The purpose of the Ship/Shore Safety Checklist is
to improve working relationships between ship and terminal, and thereby
to improve the safety of operations. Misunderstandings occur and mistakes
can be made when ships' officers do not understand the intentions
of the terminal personnel, and the same applies when terminal personnel
do not understand what the ship can and cannot safely do.
Completing the checklist together is intended to help
ship and terminal personnel to recognize potential problems, and to
be better prepared for them.
1.
Is the depth of water at
the berth, and the air draught,footnote adequate
for the cargo operations to be completed?
The depth of water should be determined over the entire area
the ship will occupy, and the terminal should be aware of the ship's
maximum air draught and water draught requirements during operations.
Where the loaded draught means a small underkeel clearance at departure,
the Master should consult and confirm that the proposed departure
draught is safe and suitable.
The ship should be provided
with all available information about density and contaminates of the
water at the berth.
2.
Are mooring arrangements
adequate for all local effects of tide, current, weather, traffic
and craft alongside?
Due regard should be given to the need for adequate fendering
arrangements. Ships should remain well secured in their moorings.
Alongside piers or quays, ranging of the ship should be prevented
by keeping mooring lines taut; attention should be given to the movement
of the ship caused by tides, currents or passing ships and by the
operation in progress.
Wire ropes and fibre ropes should
not be used together in the same direction because of differences
in their elastic properties.
3.
In emergency, is the ship
able to leave the berth at any time?
The ship should normally be able to move under its own power
at short notice, unless agreement to immobilise the ship has been
reached with the terminal representative, and the port authority where
applicable.
In an emergency a ship may be prevented from
leaving the berth at short notice by a number of factors. These include
low tide, excessive trim or draught, lack of tugs, no navigation possible
at night, main engine immobilised, etc. Both the ship and the terminal
should be aware if any of these factors apply, so that extra precautions
can be taken if need be.
The method to be used for any
emergency unberthing operation should be agreed taking into account
the possible risks involved. If emergency towing-off wires are required,
agreement should be reached on their position and method of securing.
4.
Is there safe access between
the ship and the wharf?
The means of access between the ship and the wharf must be safe
and legal, and may be provided by either ship or terminal. It should
consist of an appropriate gangway or accommodation ladder with a properly
fastened safety net underneath it. Access equipment must be tended,
since it can be damaged as a result of changing heights and draughts; persons responsible for tending it must be agreed between the ship
and terminal, and recorded in the checklist.
The
gangway should be positioned so that it is not underneath the path
of cargo being loaded or unloaded. It should be well illuminated during
darkness. A lifebuoy with a heaving line should be available on board
the ship near the gangway or accommodation ladder.
5.
Is the agreed ship/terminal
communications system operative?
Communication should be maintained in the most efficient way
between the responsible officer on duty on the ship and the responsible
person ashore. The selected system of communication and the
language to be used, together with the necessary telephone numbers
and/or radio channels, should be recorded in the checklist.
6.
Are the liaison contact
persons during operations positively identified?
The controlling personnel on ship and terminal must maintain
an effective communication with each other and their respective supervisors. Their names, and if appropriate where they can be contacted, should
be recorded in the checklist.
The aim should be
to prevent development of hazardous situations, but if such a situation
does arise, good communication and knowing who has proper authority
can be instrumental in dealing with it.
7.
Are adequate crew on board,
and adequate staff in the terminal, for emergency?
It is not possible or desirable to specify all conditions, but
it is important that a sufficient number of personnel should be on
board the ship and in the terminal throughout the ship's stay, to
deal with an emergency.
The signals to be used in the
event of an emergency arising ashore or on board should be clearly
understood by all personnel involved in cargo operations.
8.
Have any bunkering operations
been advised and agreed?
The person on board in charge of bunkering must be identified,
together with the time, method of delivery (hose from shore, bunker
barge, etc.) and the location of the bunker point on board. Loading
of bunkers should be co-ordinated with the cargo operation. The terminal
should confirm agreement to the procedure.
9.
Have any intended repairs
to wharf or ship whilst alongside been advised and agreed?
Hot work, involving welding, burning or use of naked flame,
whether on the ship or the wharf may require a hot work permit. Work
on deck which could interfere with cargo work will need to be co-ordinated.
In the case of combination carrier a gas free certificate
(including for pipelines and pumps) will be necessary, issued by a
shore chemist approved by the terminal or port authority.
10.
Has a procedure for reporting
and recording damage from cargo operations been agreed?
Operational damage can be expected in a harsh trade. To avoid
conflict, a procedure must be agreed, before cargo operations commence,
to record such damage. An accumulation of small items of damage to
steel work can cause significant loss of strength for the ship, so
it is essential that damage is noted, to allow prompt repair.
11.
Has the ship been provided
with copies of port and terminal regulations, including safety and
pollution requirements and details of emergency services?
Although much information will normally be provided by a ship's
agent, a fact sheet containing this information should be passed to
the ship on arrival, and should include any local regulations controlling
the discharge of ballast water and hold washings.
12.
Has the shipper provided
the master with the properties of the cargo in accordance with the
requirements of chapter VI of SOLAS?
The shipper should pass to the Master, for example, the grade
of cargo, particle size, quantity to be loaded, stowage factor, and
cargo moisture content. The IMSBC Code gives
guidance on this.
The ship should be advised of any material
which may contaminate or react with the planned cargo, and the ship
should ensure that the holds are free of such material.
13.
Is the atmosphere safe
in holds and enclosed spaces to which access may be required, have
fumigated cargoes been identified, and has the need for monitoring
of atmosphere been agreed by ship and terminal?
Rusting of steelwork or the characteristics of a cargo may cause
a hazardous atmosphere to develop. Consideration should be given to:
oxygen depletion in holds; the effect of fumigation either of cargo
to be discharged, or of cargo in a silo before loading from where
gas can be swept on board along with the cargo with no warning to
the ship; and leakage of gases, whether poisonous or explosive, from
adjacent holds or other spaces.
14.
Have the cargo handling
capacity and any limits of travel for each loader/unloader been passed
to the ship/terminal?
The number of loaders or unloaders to be used should be agreed,
and their capabilities understood by both parties. The agreed
maximum transfer rate for each loader/unloader should be recorded
in the checklist.
Limits of travel of loading or
unloading equipment should be indicated. This is essential information
when planning cargo operations in berths where a ship must be shifted
from one position to another due to loading. Gear should always be
checked for faults and that it is clear of contaminates from previous
cargoes. The accuracy of weighing devices should be ascertained frequently.
15.
Has a cargo loading and
unloading plan been calculated for all stages of loading/deballasting
or unloading/ballasting?
Where possible the ship should prepare the plan before arrival.
To permit her to do so the terminal should provide whatever information
the ship requests for planning purposes. On ships which require longitudinal
strength calculations, the plan should take account of any permissible
maxima for bending moments and shear forces.
The plan
should be agreed with the terminal and a copy passed over for use
by terminal staff. All watch officers on board and terminal supervisors
should have access to a copy. No deviation from the plan should be
allowed without agreement of the master.
According
to SOLAS regulation VI/7, it is required
to lodge a copy of the plan with the appropriate authority of the
port State. The person receiving the plan should be recorded in the
checklist.
16.
Have the holds to be worked
been clearly identified in the loading or unloading plan, showing
the sequence of work, and the grade and tonnage of cargo to be transferred
each time the hold is worked?
The necessary information should be provided in the form as
set out in appendix 2 of this Code.
17.
Has the need for trimming
of cargo in the holds been discussed, and the method and extent been
agreed?
A well-known method is spout trimming, and this can usually
achieve a satisfactory result. Other methods use bulldozers, front-end
loaders, deflector blades, trimming machines or even manual trimming.
The extent of trimming will depend upon the nature of the cargo, and
must be in accordance with the IMSBC Code,
or the International Grain Code, as appropriate.
18.
Do both ship and terminal
understand and accept that if the ballast programme becomes out of
step with the cargo operations, it will be necessary to suspend cargo
operations until the ballast operation has caught up?
All parties will prefer to load or discharge the cargo without
stops if possible. However, if the cargo or ballast programmes are
out of step a stop to cargo handling must be ordered by the Master
and accepted by the terminal to avoid the possibility of inadvertently
overstressing the ship's structure.
A cargo operations
plan will often indicate cargo check points, when conditions will
also allow confirmation that the cargo and ballast handling operations
are in alignment.
If the maximum rate at which the ship
can safely accept the cargo is less than the cargo handling capacity
of the terminal, it may be necessary to negotiate pauses in the cargo
transfer programme or for the terminal to operate equipment at less
than the maximum capacity.
In areas where extremely cold
weather is likely, the potential for frozen ballast or ballast lines
should be recognized.
19.
Have the intended procedures
for removing cargo residues lodged in the holds while unloading, been
explained to the ship and accepted?
The use of bulldozers, front-end loaders or pneumatic/hydraulic
hammers to shake material loose, should be undertaken with care as
wrong procedures can damage or distort ships' steel work. Prior agreement
to the need and method intended, together with adequate supervision
of operators, will avoid subsequent claims or weakening of the ship's
structure.
20.
Have the procedures to
adjust the final trim of the loading ship been decided and agreed?
Any tonnages proposed at the commencement of loading for adjusting
the trim of the ship can only be provisional, and too much importance
should not be attached to them. The significance lies in ensuring
that the requirement is not overlooked or ignored. The actual quantities
and positions to be used to achieve final ship's trim will depend
upon the draft readings taken immediately beforehand. The ship
should be informed of the tonnage on the conveyor system since that
quantity may be large and must still be loaded when the order "stop
loading" is given. This figure should be recorded in the checklist.
21.
Has the terminal been advised
of the time required for the ship to prepare for sea, on completion
of cargo work?
The procedure of securing for sea remains as important as it
ever was, and should not be skimped. Hatches should be progressively
secured on completion so that only one or two remain to be closed
after cargo work is finished.
Modern deep water terminals
for large ships may have very short passages before the open sea is
encountered. The time needed to secure, therefore, may vary between
day or night, summer or winter, fine weather or foul weather.
Early advice must be given to the terminal if any extension
of time is necessary.