1 Scope and purpose of the Guidelines
1.1 Seafarers often change ships and sometimes are not familiar with the
lifeboats on their ships. Casualties with lifeboat systems are often caused by poor
understanding of the lifeboat systems, especially release gear systems.
User-friendliness of manuals for lifeboat systems is, therefore, important to help
prevent casualties.
1.2 The purpose of these Guidelines is to encourage development of
user-friendly manuals for operation and maintenance of lifeboat systems including
launching appliances. These manuals should be easy to understand. The Guidelines
demonstrate the appropriate level of detail and use of illustrations in explaining
the safe use of critical systems. Manufacturers of lifeboats and launching/recovery
appliances are invited to make manuals easy to understand, taking into account these
guidelines. The use of video materials in conjunction with printed manuals can be an
effective tool for mariners who may not be inclined to read a manual.
1.3 These Guidelines are not applicable to the emergency instructions
required by SOLAS regulation III/8, operating instructions such as posters and signs
required by SOLAS regulation III/9 or other brief instructions for operation of
lifeboats.
1.4 These guidelines are for manuals to be carried on ships for use by
seafarers, and accordingly the section on weekly and monthly inspection and
maintenance does not refer to detailed maintenance/repair work. Detailed
maintenance/repair work should be conducted by the manufacturer's representative or
a person appropriately trained and certified by the manufacturer for the work in
accordance with MSC.1/Circ.1206/Rev.1 on Measures to prevent accidents
with lifeboats.
2 Collaboration of manufacturers of the lifeboat and the launching
appliance
A manual for a lifeboat system including launching appliance should be
developed with the collaboration of manufacturers of the lifeboat and the launching
appliance and preferably be a single document. As a minimum, the use of different
words for the same gear/parts of the lifeboat system should be eliminated by the
collaboration of manufacturers of the lifeboat and the launching appliance to
prevent misunderstanding by seafarers. Hereafter, these Guidelines assume a manual
for a lifeboat system including the launching appliance as a minimum, but separate
lifeboat, release gear, and launching appliance manuals may be effective if
adequately coordinated and using the same style of presentation per these
guidelines.
3 Contents of a manual for a lifeboat system
3.1 Items to be included
An operation and maintenance manual for a lifeboat system should include,
as a minimum, the following items:
-
.1 overview and specification of the lifeboat system;
-
.2 explanation of the structure and working principle of the major parts
of the lifeboat system including release gear systems;
-
.3 operation of the lifeboat system; and
-
.4 routine inspection and maintenance of the lifeboat system.
3.2 Organization, description and layout of manual
3.2.1 Outline
It is recommended that a manual for a lifeboat system be developed with
the following major divisions:
-
.1 General description of the whole lifeboat system.
-
.2 Method of checking proper closure of release hooks.
-
.3 Launching operation.
-
.4 Recovery operation.
-
.5 On-load/off-load release gear.
-
.6 Inspection and maintenance.
3.2.2 Explanation of major components and their function
The structure and working principle of the lifeboat's major components,
in particular the on-load/off-load release gear, should be explained using figures
and preferably three-dimensional perspectives. In addition, the operation of the
release gear should be described sequentially, using short phrases written in the
active voice.
3.2.3 Operation of lifeboat system including release gear systems
The operation of the lifeboat system should be described using the
following elements:
-
.1 flow of the operation should be explained;
-
.2 detail of operation should be explained with figures. Operation and
relevant movement of the parts of the release gear should be described
with illustrations/photos, preferably using annotations and arrows to
show direction of movement; and
-
.3 hazards, precautions and notes should be identified with symbols
specific to the level of risk. As an example of the various levels of
risk and the appropriate associated symbols, the following are
recommended:
-
- .2 For the second highest level of risk, such as in
the explanation of "davit arm stop release operation", the following
symbol (yellow background) should be used with a caution statement
similar to the following:
-
- .3 For less critical mandatory instructions the
following symbol (blue background) should be used with appropriate
instruction:
-
- .4 Important notes may be emphasized with symbol and
style of instructions similar to the following:
-
- .5 Prohibited actions should use the following
symbol (coloured red) and style of instruction:
- Note: International standard symbols (ISO 3864-1 and ISO
7010) and the signs and markings depicted in resolution A.1116(30) are
recommended where appropriate, but since these standards, and they fail to
indicate different levels of risk, the "graduated" symbols of paragraph 3.2.3.3
are recommended.
3.2.4 Inspection and maintenance
The items for weekly and monthly inspection/maintenance and other
inspection/maintenance should each be explained separately.
4 Improvement of user-friendliness of a manual
4.1 Use of figures/photographs
Figures, preferably coloured, or photographs should be used as far as practicable to
make manuals easy to understand.
4.2 Use of standard wording
The following standard wording should be used to explain lifeboat systems where
provided, and for each of the applicable items illustrations should be provided to
show the items and their location in the lifeboat or on the ship. The use of
alternative terms for variety should be avoided, except to further define or clarify
a term so that the reader never has to guess what item or system is being discussed.
5 Example of an operation and
maintenance manual for a lifeboat system
An example of an operation and maintenance manual for a fire-protected
lifeboat system is attached in the following pages just for reference. It
demonstrates the suitable level of detail that should be expected for manuals. It
should be noted that lifeboat systems are different from each other and some
specifications in the example manual are not applicable to lifeboat systems of other
types. The example attached at appendix is a model manual which is recommended as an
example for developing specific manuals for lifeboat systems launched by falls, but
the same general principles should be used for manuals for freefall lifeboat
systems.