06 Feb Simwave Newsletter January 2020
Find out what happened at Simwave in our Newsletter January 2020. Sign up for the newsletter here for regular Simwave updates!
Simwave Newsletter January 2020
Sulphur Cap 2020: from compliance to competence
The sulphur cap 2020 is a major step forward in environmentally sound and sustainable shipping. Can compliance with the new regulations be succesfully achieved with only new techniques? Or are the people who operate these techniques making the difference?
Without any delay the new sulphur regulations came into effect on January 1st of this year. This means a considerable change in the maximum sulphur content in ship fuels: from 3,5% in 2012 to just 0,5% now. This change fits with other air emission requirements already in effect.
A lot of shipowners probably have their eyes focussed now on the prices and the availability of low sulphur fuels and MGO. Furthermore, owners with scrubbers running are asking themselves if perhaps the investment in these scrubbers will appear to be the right decision. Moreover, how will the price and availability of high sulphur fuel develop? Only vessels equipped with scrubbers can still use this fuel. It is yet too early to draw any conclusions on this, time will tell.
The essence of a competent crew
Not much evidence exists on how people aboard ships deal with the new regulations. What are their experiences in remaining compliant with the sulphur cap? For instance, does it in one way or another increase the level of stress or fatigue on board? Do crewmembers feel confident and sufficiently able to operate new equipment?
If one searches ‘sulphur cap 2020’ on Google, there will probably be over 5 million results. Google on ‘sulphur cap 2020’ + ‘training’ and that number will be substantially lower. Still, having a competent crew is of the utmost importance and essential in remaining compliant.
Sulphur cap training
Helping shipping companies with a road map to come from compliance to competency is one of the major strengths of Simwave. We have all the expertise and advanced simulator equipment to train people on all aspects of the sulphur cap. Beacuse of this, a special course was developed to provide participants with knowledge and understanding of emissions to air regulations, technical provisions on board as well as the skills to operate them. The main topics of this training are ship fuels overview and characteristics, ship emissions from combustion, regulatory framework, fuel changeover, scrubber technology, LNG, and energy efficiency.
Emil Sokolov: Instructor Engin Room & High Voltage
Emil Sokolov
Emil Sokolov joins Simwave as Instructor Engine Room and High Voltage. On our website, he introduces himself and tells us about his previous job positions and professional experience:
Read the full article here.
Viking Development week at Simwave
At the end of January, participants of Viking River Cruises successfully completed an assessment. After an intensive week that consisted of learning various skills and performing knowledge assessments and trainings, 18 employees have been selected to be educated for helmsman. All the participants are together in the photo below with the supervisors and instructors.
Menno de Sera, Corporate Learning & Quality Manager of Viking Cruises: “I am super proud of our new 18 candidates who start their study in our Viking College Maritime. Here, quality is the leader!”
[scroll down for more articles below the photo]
Assessments for superyachts
Standards are high on superyachts. Owners and managers want to meet the highest standards and provide their guests with an unforgettable experience. Change of sailing plans, visiting remote areas, working with small teams; all these factors play a part in the day-to-day job of the crew on superyachts.
Learn more about Simwave’s assessments, both general and company specific, on our website by reading this article.
Autonomous shipping
On January 30th, the Port of Rotterdam and Simwave hosted a conference about Autonomous Shipping and the role of simulation in this field. Simwave’s focal point for autonomous shipping Cinthya Lopes provided a presentation about the relation between autonomous shipping and the use of simulators.
There are different definitions of autonomous shipping but in all cases, there is still a human element involved. Effectively, in a lot of projects the aim is often to work with less crew members on board or avoid a local pilot when entering a port. Technology gives us the opportunity to provide more and more accurate information to shore based control centres or to the bridge team. However, the more technology on board and the less crew members on board, the more specific training and assessments are required.
Different skill set
The future of shipping requires a different skill set of officers. To close the gap between current competencies and required competencies, training is required. On the other hand, we can use the data available on board of ships as input for the training. This is exactly what we already do at Simwave. Our bespoke training enables us to provide the proper training for each client.
If you would like to know more about all our services on autonomous shipping, please contact Cinthya Lopes.
