The Nautical
Institute has launched “Maritime Security,” which
it describes as a comprehensive and practical guide aimed at making vessels
truly secure and creating a real security culture that works onboard and
ashore.
Since the
International Ship and Port Facility Security Code came into force in 2004
there have been significant developments in the training, information and products
and services available to masters and to company and ship security officers,
the Institute says. Security has become part of life aboard ship. During the
same time, the number and sophistication of the threats to security have also
increased.
Author
Steven Jones MSc BSc (Hons) MNI explained that there is no room for
complacency. Those responsible for vessel crews, cargoes and the ships
themselves must continue to develop a security management system that actually
works on board.
“People are
the key to security and this new guide looks to develop the ways and means of
creating a security management system which has the human element at its core,”
Jones says in an institute press release. “It explores not simply the rules and
lists of requirements but also the implications of failure and the steps to
developing successful maritime security techniques.”
Publication
of this guide is in line with The Nautical Institute’s Strategic Plan for
2011-2015, which identified maritime security as a continuing and major concern
for the industry and particularly those serving at sea.
As maritime
director of the Security Association for the Maritime Industry, the primary
focus for Steven Jones is to bring security techniques and effective management
to the attention of crews of merchant vessels, office personnel and ship
operators.
“Whether
fighting pirates, stowaways or countering terrorism, true security begins when
the Master and crew work within a system they respect, understand and
appreciate,” Jones said.
In addition
to a decade of onboard experience as a navigation officer, including a pirate
attack, he has advised numerous shipping companies on security planning and has
worked for insurers, publishers and professional bodies.
The book
examines the threats to maritime trade, and to specific ship types, before
discussing in detail how the ISPS Code came into being and its underpinning
principles and requirements. Subsequent chapters focus on the practicalities of
security planning, shipboard procedures and equipment, and how to make security
work — including the use of armed guards.
In the book’s
foreword, Efthimios Mitropoulos Secretary General Emeritus of the International
Maritime Organization, commended the “dedication and commitment” of companies
and sea staff and the “tremendous efforts” made to secure port facilities
across the world to meet the requirements of the ISPS Code. He pointed out that
“as seafarers are in the front line of maritime security” and shoulder the
burden of responsibility for maritime security onboard, it is up to those
working ashore to support them.
The book was
launched at the SAMI members’ event in Dubai and will be followed by a suite of
handbooks on specific security problems, such as piracy, stowaways and maritime
crime. The Nautical Institute says it believes that all of these will support the
development of a security culture that is based on excellence rather than
compliance.