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Disclaimer: The notes below were produced by the author for the purposes of
preparing for an Officer-of-the-Watch oral examination in November 2015. As such
they are intended only as simplified summaries and aide memoires and therefore do
not give a true reflection of the original content or intention of the documents to
which they refer. These notes are likely to contain inaccuracies and omissions that
make them unsuitable as an alternative to a proper study and understanding of the
current revision of the original document(s). They are posted here as a study aid and
may be used freely for non-commercial purposes, however any such use remains
the responsibility of the reader. Where a copyright claim is made the domain holder
should be contacted in the first instance to have the content removed.
Published by the MCA and endorsed by various bodies and unions as a Best
Practice guide for improving health and safety on board ships. It is one of the
'applicable codes' that the ISM Code requires companies to take into account when
creating their SMS. COSWP itself is written to be accessible to personnel at all levels
Chapters:
2 - Safety Induction
Sets out what familiarisation training a person should be given on joining a ship
making reference to STCW Chapter VI, the Maritime Labour Convention and MGN
71.
3 - Living on board
Talks about health and fitness including ENG1 and the dangers of fatigue, malaria,
smoking, alcohol, heatstroke, hypothermia, clothing, cleaning, hazardous substances
and injuries common in the industry.
5 - Fire precautions
Talks about common sources of fire on ships and how to reduce the risk.
6 - Security on board
Talks about the application and aims of the ISPS Code and the types of threat
vessels are liable to encounter.
7 - Health surveillance
The responsibility of employers to monitor health so that action can be taken early to
prevent more serious issues. For example reporting a skin rash or tingling hands
may reveal inadequacies in the health risk assessment for a task
10 - Manual handling
Advice to companies on reducing risks and advice to seafarers on techniques,
including using manual handling equipment.
13 - Safety officials
Everyone has a safety responsibility but the employer, Master and officers/managers
have a particular responsibility for oversight. Some personnel have designated roles
or serve on safety committees and are known as 'safety officials'. This chapter
attempts to help employers, Masters and safety officials determine how to fulfil their
roles. Ships employing five or more seafarers must appoint a safety officer and
make arrangements for the election of safety representatives or each department.
These personnel will form the minimum foundation for a safety committee chaired
by the Master.
Safety officials must have access to COSWP, any relevant legislation, MSNs and
any information or data pertinent to risk assessments, safety, firefighting, first aid and
any other emergency procedures.
The safety officer should conduct inspections of each accessible part of the ship at
least once every three months, looking at safe access, the environment and
working practices in order to prevent incidents. Encouraging relevant safety
representatives to accompany them is a good way to build an effective
cooperative relationship with them. They should read previous reports on a
section before conducting the inspection and increase the frequency if there are
significant changes to equipment or working practices in a section. They have a
duty to stop any work they believe may cause an accident.
They should also promote safety by posting information posters and leaflets and
renewing them regularly, arranging for safety films to be shown, encouraging
feedback and keeping seafarers informed of the results.
Safety representatives may inspect any of the records the safety officer must
keep, request specific investigations be carried out by the safety officer and make
representations to the Master and company regarding issues. There is advice on
how they can be most effective in their role.
There is advice on how the purpose of and how to conduct safety committee
meetings, how to conduct accident investigations and annexes giving advice on
inspections and an example accident statement.
18 - Provision, care and use of work equipment (See also MGN 331)
This section deals with everything provided for work but not SOLAS mandated
equipment. Certain notable items of work equipment are dealt with in greater detail in
their own chapters. Responsibility for equipment lies with the company and it
should comply with relevant British or European general or merchant shipping
standards. Talks about the hazards that should be considered including crushing,
cutting, vibration, radiation, rupture, projection or even being struck by lightning.
Tools should be used for their intended purpose by competent personnel and it
should be correctly maintained and inspected. PPE should be suitable for use with
equipment. Discusses common types of tool including ropes and laundry equipment
and their hazards.
22 - Boarding arrangements
Gangways and accommodation ladders are lifting equipment and should be tested
and recorded as such. Each end should lead to a place of safety. A lifebuoy with
self-activating light and a separate buoyant lifeline with quoit should be provided.
Safety nets should be rigged to prevent injury from falling. Accommodation ladders
should be kept horizontal and secured while personnel attached to safety lines rig
them. A portable ladder should be at an angle of 60°-75° from horizontal and
should only be used when no safer means of access is practicable. A rope ladder is
only for going between ships of differing freeboard when no safer means of access is
practicable.
Safe rigging of pilot ladders - steps horizontal, at a height suitable for the pilot
vessel, resting firmly against the side, if used with accomodation ladder the pilot
ladder must reach at least 2m above the bottom platform, safe and unobstructed
access at the top of the ladder, lifebuoy with self-igniting light at the top of the ladder,
lit by a forward shining overside light.
Ships of 30m or more must have gangway, 120m or more must have
accommodation ladder
Gangways should not be at an angle more than 30° from the horizontal unless
designed for greater angles and should not be fixed to the ship's railings unless they
are designed for this purpose
Accommodation ladders should not be at an angle more than 55° from the
horizontal and should rest against the ship's side where practicable. The steps
should provide a safe foothold at the angle of use. At maximum inclination the
bottom platform should be no more than 600mm above the waterline in the ship's
lightest condition.
24 - Hot work
Welding and cutting outside of workshops requires a permit to work. Adequate fixed
lighting and ventilation, proper PPE, precautions against fire and explosion and
electric shocks. Annex provides a checklist for lighting up and shutting down.
25 - Painting
Common dangers such as dust from rubbing down previous paint which is of an
unknown type, chemicals used in the process, fumes and oxygen depletion.
Precautions to deal with these and with those presented by paint-spraying
equipment.
27 - Roll-on/roll-off ferries
Vehicle deck operations should be supervised by an officer and there should be no
access to the vehicle deck at sea without specific permission. Ventilation must be
maintained and possibly increased depending on activity and cargo. Discusses
vehicle deck equipment, inspecting vehicles prior to loading, stowage and securing,
access.
28 - Dry cargo
Deals with packaged and dry bulk cargoes not on RORO ferries. How to safely
stow and overstow cargoes, what to do about dangerous goods, carriage of
containers and guidance for working cargo to be read in conjunction with the chapter
on lifting gear.
33 - Ergonomics
Deals with the interaction between humans and work in three principal areas -
design and environment, work processes and organisation - and how these can be
addressed by the seafarer to improve safety and efficiency