MARINA conducts 4th Load Line Assignment Training
The Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA), through the Shipyards Regulation Service, conducted the 4th Batch of Training on Load Line Assignment of Ships from November 11 to 14, 2019 at the MARINA Central Office in Manila.
This is part of the Agency’s efforts to further equip its technical personnel with the latest knowledge and skills in their fields. The outcome is expected to contribute to the overall improvement of the service of the MARINA.
Several technical personnel, particularly naval architects from the central and regional offices of the MARINA participated. Engr. Ramon C. Hernandez, Director of the Shipyards Regulation Service (SRS) and Ji Ye, a naval architect and Marina & Offshore Manager in Bureau Veritas were the resource speakers of the five-day workshop.
Director Hernandez traced the history of load lines in his presentation, highlighting the International Convention on Load Lines (ICLL), 1966 and its 1988 Protocol. Ye, on the other hand, fleshed out the technicalities of the appropriate assignment of load lines to Philippine-registered ships.
In his speech, MARINA OIC-Administrator Vice Admiral Narciso A Vingson Jr emphasized that all concerned technical personnel of the MARINA must have a unified interpretation, understanding, and implementation of the ICLL, which provides regulations, certification systems, and procedures for the computation and assigning of freeboards and the conduct of load line surveys and inspections. Without proper understanding of which, the safety of the ship is put at risk due to possible overcapacity in its load.
The workshop also included an actual technical demonstration on load line assignment onboard M/V Solid Unity in Pier 8 in Manila. The activity aimed to familiarize the participants on the conditions and factors to be considered in load line assignment and the procedures in the conduct of load line survey. Each group was tasked to identify the required sill heights for watertight doors, manholes, and position of watertight doors, among many other ship particulars and components.
The workshop is being conducted annually to provide training to all concerned MARINA technical personnel. It is also aligned with the projects of the Agency under the Maritime Industry Development Plan (MIDP) envisioning a fleet of safer and more stable Philippine-registered ships.
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