Assessment 1

The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

Michael Tsakiris New York College (NYC) University of Greenwich

Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

Introduction:
The seafarer is the general term for men and women who work on ships at sea. Not only do they have rights but also they have obligations. Their rights are protected from various organizations such as I.L.O. (International labor organization). Their obligations, concerning the proper operation and safety of the ship, have to guarantee for them to the shipping company. This guarantee can be created through an IMO convention due to its high importance. This IMO convention is the Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW). This convention contains the most important information for STCW convention such as the amendments that took place throughout the years and how this code can help.

STCW code throughout the years:

Before the adoption of this convention, the standards of training, the certification and the watch keeping of officers were made by every government desires, usually without reference to practices in other countries. The results of this action were that the standards and the procedures varied widely depending on any country even though shipping is the most international of all industries. The first draft of this convention was made in 1978 by the International Maritime Organization. The first amendment was made in 1991. After 3 years a new amendment was made. The third amendment was made in 1995. In this amendment compared to the last two, new chapters were added. The amendments that were made in 1997, in 1998 and in 2006 had few reforms in some of the existed chapters. The latest amendment of the code was made in Manila in 2010. In this amendment almost all chapters updated.

The STCW 78 amendment:

As I mentioned above, the 1978 conversion was the first convention which established basic requirements on training certification and watch keeping for seafarers. This convention sets the minimum standards for training, certification and watch keeping for seafarers which countries are obliged to meet or exceed. The Convention did not deal with manning levels because it was the same with the chapter (chapter V) of SOLAS convention. The Articles of the Convention include requirements relating to issues that surround certification and port State control. The most important feature of this convention was that when ships of non-party States visit ports of States which are Parties of the Convention, these ships have to comply with some of the measures depending on ships flag.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

This feature ensures that no more favorable treatment is given to ships entitled to fly the flag of a State which is not a party member than is given to ships entitled to fly the flag of a State which is a Party. This convention has received such wide acceptance. More specific, almost 98% of world shipping tonnage i.e. 135 Parties were adopted the convention by December 2000 due to the difficulties which could occur for ships of non party states. All of the chapters of this amendment according to the I.M.O webpage are the following:

Chapter I:General provisions

This chapter includes a list of definitions of terms used in the annex. Regulation I/2 have to do with the content of the certificate and endorsement form. All certificates must include a translation into English, if that is not the official language of the issuing country.

Chapter II: Master-deck department

The Chapter establishes basic principles to be observed in keeping a navigational watch, covering such matters as watch arrangements, fitness for duty, navigation, navigational equipment, navigational duties and responsibilities, the duties of the look-out, navigation with a pilot on board and protection of the marine environment. The regulations include mandatory minimum requirements for certificating masters and chief mates; for certification of officers in charge of a navigational watch; and for certification of deck ratings forming part of a navigational watch. The regulations also include basic principles to be observed in keeping watch in port and mandatory minimum requirements for a watch in port on ships carrying hazardous cargo.

Chapter III: Engine department

In this chapter are included basic principles to be observed in keeping an engineering watch; mandatory minimum requirements for certification of chief engineer officers and second engineer officers; mandatory minimum requirements for certification of engineer officers in charge of a watch in a traditionally manned engine room or designated duty officers in a periodically unmanned engine room; requirements to ensure the continued proficiency and updating of knowledge for engineer officers; mandatory minimum requirements for ratings forming part of an engine room watch.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

Chapter IV: Radio department

The Chapter in STCW includes mandatory minimum requirements for certification of radio officers; provisions designed to ensure the continued proficiency and updating of knowledge of radio officers; and minimum requirements for certification of radiotelephone operators. Notes that mandatory provisions relating to radio watch keeping are set forth in the ITU Radio Regulations and safety radio watch keeping and maintenance provisions are included in the same regulations and in SOLAS.

Chapter V: Special requirements for tankers

The Chapter was designed to ensure that officers and ratings who are to have specific duties related to the cargo and cargo equipment of tankers shall have completed an appropriate shore-based fire-fighting course; and have completed either an appropriate period of shipboard service or an approved familiarization course. Requirements are more stringent for masters and senior officers. Attention is paid not only to safety aspects but also to pollution prevention. The Chapter contains three regulations dealing with oil tankers, chemical tankers and liquefied gas tankers, respectively.

Chapter VI: Proficiency in survival craft

The last chapter establishes requirements governing the issuing of certificates of proficiency in survival craft. An appendix lists the minimum knowledge required for the issue of certificates of proficiency.

The 1991 amendments:

This years amendments have to do with Global maritime distress and safety system (GMDSS). Specifically, some requirements have added in chapter IV of the 1995 amendment. These requirements have to do with the certification of training to crew members as radio operators and as personnel which can perform maintenance on board installations for GMDS system. This amendment entered into force on 1 December 1992.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

The 1994 amendments:

The 1994 amendments replaced chapter V of the 78 amendments. This chapter, as I mentioned earlier, has to do with the special training for crew on tankers. This amendment entered into force on 1 January 1996.

The 1995 amendment:

The STCW 1995 amendments, adopted by a Conference, represented a major revision of the old Convention, in response to a recognized need to bring the Convention up to date. The 1995 amendments entered into force after two years. Until the 1 February 2002, seafarers may continue to recognize certificates which applied before that date because of cooperatives who began training or seagoing service before the 1 August 1998. One of the major features of the revision was the division of the technical annex into regulations, divided into Chapters as before, and a new STCW Code, to which many technical regulations have been transferred. This amendment includes all the old chapters along with 3 more. These three according to I.M.O webpage are the following:

Chapter V: Special training requirements for personnel on certain types of ships

This change was made in response to proposals made by the Panel of Experts set up to look into safety following the capsize and sinking of the ferry Estonia in September 1994. Crews on ferries have to receive training in technical aspects and also in crowd and crisis management and human behavior. Before of this change the only special requirements concerned crews on tankers

Chapter VI: Emergency, occupational safety, medical care and survival functions
The Chapter incorporates the previous Chapter VI: Proficiency in survival craft and includes mandatory minimum requirements for familiarization, basic safety training and instruction for all seafarers; mandatory minimum requirements for the issue of certificates of proficiency in survival craft, rescue boats and fast rescue boats; mandatory minimum requirements for training in advanced firefighting; and mandatory minimum requirements relating to medical first aid and medical care.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

Chapter VII: Alternative certification

Regulations regarding alternative certification (also known as the functional approach) are included in a new Chapter VII. This involves enabling crews to gain training and certification in various departments of seafaring rather than being confined to one branch (such as deck or engine room) for their entire career. Although it is a relatively new concept, the 1995 Conference was anxious not to prevent its development. At the same time, the new Chapter is intended to ensure that safety and the environment are not threatened in any way. The use of equivalent educational and training arrangements is permitted under article IX.

Chapter VIII: Watch keeping

This chapter includes some information about resting hours and watch keeping principles and arrangements The basic training that is needed in order to get the certificate includes: Personal safety and social responsibility ( emergency procedures, precautions to prevent sea pollutions etc) Fire prevention and fire fighting ( theory of combustion, extinguishing methods etc) Personal surviving techniques ( use of survival gear, abandon ship etc) Elementary first aid (adult basic life support, injury treatment etc)

Furthermore, a great difference between the 78 and the 95 is that the STCW 95 code contains Part A and Part B. Part A is all the mandatory standards of training, certification and watch keeping such as navigation skills, marine engineer, maintenance and repair, radio communications etc. Part B does not contain mandatory requirements, but suggestions on training, certification and watch keeping. This amendment entered into force on 1 February 1997.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

The 1997 amendments:

The amendment of 97 refers to personnel on passenger vessels. It includes additional regulations in chapter V and especially on mandatory minimum requirements for the training of officers and other personnel on passenger ships. Other amendments which were made to the STCW code were: covering crowd management training familiarization training safety training for personnel providing direct service to passengers in passenger spaces passenger safety crisis management and human behavior training

This amendment entered into force on 1 January 1999.

The 1998 Amendments:

The Amendments of the STCW Code have to do with the crew on bulk carriers ships. The basic matter is the improvement of minimum standards of crew training relating to cargo securing, loading and unloading on bulk carriers vessels. These amendments refer to Chapter II under Cargo handling and stowage at the operational and management levels. This amendment entered into force on 1 January 2003.

The 2006 amendments:

The 2006 amendments added a new minimum mandatory training and a certification of requirements. The crew who are planned to be security officers (SSOs) must meet the above requirements. The amendments of the STCW Convention and of the parts A and B of the STCW Code include Requirements for the issue of certificates of proficiency for Ship Security Officers, Specifications of minimum standards of proficiency for ship security officers, and Guidance regarding training for Ship Security Officers.

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

Additional amendments to part A of the STCW Code added additional training requirements for the launching and recovery of fast rescue boats. The amendments have been prepared in response to reports of injuries of seafarers in numerous incidents involving the launching and recovery of fast rescue boats in adverse weather conditions. This amendment entered into force on 1 January 2008.

The 2010 amendments

The Manila amendment of the STCW Convention is the latest amendment. This code amendment is a major update of all the chapters of the STCW. According to IMO website the changes are the following: Improved measures to prevent fraudulent practices associated with certificates of competency and strengthen the evaluation process (monitoring of Parties' compliance with the Convention) Revised requirements on hours of work and rest and new requirements for the prevention of drug and alcohol abuse, as well as updated standards relating to medical fitness standards for seafarers New certification requirements for able seafarers New requirements relating to training in modern technology such as electronic charts and information systems (ECDIS) New requirements for marine environment awareness training and training in leadership and teamwork New training and certification requirements for electro-technical officers Updating of competence requirements for personnel serving on board all types of tankers, including new requirements for personnel serving on liquefied gas tankers New requirements for security training, as well as provisions to ensure that seafarers are properly trained to cope if their ship comes under attack by pirates Introduction of modern training methodology including distance learning and web-based learning New training guidance for personnel serving on board ships operating in polar waters New training guidance for personnel operating Dynamic Positioning Systems

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

This amendment code was adopted on 25 June 2010. The amendments are set to enter into force on 1 January 2012 under the tacit acceptance procedure and are aimed at bringing the Convention and Code up to date with developments since they were initially adopted and to enable them to address issues that are anticipated to emerge in the foreseeable future.

The reasons for the amendments of SCTW convention:

Throughout the years as I mentioned above the SCTW convention has amended several times but three of them have changed the convention radically. When the convention was drafted in 1978, there was only the IMO convention with a low importance matter due to the SOLAS convention. The only reason to adopt this convention was the difficulty with the ports of the party members states when no parties states ships was reaching. So, many states have adopted this convention. After seventeen years, a new amendment was drafted. This amendment was created in order to bring up to date the convection. Moreover, it includes technical regulations. The basic aim for this amendment was the ferry Estonia which in 1944 at the Baltic Sea sank due to the crews incorrect handling. This tragedy took the lives of 800 people. This happened because the crew did not know how could react in such circumstances. Specifically, they did not evacuate the ship and the mayday procedure was incorrect. In addition, if the crew at the engine room and the crewman, watch keeper, who had checked the door locks, were trained properly maybe this tragedy could be avoided. In my opinion, with such incorrect handlings, this amendment was mandatory. The last amendment took place in Manila. This amendment is the latest. The reason for this amendment is clearly the technological development in the marine industry. The chapters include improved technical matters from information systems to the requirements that the seafarers have to follow in case of delivering liquefied gas. This amendment took place in Manila because of the street market theater named Rixal Park. In this park, many untrained seafarers look for a job in shipping companies with few earnings. In this code I think three things should be improved. Firstly, at the 95 amendment there is a list which was published by IMO and named White list. This list includes all the flag states which have adopted and entered into force all the code chapters. Any other vessel flying flags of countries that are not on the list it becomes a possible target of port state ships inspectors. This is like extortion to non enlisted countries to adopt the code because if they dont, they might have problem. The enlisted flag states have to hire certificated crew. This matter should be changed as well. In my opinion, any crewman has to be certificated. Because of the wrong policy of IMO at this code everyone could have a certificate original or no. Many seafarers are hired and they have fake certificate because shipping companies ask

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Assessment 1
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping (STCW) have evolved from the original 1978 Convention to 1995; and more recently to 2010 (Manila). Critically analyze why these changes were necessary and how they have been influenced through the evolution of the industry in general.

for it. Through the Seafarers International Research Centre (SIRC) statistics we can see that a large number of certificates are fraudulent. This is a major problem because it seems to be simple or someone could say it is just a certificate but they are not right. In some situations untrained persons can react improper and the result may be harmful for the operation of the vessel and the safety of the passengers. At manila amendment, the code support that any crew member have to rest minimum ten hours. Many times, for example, seafarers have to work more than 14 hours because of the extra work that comes up when the ship arrives at docks for loading, unloading etc. or a serious problem appears and prevents the normal operation of the vessel. If we dont follow that rule, every crew member is breaking the law. If crew members follow that rule, two things could happen either the ship owner will hire more crew members meaning that the expenses will be increased or the vessel will have problems with time frames.

Conclusion:
The Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping convention is necessary to adopt amendments according to the evolution of the marine industry. As the ships technology becomes more and more complicated, more trained staff is needed to exploit it. This trained person could differ from others if is certifying his/her training with, the original and not fake, certificate of this convention.

Bibliography: International Maritime Organization (1992.) STCW 1978: International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watch keeping for Seafarers, 1978, 1991 amendments. London: International Maritime Organization Bernardo O. Rojas (March 2002). STCW-95: A GUIDE FOR SEAFARERS. 2nd ed. London: The International Transport Workers Federation (ITF). International Maritime Organization. Stcw-convention. Available at: http://www.imo.org/ourwork/humanelement/trainingcertification/pages/stcwconvention.aspx. [Accessed 7/12/12] STCW.org. What is the STCW Convention? . Available at: http://www.stcw.org/big.html. . [Accessed 10/12/12] Transport Canada, 2010. STCW 1978-AMENDMENTS. Available at: http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/rsqa-imo-stcw1978-1612.htm. [Accessed 16/12/12]. The sinking of ESTONIA (2010) Directed by Discovery channel (video). Discovery channel: Zero hour.

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