. The ultimate goal is to identify and eliminate substandard ships from regional waters.  

Inspection, by a port state control authority, at a port and anchorage under the jurisdiction of the port state, of vessels flying flags other than that of the port state for the purpose of enforcing international standard for maritime safety and security, pollution prevention and  onboard living and working conditions.

SOLAS: “Safety of Life at Sea”, an international maritime treaty, also known a SOLAS 

Convention or International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which establishes the least safety measures in the construction, equipment and operation of merchant ships.  

IMO SOLAS 74, the last adopted revised convention of 1974, includes a number of regulations under different SOLAS chapters, which deals with safety precautions and safety procedures starting from the construction of the ship to real emergency like- “Abandon Ship”.  

STCW,1978: International Convention on Standard of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978 and entered into force on 28 April 1984. The main purpose of the Convention is to promote safety of life and property at sea and the protection of the marine environment by establishing in common agreement international standards of training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers. 

STCW 1995 Amendment (STCW 1995): The IMO adopted a comprehensive revision of 

STCW on 7 July 1995 which also included a proposal to develop a new STCW Code, which would contain the technical details associated with provisions of the Convention.  The amendment entered forced on 1st February1997. 

STCW 2010 Manila Amendments (STCW 2010): The Manila amendments to the STCW Convention and Code were adopted on 25 June 2010, making a major revision of the STCW Convention and Code. The STCW 2010 amendments are set to enter into force on 1st January 2012.

MARPOL: The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 

(MARPOL) was adopted on 2 November 1973 following a conference at the London headquarters of the International Maritime Organization, the United Nations agency responsible for the safety of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution.  

In 1978, in response to a spate of tanker accidents in 1976-1977, IMO held a Conference on Tanker 2 Safety and Pollution Prevention in February 1978. The conference adopted measures affecting tanker design and operation, which were incorporated into both the Protocol of 1978 relating to the 1974 Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea (1978 SOLAS Protocol) and the Protocol of 1978 relating to the 1973 

International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (1978 MARPOL Protocol).

The combined instrument is referred to as the 1973 International Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Ships, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating 

thereto (MARPOL 73/78), and it finally entered into force on 2 October 1983 (for Annexes I and II).  

Annex V, covering garbage, achieved sufficient ratifications to enter into force on 31 

December 1988, while Annex III, covering harmful substances carried in packaged form, entered into force on 1 July 1992. Annex IV, covering sewage, has received 71 ratifications (at September 1998), representing 42.50 percent of world shipping tonnage. 

In 1997, a new Annex VI on prevention of air pollution from ships was added.  

The development of regulations in the different MARPOL annexes is outlined below.

• Annex I - Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Oil 

• Annex II - Regulations for the Control of Pollution by Noxious Liquid Substances in Bulk  

• Annex III - Prevention of Pollution by Harmful Substances Carried by Sea in Packaged  Form 

• Annex IV - Prevention of Pollution by Sewage from Ships 

• Annex V - Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships

• Annex IV - Prevention of Pollution by Sewage from Ships

It is a comprehensive international labour Convention that was adopted by the International Labour Conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO), under article 19 of its Constitution, at a maritime session in February 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland.  

It sets out seafarers' rights to decent conditions of work and helps to create conditions of fair competition for shipowners. It is intended to be globally applicable, easily    understandable, readily updatable and uniformly enforced.

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) has been designed to become a global legal instrument that will be the ―fourth pillar‖ of the international regulatory regime for quality shipping, complementing the key Conventions of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) such as the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, as amended (SOLAS), the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping, 1978, as amended (STCW) and the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 73/78 (MARPOL).

The MLC, 2006 contains a comprehensive set of global standards, based on those that are already found in the maritime labour instruments (Conventions and Recommendations), adopted by the ILO between 1920 and 1996. It brings all, except four, 7 of the existing maritime labour instruments (International Labour Standards (ILS)) together in a single Convention that uses a new format, with some updating, where necessary, to reflect modern conditions and language. The Convention ―consolidates‖ and revises the existing international law on all these matters.

The basic aims of the MLC, 2006 are:  

• to ensure comprehensive worldwide protection of the rights of seafarers (the Convention is sometimes called the seafarers ‘Bill of Rights); 

• to establish a level playing field for countries and shipowners committed to providing decent working and living conditions for seafarers, protecting them from unfair competition on the part of substandard ships.

International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and for Pollution Prevention (International Safety Management (ISM) Code) 

All ships of 500 gross tonnage (GT) and over are required to operate a safety management system in compliance with the ISM Code. The ISM Code provides for safety management on board the ships to which it applies. The safety management system may not in itself cover all aspects of seafarer safety and health as required by the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC 2006), e.g., with respect to disease prevention.  

The purpose of ISM code is to provide an international standard for the safe management and operation of the ship and for pollution prevention.

A safety culture for personnel both ashore and afloat, working within the perimeter of the marine industry, to provide safer ships and cleaner seas. The ship remains compliant with ISM by carrying out periodic ‘audits’, by internal and external auditors, to meet the requirements of the code.  

The work of the auditors is intended to monitor all shipboard procedures to ensure safe operations are the norm. They will pay particular attention to planned maintenance schedules; where faults or defects occur within the ship’s systems, they will issue a non-conformity notification, usually time related, to return the ship to a quality standard.  

In the event that a serious defect is observed, which could jeopardize the overall safety of the ship or personnel on board, then the auditor may issue a major non-conformity, which could lead to a detention notice being placed against the ship unless the particular problem is resolved immediately.  Auditors, when carrying out their duties, will talk to any and all members of the crew to ensure the practices employed on board are within the company and national guidelines.  

Shipboard security is essential in reducing the risks of theft, terrorism, armed robbery, stowaways, piracy and drug smuggling. The International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code, published by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), was introduced on 1 July 2004 and provides a framework through which ships and port facilities can cooperate to detect and deter acts that threaten security in the maritime transport sector. The ISPS Code requires a ship security plan (SSP), which is kept up to date and relevant to the particular ship. The SSP covers, amongst other criteria, the procedures required at different security levels:

• to prevent unauthorised weapons, dangerous substances and devices intended for use against persons, ships or ports from being taken aboard; 

• to prevent unauthorised access to the ship; 

• to respond to security threats or breaches of security;  for the use of the ship security alert system; and

• to maintain the ship’s security infrastructure.