Appendix
Maritime Safety Authority: Progress in implementing recommendations of the Review of Safe Ship Management Systems.
Main findings of the Review of Safe Ship Management Systems
| Safe Ship Management findings | Safe Operational Plans findings | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The MSA is not directly involved in service delivery, which has been devolved to 11 SSM companies, with loss of hands-on vessel survey expertise and lack of understanding of operating smaller vessels. | The MSA is not directly involved in service delivery, which has been devolved to 51 Authorised Persons, with a comparable loss of expertise and understanding. |
| 2 | The MSA has difficulty exercising adequate management control over the activities of the SSM companies and delivery of the SSM system. | |
| 3 | Implementation of the SSM system is too complex for most operators of small specialist commercial vessels, and encourages indifference. | |
| 4 | There are increasing concerns within the MSA of the vulnerability, fragility and sustainability of the SSM system. Delivery of the SSM system could be improved through strategic management, MSA control, standards of service delivery, and targeting of vessels. | There are similar concerns with Safe Operational Plans as were held for Safe Ship Management in terms of vulnerability, fragility and sustainability. |
| 5 | There are increasing concerns about the selection and capabilities of the Authorised Persons. | |
| 6 | The quality assurance certification of the SSM companies is insufficient to provide the MSA and the Government with certainty that the SSM system will be adequately delivered by the companies. | |
| 7 | There are increasing concerns that the SSM companies, in their capacity as the MSA's safety auditors and inspectors, are not always working in the interests of the MSA. | |
| 8 | Better performance indicators of the SSM system's effectiveness could help stakeholders deliver safety at a reasonable cost. | The effectiveness of the Safe Operational Plans system is constrained by the inconsistency of Safe Operational Plans service standards, appointment processes for Authorised Persons and their level of competence, and inadequate support for their training and administration. |
| 9 | A significant number of SSM companies are not meeting the minimum competence and procedural requirements. | Similarly, a significant number of Authorised Persons are not meeting the minimum competence and procedural requirements for consistent quality of service delivery. |
| 10 | The MSA could choose to do nothing, but the result would "lead inevitably to a diminished standard of maritime safety". |