Page 21: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (December 2012)

December 2012www.marinelink.com 21despite more sophisticated technologiesbeing available. Most importantly, it is the job of the surveyor to demonstrate to a court or ar- bitration panel that the evidence they are presenting is the most reliable and robust available. Although London in particu- lar has very qualified marine arbitrators and courts, the industry is witnessing ageographical shift change where many cases are now being presented to a judge who has little or no experience of being at sea. This lack of marine knowledge can often hinder a case, especially if the evi- dence being presented is technicallycomplex, subjective, or insubstantial due to the use of basic assessment techniques. Harnessing sophisticated technologiessuch as simulation and 3D animationwithin complex marine investigations can be the difference between winning and losing a case. Ultimately, technology can help to minimize the level of uncertainty and provide more robust evidence to courts and arbitration panels. So whatare these technologies and how much of an impact can they have? Although laboratory testing has beenaround for many years, the advanced quality and the level of testing is most certainly noteworthy. For example, if we are looking to detect possible chemicalcontaminants for a particular case, 10years ago we would be able to measure in parts per million. Today, through cut- ting edge technology and equipment weare able to measure in parts per billion,therefore the level of accuracy when de- termining possible contaminants is far greater. The ability to evaluate ship mo- tions by carrying out computer modellingor tank testing is also of significant ad- vantage, providing additional assurances that the conclusions reached are indeedcorrect and accurate.Determining the actual ship behavior at the time of the collision or incidentthrough innovative simulation techniques can provide the courts with a real appre- ciation of the conditions the ship experi- enced. By using the vessel?s recordings, AIS data (Automatic Identification Sys- tems) and environmental data (wind, cur- rent, sea state etc.), this information canbe directly plugged into a model whichsimulates how the vessel was behaving, leading up to the time of the accident orincident. This can provide the court or arbitration panel with a much clearer andaccurate picture of what actually hap-pened. Couple this with high quality metoceaninformation which is backed up by satel- lite observation and surveyors would be able to provide much more reliable and robust evidence. A ship owner can exon- erate its liability if it can prove that the weather at the time of the incident isdeemed excessive and extraordinary. Never in history have insurers or owners really succeeded in providing such infor- mation unless they were armed with weather statements from other ships inthe area at the time of the incident, whoalso experienced similar problems. In a recent case where BMT provided surveying support, a ship lost its hatch covers in extremely heavy weather and as a result, the cargo got wet and the ship al- most sunk. By providing detailed wave data that demonstrated the waves were in the region of 30 metres at the time of the accident, the insurance company suc- ceeded in proving that this incident oc- curred due to extreme weather conditions and the ship owner was able to exonerate itself from liability. Cases similar to this have resulted in a considerable step change in marine surveying and insur- ance as this type of evidence has never been available before. Furthermore, technology such as 3Danimation can use the predictions deter- mined by the simulation model to createa cartoon reproduction to visually appre-ciate the conditions and course of events at the time of the incident. This can be particularly effective for a judge who may not have any marine experience. Trying to explain to a judge, who has no knowledge of a ship, how the ship exactly behaved at the time of the incident, would be near impossible to do on a piece ofpaper. 3D animation therefore, is an ex- tremely effective way of presenting the case. By using these sophisticated technolo-gies, BMT is putting itself at the forefrontof marine surveying. Although shipping has always been described as a traditional market, the new generation of younger people coming into the industry and theirenthusiasm for new technology will cer- tainly help to drive such modern methods forward. However, as we see less and less ex-mariners handling the cases and more who are trying to solve these cases based on a legal merit alone, we must try to educate the industry in recognizingthat technological insight can be the dif-ference between winning and losing acase. MR#12 (18-25):MR Template 12/3/2012 12:01 PM Page 21