Page 6: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 1997)

MARITIME

REPORTER & ENGINEERING NEWS

EJMIOR'S NOTE T his month's product feature — Navigation & Communications

Technology (starting on page 26) — focuses on the amazing advances which satellite communications, electronic charting, and a host of additional marine electronics technological breakthroughs have meant to the effi- cient and safe operations of ships at sea. There is little doubt that navigation and communications advances have appreciably improved the process of sailing from point A to point B. Even the notoriously conservative maritime market has, slowly but surely, embraced these new technologies. But, as has been proven again and again, inside and outside of the maritime market, high technology alone is not a guarantee of success.

William O'Neil, head of the IMO, has continually stressed throughout his tenure (increasing in fre- quency and volume, of late) that focusing on the human factor is just as crucial as focusing on techno- logical advances, in terms of shipboard safety.

This point was hammered home most recently when two ships collided in the Singapore Strait, result- ing in one of the area's worst pollution incidents. According to Singapore police, Evoikos and Orapin

Global collided despite warnings from the port's high-tech radar-based Operations Control Center and its

Vessel Traffic Information System (VTIS) up to 13 minutes before the accident. "The Human Element" was addressed last month by ABS, which issued detailed guidelines for the application of ergonomics to marine systems. "We believe that the Human Element must be considered as an integral part of an overall safety culture," said ABS chairman Frank Iarossi.

U.S. Coastal Tankers Outlook

Kicking-off this month's Marine Finance section is a report from James R. McCaul, president of

International Maritime Associates, which analyzes the outlook for the construction of U.S. Coastal tankers. In discussing the "traditionally profitable market niche for U.S. shipbuilders" in his report, Mr.

McCaul estimates that the trade in the year 2007 will require five to 10 more tankers than are currently on the orderbooks.

Gregory R. Trauthwein, editorial director

Please contact me with any comments regarding the publication and!or news leads at: tel: +212-477-6700; fax: +212-254-6271; or e-mail: [email protected] the new weekly paper from the publishers of Maritime Reporter, provides crucial, timely, financial-related information for anyone conducting business in the maritime industry. For a FREE 4-

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