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A Clear Path
The M/V PIMLICO crew paints with safety in mind.
A darkened wheelhouse while underway is critical for clear night vision and safe navigation. While under this condition though, it can be difficult to negotiate the stairway down to the next deck with the minimal lighting.
The crew of the M/V PIMLICO decided to make their stairways as "visually friendly" as possible. The stair treads are painted a bright yellow which makes a stark contrast while framing the black non skid strips. Capt. Chris Garnet directed the crew to paint all the stairways onboard with this clear visual signal.
Even in dim lighting, the bright yellow paint makes it easy to distinguish each step.
Stairways and ladders are a serious source of injuries for maritime workers. Increasing their visibility make sense.
If we look at the construction business, OSHA estimates that there are 24,882 injuries and as many as 36 fatalities per year due to falls from stairways and ladders used in sites. Nearly half of these injuries are serious enough to require time off the job--11,570 lost workday injuries and 13,312 non-lost workday injuries occur annually due to falls from stairways and ladders used in construction.
Using proper handrail techniques as we discussed in the last Higman Training News Letter and most importantly taking your time when ascending and descending are critical in preventing keeping injury while using a vessel ladder or stairway.
The crew took this idea further and painted all potential tripping hazards and all low overhead head bump hazards throughout the boat. In the forward void, both on-deck tripping hazards and overhead bump hazards, are now clearly visible with the yellow paint markings.
The crew take safety seriously in all they do. Looking around the boat, safety gear is clearly organized and easily located when needed.
Thanks to the crew of the M/V PIMLICO for showing off their great work!
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Hard hats and life jackets are neatly organized. |
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Is Your Skiff Ready?
Around 11 PM you receive a radio call from a nearby tow for assistance. They have a man in the water and ask if you can launch your skiff to recover the man; theirs is not operating.
At an essential moment like this, do you know if the skiff on your boat will start right up? Each skiff is equipped with a 2 stroke engine. These engines are very simple to use and operate, but they do require some basic maintenance.
- Higman skiff's typically use SAE 10W-30 or SAE 10W-40. Use only the oil provided by Higman.
- Check the oil level before operation.
- Change the filter every 2 years.
 Fuel:
- Ensure you maintain enough fuel in the skiff.
- The fuel should be at least 87 octane. DO NOT MIX WITH OIL. Do not use a "E 85" gasoline. E 85 contains about 15% ethanol, which can be bad for the skiff.
- Adding STA-BIL Ethanol Treatment can counteract any ethanol in the fuel.
- Fuel filters should be checked regularly. Replace when dirty.
Cooling system: the skiff motor is cooled using the surrounding water. There is an intake on the lower end. The skiff should never be operated unless the lower end is in the water! After cooling the engine the water exits the pilot hole. If there is not a steady stream of water coming out of the pilot hole, shut the engine off immediately!
Some basic maintenance should keep the skiff operating smoothly. A quick inspection should be done prior to launching the skiff. Should you experience some issues with starting or running the skiff, here are some basic troubleshooting tips. A quick fix could have you up and running for your crew change.
- Recoil starter will not operate
- Make sure the shift lever is in neutral
- Hard to start
- Emergency stop lock plate is not in position
- Fuel hose is not all the way connected
- Fuel hose is kinked
- Spark plug is fouled
- Idles rough or stalls
- Choke is not pushed in completely
- Spark plug is fouled
- Engine overheats
- Cooling water intake is blocked
- Cooling water impeller is damaged
Oil |
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Nav Zone
Galveston RR Bridge update.
The Texas Waterway Operators Association and the Gulf Intracoastal Canal Association met with the Army Corp of Engineers last week to discuss channel width certification at the Galveston Rail Road Bridge.
At this time there is approval to dredge only a 100' channel through the bridges. The USACE said they have no plans to dredge to a 125' channel until September of 2013.
Presently industry groups are waiting for a new channel survey report fromthe USACE. Once the USACE gives that report to the USCG, the tow length restrictions should be lifted but there will still be a 70' width restriction until the 125' channel is completed.
We could hear something on lifting restrictions this week.
USCG Rules of the Road Questions
BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND During the day, a dredge will indicate the side on which it is safe to pass by displaying __________.
a. two balls in a vertical line
b. two diamonds in a vertical line
c. a single black ball
d. no shape is shown during the day
BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND A "head on" situation shall be deemed to exist at night when a power-driven vessel sees another power-driven vessel ahead and __________.
a. one sidelight and the masthead light are visible
b. the vessels will pass closer than half a mile
c. both vessels sound one prolonged blast
d. both sidelights and masthead light(s) are visible
BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND Your power-driven vessel is underway when you sight a sailing vessel on your port bow. Which vessel is the "stand-on" vessel?
a. The sailboat, because it is to port of your vessel
b. The sailboat, because it is under sail
c. Your vessel, because it is a power-driven vessel
d. Your vessel, because it is to starboard of the sailboat
BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND Five or more short blasts on a vessel's whistle indicates that she is __________.
a. in doubt that another vessel is taking sufficient action to avoid a collision
b. altering course to starboard
c. altering course to port
d. the stand-on vessel and will maintain course and speed
BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND Sailing vessels are stand-on over power-driven vessels except __________.
a. in a crossing situation
b. in a meeting situation
c. when they are the overtaking vessel
d. on the inland waters of the U.S.
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Stern Shots
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Painting season has begun on the M/V DRUM POINT. |
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Capt Mike Hazelwood's balloon Gorilla meets attendees at the first Wheelmen's Seminar. |
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Tankerman Sterling Kramer, from the M/V PIMLICO
gets hit by the camera. |
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Nautical Trivia
Shipyard time for the 1877 barque, S/V ELISSA.
The three masted iron barque, ELISSA, built in 1877, returned to her pier last month at the Texas Seaport Museum in Galveston after completing extensive bottom plate replacement. The work was done by Bollinger Shipyard located on Pelican Island.
The ship was originally dry-docked soon after Hurricane Ike for her regular USCG certificate inspection. At that time it was discovered much of the bottom plate required replacement. Lacking funds at the time to complete a repair of that scale, the ship was brought back to her dock with to begin planning and fundraising for the project in 2011
In late 2012 enough funds were raised to bring the ship back to the yard. Started in Oct 2012, the project took four months to complete.
It was the most significant restoration completed on the ship since its original restoration in the late 1970s and early 1980s when she was discovered nearly stripped in a Greek scrapyard. She first arrived in Galveston in 1979, a little less than a hundred years after the ship carried bananas and cotton into and out of the Port of Galveston.
This restoration called for replacement of more than 1,900 square feet of hull plate, as well as frame and rivet repair. Her restoration will continue through the next several months as she gets a new deck and sails.
The 1877 Tall Ship ELISSA, the official Tall Ship of Texas, is one of only three ships of her kind in the world that continues to sail. More than 40,000 people tour the ship each year, and each year, her volunteer crew takes her out into the Gulf of Mexico for a series of day sails, proving the ship's seaworthiness and providing an invaluable living history demonstration.
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Dates to Remember
2013 Advanced Pilothouse Management at SCI
First Session APR 29 - MAY 1
Second Session JUN 3 - JUN 5
Third Session JUL 8 - JUL 10
Fourth Session AUG 19 - AUG 21
Fifth Session SEP 23 - SEP 25
2013 Higman Leadership and Management Course
Not yet set for 2013
2012/2013 Tankermen Seminars
Eighth Session March 25, 2013
Ninth Session April 11, 2013
Tenth Session May 14, 2013
Eleventh Session June 5, 2013
2013 Wheelmen's Seminar
First Session FEB 20 - FEB 21
Second Session MAR 4 - MAR 5
Third Session MAR 13 - MAR 14
To schedule training please email Kelly or call at 281-864-6011.
CBT Certificates earned by Higman employees during 2013.................540 DO ALL CREWMEMBERS HAVE ACCESS TO THE HIGMAN TRAINING NEWSLETTER? - PLEASE MAKE SURE A HARD COPY IS PRINTED AND MADE AVAILABLE FOR THE CREW.
- Add your email address with the "Join our Mailing List" button (above, page 1, left side) to get your own copy!
Answer to this weeks Rules of the Road....B,D,B,A,C |
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Some insight from the M/V SNIPE:
Here is a thoughtful email I received Relief Captain Glenn Bumpas from the M/V SNIPE after he read the Higman year end operation statistic in the Higman Training Newsletter, vol 5, issue 26. Glenn made some great points about the operation of his vessel which is very different from the rest of the fleet. Since the SNIPE works specialty cargoes in the Houston harbor area, it is always, hooking up, loading, lightering, docking and discharging at a dizzying rate!
From Glenn:
"Just wanted to say thanks for the Higman Barge Lines Training Newsletter. Never had jury duty but your intake on it makes it seem oh so fun.
On another note, I just re-read the last newsletter of 2012 and thought that I would do some statistics on my own for the overall performance for the M/V SNIPE. So using the log book from last year I thought I would just breeze through it and put a tally mark for every hose we ever hooked up and then disconnected due to this being a crucial start up to any transfer operation.
But after 94 tally marks and a quarter of the paper marked with little lines, I took another route.
Using the average of three months, I used these counting guidelines to develop our statistics. I counted:
- Every hose we ever hooked up and then disconnected (sometimes having to hook back up to discharge an excess amount of cargo. Then having to disconnect again).
- Every ship we went along side (only counting the ship one time even if we brought two barges).
- Every dock we went to (then counting going back into SBS to fleet the barge as a dock also).
- Every loaded and discharged barge we did (even if the barge loaded two or more products at that dock/ship only counting this as one load or discharge).
Here's how it added up:
On an average, the SNIPE hooks up and disconnects a total of....Wait for it,.... 92 hose hook ups a month, adding up to 1,104 hose hookups per year.
While the rest of the fleet can mark it productivity with miles traveled, we can mark it with hoses hooked up.
The SNIPE went alongside an average of 11 ships a month, adding up to 132 ships a year.
We went alongside 40 docks a month which equals 480 dockings a year.
Loads and discharges combined per month, averaged 28. That's 336 loads and discharges per year!
Yes, the M/V SNIPE keeps moving!
Thanks again for the newsletters."
Have a great and safe week!
Sincerely, Gordie |
GORDIE KEENAN
KELLY CLEAVER
© 2013 HIGMAN MARINE SERVICES, Inc. |
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