Non-conformity incidents with the IMO and ILO regulations on board ships have dropped by 25% over the past year, according to the latest survey conducted by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).
The information was collected via the users of the Chamber’s ISF Watchkeeper software, which tracks over 25 million hours of work on board ships undertaken each month by seafarers.
The statistics are drawn from the online version of the software and represent input from 4,000 ships operating across the world.
“The trends provide some good news that seafarers appear to still be able to manage shipboard working arrangements in accordance with IMO and ILO regulations during the COVID-19 pandemic,” the ICS said. The ISF Watchkeeper compliance software was first launched to assist the industry in 1997, and has been used by the Chamber to monitor global seafarer work and rest hour records.
It is used on over 8,000 ships to provide their operators with evidence of compliance with the international regulations as required by their flag States and Port State Control.
The ICS said that this is the first time that such aggregate data has been published by ICS and provides a ray of light during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Since the beginning of the year seafarers have been faced with significant challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the difficulty affecting crew changes only exacerbates this situation,” said Guy Platten , Secretary-General of the International Chamber of Shipping.
“It is good to see that even with all the challenges, it appears that seafarers are still able to get the important rest that they need and the breaks they deserve to mitigate fatigue.
“These results confirm that the world’s shipping community continues to appreciate the importance of safe working practices and compliance, during what have been extremely challenging operating condition for all sectors, and for very many individuals.”