BLIND spots, fatigue and managing disruptions were some of the key topics discussed on the second morning of the Australasian Marine Pilotage Institute (AMPI) conference in Darwin.
Andrew Baker from North Tugz Ltd spoke on the theme of ‘blind spots born of skill’, noting that disasters were less to do with competence, rather they could be due to familiarity.
“I’m going to make the case that catastrophic outcomes are shaped less by error and failure alone and more by the geometry of where they occur,” he said.
“Second, I’m going to suggest that competence and trust, the very foundations of industry, cannot eliminate exposure embedded in the geometry of the system. In fact, sometimes it can help conceal it.
“Thirdly, we live in an imperfect world, errors and failures are inevitable, the reduction of them matters, the pursuit of operational excellence matters.
“But no system can eliminate failures entirely. So perhaps, the greater discipline is identifying when failure is no longer recoverable or survivable.”
Andrew Scott from Darwin Port spoke about the fatigue management and knowing when to rest, drawing from road transport and making the point that a significant number of accidents occur when drivers are close to home and have begun to relax.
He noted studies that showed people who climbed four flights of stairs (about 60 steps) in under 45 seconds generally had good exercise capacity and a better cardiovascular outcome.
In contrast, those taking more than 90 seconds tended to have lower exercise capacity and higher cardiovascular risk.
“I’m not suggesting we start timing pilots every time they board a ship, but vigorous exertion increases heart attack risk approximately sixfold during the hour after exertion,” Mr Scott said.
“That is about the time we are doing the manoeuvre to bring the ship alongside,” reminding the audience that climbing the ladders was a genuine physical task, not merely an inconvenience.
Port of Newcastle harbourmaster Vikas Bangia spoke about the challenges of managing disruption during a series of on the water protests in recent years.
Newcastle has been the target of protests aimed at the fossil fuel industry and Captain Bangia spoke about the challenges of balancing safety with government expectations that trade would go unimpeded.
He suggested that local government had a role to play in this regard.