Chamber of British Shipping: British shipping safety awareness award winners announced

Wednesday, 25, Nov 2009 12:00

The winners have been announced for the 2009 British Shipping Safety Awareness Awards. A ceremony was held at The Chamber of Shipping in London on Friday 20 November 2009, and the prizes were presented to the winners by Rear Admiral Sir Jeremy de Halpert, Deputy Master of Trinity House.

The competition asked students to suggest an idea which they think would lead to improvements in any aspect of health and safety at sea. The project should be original, innovative and capable of implementation.

First prize has been awarded to Martyn James, aged 25, from Brough near Hull, East Yorkshire, who is studying Nautical Science at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies, sponsored by Holland America Line.

Martyn has developed an AIR (Anoxia Immediate Response) Device to prevent loss of life in enclosed spaces onboard ship. The device is a simple facemask and respirator but with an atmosphere detector and regulated air supply included. The device should be used in conjunction with existing policies and practices, but its use could make the difference between life and death in an enclosed space.

Second prize has been given to Kyle Mackenzie, aged 21 from Glasgow, who is studying Nautical Science at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies and is sponsored by Conway Merchant Navy Trust and Chiltern Maritime.

Kyle’s project proposed a photo-luminescent fire hose to improve fire fighting safety at sea. This would make the hose more visible to the firefighting and hose-running teams where smoke and darkness can further complicate the already dangerous task of firefighting.

Meanwhile, third prize has been jointly awarded to two students. Adam Smith aged 22, from Bolton in Lancashire, who is studying Marine Studies at the University of Plymouth sponsored by Ship Safety Training Group and Rachel Norris aged 18, from Chester, studying at Fleetwood Nautical College and sponsored by Anglo Eastern.

Adam Smith proposed the application of thermal imaging cameras to eradicate a ship’s blind spot created by the bow and deck cargo. The imaging would pick out any signs of heat from engines, accommodation or life even in the heaviest rain or fog and would be particularly useful in narrow navigation channels and emergency situations such as man overboard.

Finally, Rachel Norris set out her project to recommend that regulations should be changed to ensure all Merchant Navy vessels provide suitable sanitary materials for any women on board, a regulation that at present does not apply to many ships, despite an increasing number of women at sea.

The national awards which have been running for more than 15 years attract entries from all over the country, and are sponsored by Trinity House and organised by the Chamber of Shipping.

“A career at sea is hugely rewarding and offers a wide range of challenges and early responsibility for young and gifted cadets,” says Donna Stevens, who runs the competition for the Chamber of Shipping.

“This popular competition is a great opportunity for trainee officers and ratings to think practically and imaginatively about improving safety at sea. Often they approach an issue in a way that more experienced seafarers wouldn’t, offering a fresh and interesting approach to universal problems.”

The students have won cash prizes for their work. First prize is £1,000 for the winner and £400 for their college, second prize £750 for the student and £400 for their college, while third prize wins £500 and again £400 for their college.

The awards are open to all trainee officers and trainee ratings studying Merchant Navy Training Board approved courses.

ENDS

Notes to editor

• For further information on the awards contact Claire Sneddon on 0207 417 2888 or Claire.sneddon@british-shipping.org or Donna Stevens MNTB on 0207 417 2840 or donna.stevens@mntb.org

• The Chamber of Shipping is the trade association for the UK shipping industry, working to promote and protect the interests of its members both nationally and internationally. With 141 members and associate members, the Chamber represents over 898 ships of about 23 million gross tonnes and is recognised as the voice of the UK shipping industry. For more information on British Shipping, please visit: http://www.british-shipping.org

• Trinity House is the General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales, the Channel Islands and Gibraltar, responsible for a range of general aids to navigation, 'signs of the sea', from lighthouses to radar beacons. Trinity House is also a charitable organisation dedicated to the safety, welfare and training of mariners and a Deep Sea Pilotage Authority providing expert navigators for ships trading in Northern European waters.

• Both the Chamber of Shipping and Trinity House are partners of Sea Vision UK, the nationwide communications campaign raising awareness of the sea and the maritime sector, www.seavisionuk.org