Extreme weather events is one of the toughest challenges businesses in the shipping industry, forcing vessels to adjust planned routes to minimize disruption or loss of cargo. During these events the navigation becomes more difficult as insufficient visibility would cause other accidents such as collisions, grounding, including structural damage to the vessel or, damage to machinery and equipment.
An unexpected failure of engines, rudder or propellers in a storm can prevent proper ship management and can cause ships and boats to capsize, to run aground in shallow water or reefs. Crew can end up in the water when their ship collides with other boats or objects. However ship grounding events are mostly caused by human errors. The capsize of the ship can also be attributed to the accumulation of ice on the superstructure and masts raising the center of mass to result in a catastrophic loss of stability.
A failure of the diesel generators caused by a loss of suction of the lubricating oil also due to the pitch and roll of the ship in rough sea conditions, can lead to reduction of power output and performance of propulsion on board ships.
Restech Norway has designed the PLT® (Pneumatic Line Thrower), a multipurpose line thrower system, to respond quickly to emergencies in the water. It is a product that has become very popular because of its simplicity and efficiency. The PLT® has been tested in some of the harshest environments on the planet.
Paolo Mazzone
SubEng – HSE Adviser
Jessica Moro
DSO
Cover image: ResTech
Read more in the digital JP Mag – JPmag – May 2022
