NYK Shipmanagement enhances seafarer competence

Singapore: NYK Shipmanagement is to implement a crew appraisal and training system developed together with DNV. Under the agreement, DNV will verify and certify NYK Shipmanagement's competence management system based on a set of Officer Competence Standards developed by the two companies, and in compliance with specifications from the Society of International Gas Tankers (SIGTTO) and Terminal Operators and the Tanker Officer Training Standards (TOTS) from Intertanko.
"The initial contract is for verification and certification of the competence management system for operation of our tankers managed by NYK Shipmanagement Singapore," says Hemant Pathania, Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of NYK Shipmanagement, Singapore. "It is expected that this will lead to verification and certification of other vessels managed by NYK Shipmanagement."
NYK Shipmanagement aims to deploy the system on all of its 24 tankers by September this year and then move on to its entire managed fleet of 104 ships.
The competence management system, facilitated by DNV SeaSkill, will enable NYK Shipmanagement to systematically examine crew tasks, work tools, operating environment, officer's mental well being, training and experience and communication across different vessel types.
"Given today's challenges with crew competency and rising operational costs, NYK Shipmanagement and other shipping companies investing in such an undertaking stand to gain a competitive advantage," points out Amit Ray, Head of DNV SeaSkill Asia, who has been instrumental in securing the contract and shall be responsible for the delivery.
"We shall always strive to be innovative, also in these challenges times," says Hemant Pathania. "We need to utilize this recession period to recruit, train and retain high quality people so that we are well ahead of the pack when the economy recovers. We also hope that such competence management systems will - in due course - be accepted by the industry in lieu of the experience matrix now required by the industry." [22/04/09]

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