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DEFENSE
INTERACTION INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
www.diia.info
A SPECIAL REPORT
 ON
MOORING, MARINE & OFFSHORE SAFETY EQUIPMENT
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“Quality and Service is the foundation of
future business”
This
company’s excellent reputation for advising on and selling Offshore
Mooring Equipment is well known internationally.
However,
LHR Marine – based in Aberdeen,
Scotland and Perth, Australia - also represent
top quality manufacturers of:
Working
at Height Equipment, Anti-Slip Solutions, Marine Safety Products,
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Workwear and Industrial
Supplies.
Their
recent successes include global agreements with major sub-sea shipping
companies and international mooring companies.
Photo left: LHR Marine
headquarters in Aberdeen, Scotland.
(CONTACT DATA FOR THIS COMPANY
CAN BE FOUND AT THE END OF THIS REPORT)
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 Getting It Right
  
When chains, straps
& shackles break!
As
captain of a rescue tug and author
of
this report, having been at sea close on 50 years now, I still seek expert
advice when it comes to the subject of mooring equipment and offshore safety
gear. So, with expert advice in mind, I’ll commence this report with
the words of Norwegian Polar explorer Roland Amundson because when it comes
down to it, no quote could be more apt for Mooring, Marine & Offshore
Safety.
Victory awaits those who have everything in
order.
- People call that luck.
Defeat is certain for those who have
forgotten to take the necessary precautions in time.
- That is called bad luck."
Ronald Amundson 14 December 1911
Photo: Norwegians led by
Roald Amundsen arrived in Antarctica's Bay of Whales on January 14,1911.
With dog teams, they prepared to race the British to the South Pole.
Amundsen's ship, Fram, loaned by renowned Arctic explorer Fridtjof Nansen,
was the elite polar vessel of her time. Having spent his early career as a
very competent ship’s 2nd Officer, Amundson knew that he had to
ensure that his ship and expedition crew were given the best equipment
available if he was to succeed.
Of course, most mariners or those
involved with offshore projects might not intend heading to the extremes of
the North or South Pole as Amundson did but one thing’s for certain,
when it comes to mooring equipment, it is essential that you sort out your
chain from your connectors and don’t get your swivels mixed up with
your shackles. Quite often, marine operators who consider themselves as
professionals fit chain that is of a sufficient breaking strain for the
vessel or structure in question but they often forget to take into
consideration the additional factors of wind, tide, weight distribution and
the power of their respective capstans: the chain often snapping under the
force of the machinery. Reports suggest that LHR Marine are specialists
with a reputation for quality & service: offering you sound advice to
save you both initial costs and later, unexpected emergency incidents.
 Tide, inadequate mooring,
open scuttles in galley and toilet, a switched-off engine and a crew who
were busy transferring bunkers from
a barge to the
tanker Atlantic Muse, resulted in the pusher tug Mariner 1 capsizing while
still moored to the barge.
A report by Marinha Do Brazil, the Brazilian Maritime Authority,
concluded that the mooring arrangements with “the tugboat berthed
alongside the barge with hawsers of spring and bowlines, without a hawser
athwart” meant that an ebbing tide of up to 4 knots opened the gap
between the tug’s bow and the barge, forcing the tug to heel over,
submerged the portholes of the gallery and toilet with subsequent flooding.
SERIOUS accidents in mooring operations
involving death or serious injury appear to be increasing over the long
term, says the UK P&I Club which has spent over US$34m settling
mooring-related insurance claims over the past 20 years. It has published a
guide on the subject, Understanding Mooring Incidents, which can
be downloaded from the UK Club’s website.
The club says that such incidents used to
rarely exceed four per cent of all claims on the club and two per cent of
settlements between 1987-97. During the next decade, however, the number
peaked at 14 per cent in 2000 and the value rose to 15 per cent two years
later. In 2007, both numbers and values dropped to 1997 levels. However,
the Club regards this as “encouraging but not necessarily indicative
of a long-term trend.” Mooring accidents are now on the increase once
more. While mooring injuries have been only the seventh most frequent cause
of personal injuries dealt with by the club they have been the third most
expensive per claim, indicating that these injuries are often more severe.
Some 14 per cent of all mooring accidents involved deaths. Some 23 per cent
were leg injuries, 14 per cent back, 11 per cent multiple and seven per
cent arm and head.
 You might find it
hard to believe but mooring chain that has never been regularly checked
(sometimes for months and even years) or old chain that has been badly
repaired is often the norm – rather than the exception. In one case,
a light chain was even found to have ‘been repaired’ with
‘cable ties’!
CLICK & Access Mooring Equipment Data plus Useful LHR Tool
Better Safe Than Sorry
I was at a yacht marina
the other day in Falmouth, Cornwall. A small boat with an outboard motor
that was certainly too powerful for the craft was heading out of the
harbour in what I would term ‘windy conditions’. On board: four
kids between 5 & 10 years old plus one very sceptical dog and –
one presumes, ‘Dad’ – who was busy talking on his mobile
phone. Give the guy his due, all had life jackets on, even the dog, save
– as often is the case – the adult who wasn’t wearing
one. Scenario: problem occurs, man enters water (taking the only means of
communication with him). Gets into difficulty with the strong tide and
leaves flimsy craft packed with kids in a somewhat precarious position.
Back in the marina, the wife of another seasoned sailor was positioned with
one foot on the yacht and the other foot on the pontoon trying to berth the
craft: a sudden gust of wind pushing the bow of the boat out and leaving
the rather overweight lady performing a very realistic impression of
uncontrolled splits. Husband meanwhile had secured the stern and was just
in time to pull his loved one ashore. Both were sporting the latest high
tech life jackets. Pity they weren’t clipped together at the front!
Photo
below: The fishing industry remains one of the most hazadous occupations.
 Commercial marine
operators, their crews and personnel, often take unacceptable risks offshore.
Fisherman generally do not wear life jackets. In fact, a recent survey of
65 accidents involving crew members lost overboard, confirmed only one was
wearing a life jacket at the time. Although most fishing emergencies are
caused by mechanical failure and smaller boats seem to suffer fatalities
and injuries on a more regular basis, which ever way you look at it - regardless of country, the fishing
industry remains one of the most hazardous occupations.
The Oil & Gas
industry naturally hit the headlines when there has a major polution
incident or severe fire takes place. The media rush to their helicopters to
obtain high resolution photos of billowing smoke, slicks stretching many
miles or wade through beach sludge to capture the final moments of that oil
covered sea bird. It’s called keeping the public informed. Few TV,
radio stations or newspapers however spend much time on less high profile
day to day accidents and other incidents that occur in the industry.
 Last month, during
inspection of gratings on a fixed jacket offshore installation, it was
identified that where gratings have suffered significant corrosion, the
build up of corrosion product remained in place and masked the true extent
of the loss of metal. Impacting corroded gratings with a hammer, to remove
corrosion product, identified gratings where there was an unacceptable loss
of metal once the corrosion had been removed. Without the removal of the
corrosion product, gratings which had unacceptable corrosion damage could
not readily be differentiated from gratings which had less severe
underlying corrosion. This resulted in misleading results from simple
visual inspections.
- SlipNOT® Non-Slip Grating Is
Available In A Variety Of Styles, Types Or Bar Sizes/Spacing
- Ideal For Wet, Dusty Or Oily Areas Where Slip
Resistant Coverage Is Vital
- Tested And Durable, Non-Slip Grating Helps
Build Safety Into Any New Or Existing Project
- SlipNOT® Grating Is Available In
Steel, Stainless Steel Or Aluminium To Fit Any Application
- Exceeds Recommendations For Coefficient Of
Friction Specified By OSHA, ADA, ANSI & NFPA
- 100% SlipNOT® Grating Surface
Coverage, Which Means Any Step Is A Safe Step
-
 LHR Marine offer a wide selection of covers and grating,
together with other anti-slip solutions:
Confined Spaces &
Working at Height.
Photo: Emergency incidents on ships, rigs and
other offshore structures are all too frequent.
 Any work in
confined spaces is extremely hazardous and proper precautions must always
be taken at all times for this kind of work. Don't enter unless you
absolutely have to. If you are going to enter a confined space then
you must have fully trained staff, a documented system of work, atmospheric
monitoring and emergency rescue arrangements. There may be no oxygen
inside, or toxic gases may have built up. Or, if you are welding for
instance, there may be risk of flooding and electrocution. LHR Marine can
advise you on the best harness required for specific work scenarios or suggest
emergency rescue equipment. In this day and age, you shouldn’t have
crew members falling down holds or falling when working at a great height.
There are so many products now available at reasonable cost that will allow
you to work safely at height, arrest your fall should you have an accident
or allow other trained teams to be able to rescue the casualty.
If you are working at heights – make sure
you use the correct equipment.
Yet accidents continue to happen. Recently, one
member of a deck crew tasked with back-loading two heli-fuel tote tanks
from the accommodation roof lay down area to the pipe-deck found a momentary
lapse of attention can have serious consequences . On this occasion the
working platform was accessed by climbing a vertical ladder from the deck
below, lifting a safety drop bar and stepping on to a narrow walkway. The
crew member did this and was closely followed by his colleague who omitted to
secure the bar as they were ‘only
going to be a few minutes’ in moving the tanks. The first tank,
located in the bund farthest away from the access hatch, was removed without
incident. The action was then being repeated for the second tank with the
tank slings attached to the crane hook and the instruction given by the
crew member, as Banksman, to
commence the lift. The guy was checking for any potential snagging of the
load, and whilst doing so he stepped backwards and fell through the access
hatch to the deck 14 ft below, striking an adjacent 208 litre oil drum
before coming to rest on top of a wooden pallet. The pallet, lying at an
angle, probably helped to break his fall. He was lucky: apart from a sore
elbow he felt he was able to continue with his work. Fortunately, prior to
commencing the lifts the crew member had secured his hard hat using the
chinstrap, and so his head had remained protected during the fall. Unfortunately,
neither crew member had taken the precaution of wearing a harness or having
a safety line attached.
LHR Marine offers a comprehensive inspection
and recertification service for safety related products and Working at Height
equipment. Their experienced and highly trained staff can also
provide a wide range of advice which including Consultancy
& Installation Services, System Design, Certification, Re-Testing and
Training.
Check out
data on DELTA™ Harness Video
Working Together
 The product range at LHR Marine is
encouragingly comprehensive and includes everything from welder’s
work gear to hi-vis jackets, chemical and corporate wear, gloves to world
class rigger and diagnostic
safety boots.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
The company
has a reputation for delivering goods on time. What’s more, LHR
Marine will install equipment for you offshore or onshore should you
require.
Innovation for a New Millennium
 LHR Marine
was founded in the year 2000 by David Murray Snr. with the supply of Mooring
Equipment to the offshore industry in the North Sea. By
2001, LHR Marine was very active in the supply of Safety
Equipment to the North Sea by representing quality manufacturers such
as Capital
Safety (DBI-SALA &
Protecta), Billy
Pugh Co. and SAFEGUARD® Technology.
During
2002 and 2003 LHR Marine introduced the Trident
Thin Shackle into the marketplace with great success and
after a few years of successfully developing the home market, they expanded into
the Asia market in 2004, particularly Singapore. In 2009, they built
on their reputation for innovation by introducing the Feuerstein
(Feubo) Grade 5 Raptor
Thin Shackle into the market, which improved on their
excellent Trident Thin Shackle.
Due
to LHR Marine’s excellent growth in the past decade, the company has recently moved to a
new head office at Altens in Aberdeen, which allows them manageable expansion
to cater for their clients requirements. LHR Marine’s worldwide
expansion began with the opening of their first dedicated overseas office
in Perth Australia in 2007. I’ve a feeling that this is not the end
of the story – only the beginning.
So ‘Proceed to Sea’ Safely.... Fair Winds & A
Following Sea.
Don’t be left high & dry....
Contact:
LHR Marine Aberdeen
4 Minto Place
Altens Industrial Estate
Aberdeen
AB12 3SN
Telephone: +44
(1224) 248821
Fax: +44 (1224)
248831
EMail: info@lhrmarine.com
WEBSITE: http://www.lhrmarine.com
LHR Marine Australia
9 Cologne Gardens
Port Kennedy
Western Australia 6172
Australia
Telephone/Fax:
+61 (08) 9524 5745
EMail: info@lhrmarine.com
LHR Marine is proud to support Project
Golden Cross – a non profit making community exercise in Scotland.
(c) diia Aug 2011
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