Seaways – August 2019

Conferences

Read Seaways online at http://www.nautinst.org/seaways August 2019 |  Seaways  |   29

IIMS CONFERENCE 2019

Î The annual International Institute of Marine
Surveying (IIMS) Conference took place at
Regent’s University in London from 17 to 18
June. The day begun with an introduction by
IIMS President Capt Zarir Irani AFNI before
Executive Officer Mike Schwarz updated the
audience on the organisation’s current activities,
new innovations and member benefits.
Neale Rodrigues, Divisional Director of Loss
Prevention at Britannia P&I Club, discussed what
a P&I club expects from a surveyor. Highlighting
the importance of accuracy in reports and
keeping the reader interested, he suggested
surveyors step back and learn the art of writing
a good report if they want to progress.
This was followed by a thought-provoking
presentation by Capt Nick Sloane FNI, a marine
salvage expert at Resolve known for his work
on the Costa Concordia. Capt Sloane introduced
the challenges involved in the pioneering
Southern Iceberg Project, which proposes
towing icebergs from Antarctica to help supply

South Africa, where water supplies are running

desperately low. There is great potential for

icebergs to become a major source of water,

with at least 140,000 icebergs breaking off from

the ice sheet every year. Each towing job comes

with its own unique challenges, including

finding and recovering the iceberg (many

are in the wrong position for towing) – and a

significant financial cost projected to reach the

billions over the lifetime of the project.

After lunch, Capt Zarir Irani took to the

floor again, this time presenting an insightful

discussion on cyber vulnerability for terminals

and vessels in confined waters. Capt Irani

praised the positive vigilance of the millennial

generation and emphasised the common

points where security is compromised, notably

when senior staff changes take place.

Karen Brain from Matrix Insurance explored

the importance of insurance contracts for

surveyors. She explained how to form a good

contract, including what clauses to include

and how to format before moving on to risk,

protection and analysis. Ms Brain warned

surveyors not to rely on insurance alone, as this

is only one pillar of risk management.

Michelle D’Silva and Shreya Shirodkar from

eDot Solutions spoke in depth about the new

IIMS Marine Surveyor Search app, which was

launched in February. Free to download, the

app aims to make finding a commercial, yacht

or small craft marine surveyor fast and simple.

It can be searched by area or specification.

Not only is it of benefit to IIMS members, but

it also makes the search easier for the boating

and yachting public, brokers, P&I clubs, marine

insurers, and others in need of a marine

surveyor, either on an occasional or ongoing

basis. It can be downloaded from the App Store

or Google Play Store.

Caitlin Kelly

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MARINE NAVIGATION AND SAFETY OF SEA NAVIGATION (TRANSNAV)

Î ‘More than 60 countries are involved in
TransNav 2019 as the Scientific Committee
members, reviewers, authors of papers,
presenters, attendees, exhibitors, and sponsors,’
said Conference Chairman, Prof Dr Adam
Weintrit, Master Mariner, FRIN, FNI and head of
the Poland Branch of The Nautical Institute, in
his opening address. It was very obvious that a
considerable number of attendees at this major
event had made the trip before. There were in
excess of 200 attendees and many had travelled
from as far afield as USA and Japan.
The welcome address from Prof Adam was
followed by an address from Capt Nick Nash
FNI CMMar, President of The Nautical Institute
(which I read as his stand-in), followed by Prof
Dr Janusz Zarebski, Rector of Gdynia Maritime
University who welcomed us all and declared
the conference open.
The formula seems well established,
consisting of a plenary session at the beginning
of each day and then parallel sessions, 15 on
day one and 20 on day two. On day two there
were also two poster sessions, one on Transport
and one on Navigation, 22 and 25 posters
respectively. I was particularly impressed by
those – considerable work had gone into
them and a huge amount of information was
contained in one poster space, no doubt the
result of many hours of work and research.
It was a genuine honour to be a part of this
major event, to chair the first plenary session
and say a few words of appreciation and
congratulation at the closing ceremony. It is
always a good opportunity at industry events
to meet other Nautical Institute members and
exchange views and news. The only criticism

I could make was that there was so much I

wanted to attend in the parallel streams and

it was not possible to be in more than one

place at one time! You will find all the papers

published at http://www.transnav.eu over the coming

year. See also http://transnav2019.am.gdynia.pl

TransNav in its present form was established

in 2005 as a means to bridge the gap between

theory and practice in both transport and

navigation, and to help to prevent any such

perceived gap widening. The organising

committee tries very hard to maintain the

practical/academic balance and looks critically

at the results of each successive year. Over the

years it has evolved into a fascinating two days,

and I can easily see why there are so many

who lock it into their annual calendar. Much

congratulation must go to Prof Adam and his

team for an extraordinary achievement in not

only co-ordinating the efforts of all speakers

but the reviewers as well and the logistics of

moving over 200 people around and keeping

exactly to the timetable.

The discipline of organisation and timing

may be acquired and taught, but the warmth

of the hospitality and welcome are innate

characteristics of our Polish friends, and those

of us lucky enough to know Poland always look

forward to a visit to the TriCity. This visit no less

than any other was highlighted by the Gala

Dinner, the Friends’ Dinner and then a great day

out on day three finishing with another superb

meal. Well done all round and congratulations

to all concerned in TransNav 2019 on your

contribution to nautical science and to the aims

of the Institute.

Capt Duncan McKelvie

Vice President, The Nautical Institute