But who will guard the guards themselves?

Zakiriil Bhuiyan, Satinder Virdi and Christian Fellinger: training in need of an overhaul

Speakers tightened the focus on training as the day went on, with the spotlight falling on the IMO model course, manufacturer training, refresher and onboard provision – oh and the quality of the trainers themselves.

Stolt’s Petter Brandt said his company’s dissatisfaction with generic training meant that the tanker owner put more emphasis on type specific training with CBT and refreshers to follow-up. David Patraiko was not the first or last to say that many a student had more direct experience of ECDIS onboard ship than the person training them.

With an estimated 300,000-500,000 seafarers in need of training over the next few years, chair Melissa Hyak wanted to know how the industry would spot the cowboys. ECDIS Ltd’s Mark Broster agreed this was an issue which flag states should consider, whether through audit, an increase in the standards or addition to White List requirements for the flags themselves.

Capt Zakirul Bhuiyan of Warsash Maritime Academy suggested IMO should address the shortfall in training resources through capacity building in developing countries and by working with other stakeholders such as port state control.

His preference was for a five day minimum course  with type-specific training and a refresher but he said owners should really start considering how ECDIS mandation would affect their ISM Code procedure and safety management system.

Dave Elliot of Arklow remarked that he had PSC inspectors onboard everyone of his ships and they had no idea what the ECDIS was. Caris’ Christian Fellinger agreed that not enough chart producers had shipboard experience to appreciate how their charts would work on a busy bridge.

The debate kept going but in some ways the argument was becoming circular – training standards and methods need to be right so that the next generation of paperless bridge gets the best information delivered with the latest techniques.

There are a clutch of high quality training facilities out there but work is needed on approach, quality and validation, work that will require an approach as integrated as ECDIS itself.

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