Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
Original Date: 01 Mar. 2008 Revision Date:
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1.
Safety in the Engine Room Safety is paramount to any working
environment. Working on ships especially in the engine room where
considered a high hazard area, safety procedure must be in placed
at all times to prevent any uncontrollable circumstances. Safety
procedures and accident prevention measures shall be reviewed
periodically and crew motivation and awareness shall be enhanced
continuously to adapt the working situation. Fig. 1-1 Safety
Concerns
1.1
Principles to be observed in the Conduct of an Engineering Watch
In the conduct of watch in the engine room the following principles
should be observed: a. The Chief Engineer is the officer in-charge
of the engineering watch and is primary responsible at all times
for the safe and efficient operation, maintenance and inspection of
machineries affecting the safety of the ship, its personnel and the
environment. b. The Chief Engineer representative or the engineer
officers in charge of the engineering watch when designated must be
responsible in lieu of the Chief Engineers primary responsibility
in an engineering watch. c. Watch arrangement is adequate and
arranged suitable to the prevailing circumstances and in accordance
to safety management system.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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d. When taking over the watch, the engineer officer in charge of
the engineering watch shall not hand-over the watch to the
relieving officer if there is reason to believe that the relieving
officer is not capable of carrying out watchkeeping duties
effectively and in which case the Chief Engineer shall be informed
accordingly. e. The relieving duty engineer shall ensure that the
members of the relieving duty personnel are fully capable of
performing their duties effectively. f. Prior taking over of watch,
the relieving duty engineer shall satisfy themselves to the engine
room conditions relating to safety, operation and maintenance
conditions of machineries, standing orders and special
instructions, etc. g. When performing the engineering watch, the
designated duty engineer shall ensure that: i. ii. the established
watchkeeping arrangements are maintained; any machinery not
functioning properly, expected to malfunction or requiring special
services or attention shall be noted including the action already
taken; iii. the duty engineer at all times is readily capable of
operating the propulsion equipment in response to needs for changes
in direction or speed; iv. the duty engineer shall be immediately
available and on call to attend the machinery spaces during UMS
operation; v. all bridge orders are promptly executed; vi. all
machinery and equipment which maybe used related to maneuvering is
in a state of immediate readiness and that available reserve power
is available for steering gear and other requirements when the
engine room is put on stand-by condition; vii. the duty engineer
make himself free of any obligatory function other than supervising
and assisting the personnel working under his watch, safe and
efficient operation and upkeep of machinery and the conduct of
adequate rounds in the machinery spaces to prevent any malfunction.
He must devote his time during his watch in maintaining the safe
and efficient operation of the engine room until he is relieved;
viii. duty engineer must notify the Chief Engineer in any event
such as abnormality of critical machineries, emergency stop of the
main engine, electric power supply is lost, unusual increase of
bilge water, there is order from bridge to change the engine speed,
hazards to navigation, injury to personnel, and danger of polluting
the sea. 1.2 Watchkeeping Arrangement in Engine Room Suitable
watchkeeping arrangement shall be employed in the engine room in
consultation with company SMS procedures, the master of the ship
and the prevailing circumstances as deems Chief engineer judgment
may not be impaired that all aspects of safe watchkeeping
procedures are in placed keeping in foremost the following
objectives; Safety of Life at Sea, Safe Operation of Ships,
Environmental Protection and Security. 1.2.1 Unmanned Machinery
Spaces (UMS) Watch
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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UMS watch or sometimes called as MO watches is being conducted
in the engine room capable of maintaining the operation and
relevant safety requirements without any personnel involved at
certain periods. The UMS watch must be commenced depending on the
Chief Engineer judgment that it is technically practicable in
accordance with the UMS Check List and that the machinery space has
clear of danger and the safe operation is established. UMS watch is
conducted on daily basis commonly during night time and should not
be more than 24 hours in duration. Checking of machinery parameters
and condition should be done at least once in 24 hours period using
the form UMS Checklists. This is to ensure that the machinery
spaces operation and safety procedures are in placed. Designated
duty engineer (1/E, 2/E and 3/E) of the day to carry out the UMS
watch, must make himself available within the nearest areas or in
his cabin to ensure that any alarms relating to machinery spaces
during the watch should be properly attended to. 1.2.1 Manned
Engine Room Watch Manned engine room is a common arrangement in an
older designed ships wherein the machinery spaces is kept manned in
24 hours to maintain safe operation and prevents any danger to
arise. In the modern ships, manned engine room is also being
conducted when the ship is in entering/leaving port situation,
during heavy weather condition, etc. Designated duty engineer is
taking a 4-hourly watch twice in a day and carrying out maintenance
works of machinery assigned to him. A rating is also designated to
assist the duty engineer in keeping safe operation and maintenance
in the engine room. The watch schedule is as follows: 1st Engineer
2nd Engineer 3rd Engineer 04~0800/16~2000 hours 00~0400/12~1600
hours 08~1200/20~2400 hours
The above schedule is sometimes changed when additional engineer
is available onboard and commonly the 1 st Engineer is taking
charged of the daily jobs or the maintenance works. 1.2.3 In-Port
Watch When the ship is approaching her destination or in the port,
the engine room under manned or UMS arrangement should be prepared
suitable to the operational demand such as entering/leaving port
operation, cargo work operation, etc. Watchkeeping arrangement in
the engine room varies depending on the situation and is arranged
in accordance with the operational requirements of the
machinery.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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Commonly when the ship is entering/leaving port, the Chief
Engineer is taking charge of the watch and reinforces the watch
arrangement in the engine room. Additional personnel (electrician,
cadets, etc.,) are stationed in the engine room to assist in the
machinery space operation. 1.3 Routine Operation and Maintenance
When conducting routine operation and maintenance in the engine
room, the following activities is the norm procedures that are
being conducted to ensure that safe and efficient operation and
maintenance is adhered to. Safety aspect is also enhanced when
various precautionary measures, safety training and hazard
prediction activities are applied. 1.3.1 The Toolbox Meeting
Toolbox meeting is a meeting conducted to coordinate job
description, schedule of the day and other matters to ensure safety
in the workplace at all times. The meeting is being conducted at
every start and end of work hours. All the crew that are involved
to the specific maintenance jobs in the engine room and other
places onboard are briefed accordingly, stating the work schedule,
various safety procedures, the relevant outcome required and the
hazards involved. All crew before carrying out maintenance jobs
must make themselves involved in a toolbox meeting at all time.
Fig. 1.3.1-1 The Toolbox Meeting The Toolbox MeetingWhat about you,
Cadet? Do you have any suggestions regarding our safety
procedure?
1.3.2 Pointers in Conducting Toolbox Meeting a. Choose specific
jobs to be done during the day. b. Be prepared to discuss hazards
involved, safety procedures, company instruction, plans, materials,
etc., which are related to the jobs.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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c. Get the crew actively involve in the meeting as: i. Talking
about real life example (case study) of safety concerns and hazards
related to the job. ii. Let the crew suggest and ask question
related to the topics. iii. Ask feed back from them about the
meeting. iv. Involve the crew in preparing for and/or leading
future meetings. d. Follow up and look back into complaints,
suggestions and concerns brought out by the crew, let them informed
of the results and keep records of the meeting. e. Conduct Hazard
Prediction Training (Kiken Yochi Training (KYT) in Japanese). 1.3.3
Hazards Prediction Training (KYT) KYT is a training method
developed by Japanese, which is being conducted through pre-work
meetings or other procedures, where workers are given advance
warning of various unsafe conditions or unsafe behavior related to
the job activity, and thereby ensuring their own personal safety
and the safety of others around them. a. Point and Call A method
used to prevent accidents by human errors by making every action is
clear in which work accuracy is improve. Point and call are applied
by confirming correct action before performing it and confirming
correct action after performing it. Fig. 1.3.3-1 Point and Call
Method Confirm correct action before performing it ! Close the
valve, Turn right, OK !
OK, This valve is Closed !
"OK, close the valve. Turn right"
Confirm correct action before performing it !
b. Point and Repeat
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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Point and repeat is method by which every crew points to an
object together and name it in unison. This aims to focus everyones
attention on one goal thereby enhance the team sense of identity
and solidarity to achieve the goal. Point and repeat generally
conducted at the start and end of the workday. This method is also
effective in preventing accidents due to error. One person is
asking the task to be done and the other person is confirming and
mutually agreeing if the task is correct. Both person are pointing
to the object to work on and repeating the task and action for
confirmation. In this manner, errors or mistakes are avoided. Fig.
1.3.3-2 Point and Repeat Method
Switch on, OK!
Switch on, OK!
i. Touch and Call It is a type of point and repeat with every
crew are in physical contact and chanting a slogan to a certain
jobs to be performed. This aims to promote safe actions consciously
and unconsciously, prevents careless, absent minded behavior. Fig.
1.3.3-3 Touch and Call Method
"Touch and Call"
"Let's go for zero accidents, OK!"
c. Lock In/Tag-out It is applies to servicing and maintenance of
machines and equipment, a method used to ensure that any equipment
to be work on is totally isolated, in which the unexpected start up
or release of stored energy is not allowed, and lock in that will
not cause any harm i.e., putting the switch in off position,
removal of fuse in
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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the panel and putting notice tag-out in the source, i.e.,
control panel, switchboard. The emphasis of this method is to the
worker who is doing the jobs and all the control for accident
prevention are lie on him Fig. 1.3.3-4 Lock In/Tag-out Method
1.3.4 Near-miss Activities and Reporting in the Engine Room
Near-miss is defined as an incident or event happened that does not
cause accident or injury to personnel or damage to machinery but
has the potential to do so. According to the Heinrich`s Law, there
are about 300 near-miss cases and 29 small incidents behind one
serious accident. This goes true in daily operation in the engine
room and near-miss incidents should be properly identified by
reporting activities, compiling and analyzing data to plan for
preventative measures. Near-Miss 3000 activities which has
introduced by NYK line onboard their vessels are intended to
identify and neutralize the factors that could cause accidents/or
vessel trouble. NYK believes that near-miss activities alone do not
cover the full scope of accidents warnings and causes. As such, the
company places importance on uncovering unsafe conditions and acts,
addressing relevant issues on a case to case basis as part of the
problem identification activities. Examples of such conditions and
behavior include slippery passageways or difficulty in seeing
safety warnings. NearMiss 3000 reflects the companys recognition of
3000 unsafe acts and conditions, which crews are encouraged to be
alert in their working environment.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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Fig.1.3.4-1 Heinrichs Law
1Heinrich's Law
Serious Accident
29 300 3000
Minor Accidents/Troubles
Lapses/Mistakes
Unsafe Acts/Unsafe Conditions
Fig.1.3.4-2 Near-Miss Factors for the Year 2004 (Source: NYK
Line)
Procedural violation 26% Others 34% Lack of planning 7%
Inadequate knowledge 14% Communication 4%
Poor design 5%
Poor maintenance 9%
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In engine room, there are many dangerous possibilities lurking
behind of near miss. Some of them lead to serious injury. Following
cases are examples of incidents that that should be taken seriously
and the same situation shall be avoided.
Fig.1.3.4-3 Examples of Near-MissesLOCATION Degree of Serious
DEVIL (Unsafe Act and Unsafe Condition) Primary Cause Neglect,
Procedural Violation, or Unsafe Act Mis-operation or Error in
Working Procedure: due to the poor instruction Inadequate
Knowledge/Un derstanding: due to the lack of education DEVIL
(Unsafe Act and Unsafe Condition) DEVIL (Unsafe Act and Unsafe
Condition) Missing or Disordered Equipment or Documents: due to the
bad arrangement Description It was found that some steel pipes in
engine room near the boiler were not properly secured. It may cause
damage to the boiler and other equipments when the vessel rolls in
rough sea area. Every time the washing machine for dirty clothes is
being used, low insulation alarm of 100V occurs. It was due to
water overflowing of washing machine. Some water splash over
washing machine motor and it was grounded. In steering room fresh
water tank level gauge valves were always open. To avoid water
leaking when the level gauge glass is broken, these valves must be
closed.
Workshop/ Machinery space
Crew Accommodation
DEVIL (Unsafe Act and Unsafe Condition)
Others (Specify in Description)
DEVIL (Unsafe Act and Unsafe Condition) Near Miss (Slight
trouble or a minor accident was avoided) DEVIL (Unsafe Act and
Unsafe Condition) DEVIL (Unsafe Act and Unsafe Condition)
Engine Room
A crewmember was lifting and painting main engine spare exhaust
valve. In lunchtime he left engine room without securing the
exhaust valve.
Engine Room
While overhauling of No.2 ballast pump to replace mechanical
seal due to leakage, the valve was accidentally opened, causing
possible water flooding on E/R. After a stormy weather, it was
found out that emergency generator room was wet because rain came
inside. The cause was leakage water into watertight door.
Others (Specify in Description)
In NYK ships, Near-Miss 3000 Activity is being enforced and one
of the objectives is to raise the awareness of safety among
crewmembers and motivate them to make improvements on the scene.
Every crew members are encouraged to participate, identify any
near-miss observed and do correction directly as much as possible,
report data to the company and to have the company effectively
prepare countermeasures against troubles.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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You, as cadet have the potential to cause an accident, and the
potential to prevent an accident, improve the state of your ship
and nip trouble in the bud and raise your situational awareness.
This means that in every activity or working procedure in the
engine room shall be incorporated with near-miss identification and
correction to prevent an accident. Thus, DEVIL Hunting is
introduced and continuously follows up by all crew. It is very
essential in keeping the engine room a safe place to work and free
of machinery troubles. DEVIL: (Unsafe Act/Condition) or simply
Dangerous Events and Irregular Looks. Fig.1.3.4-4 Devil Hunting
Fig.1.3.4-5 Procedures for Near-Miss and Devil Hunting
Step A All crewmembers search for near misses and DEVIL's in the
ship, and submit report if found.
Step B The contents of the submitted reports should be confirmed
and discussed to determine the necessary measures.
Step D Introduce submitted reports and corrective actions to all
crewmembers. Submit reports to the company.
Step C Measures are conducted on the basis of the discussions.
And permanent corrective actions are taken, if necessary.
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The above procedure should kept in a continuous cycle and to
take improvements whenever is necessary. Fig.1.3.4-6 Near-Miss
Report Form, below figure is used to write down datas of any event
related to near-miss/DEVIL acts in the engine room by the crew. It
should be filed to a near-miss box located at the ships office or
at the designated areas.
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Fig.1.3.4-7 Cutting of Empty Drum
Please make a water tank with this drum.
Lets cut the lid by gas cutting.
Some oil was still left.
In the figure above, a serious injury occurred to the personnel
due to wrong procedure for the work that was carried out. If the
near-miss activity was conducted, the possible hazards can be
identified and necessary preventative measure can be drawn up and
implemented accordingly. 1.4 What To Do in Case of an Emergency It
is very essential that every personnel must know how to deal and
cope with an emergency or in case of machinery trouble specifically
in the engine room. Familiarity of the machinery spaces is a must
for all the personnel working in these areas in order for them to
act in any prevailing situation. Various situations must be grasps
in order for them to act according to what is required in an event
of; 1.4.1 Fire Fire is one of the catastrophic scenarios when
occurred in the engine room. Combustion mostly occurs when the
three elements of fire (heat, fuel and air) are present. These
three elements of fire are always presents in the engine room,
especially in machinery spaces and working areas. The best method
of fighting a fire is prevention. Any flammable materials will not
emit fire when properly handled and kept in proper location.
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Fig. 1.4.1-1 Fire in the Engine Room
When occurrence of fire in the engine room is observed, the
following measures should be done: a. Keep calm and fight the fire
with available fire extinguishing agent at hand when fire has just
only started. When two persons detect the fire, another person
shall do the raising of the alarm. b. Raise the alarm and inform
the bridge of the location, kind of combustible materials, etc., c.
Continue to fight the fire if applicable and if impossible, look
for a safe place near the location of fire, coordinate with the
on-scene leader of the firefighting team and give information such
as the cause of fire, any crew in the vicinity of fire, initial
firefighting applied, scope of the spread of fire and the estimated
time outbreak of the fire. d. When the on-scene leader grasps all
the information, ask permission to proceed in your muster station
and follow the instruction of your team leader. Notes: i. Best fire
fighting agent is prevention. ii. Initial action when fire is
detected is foremost important to successfully contain the fire.
1.4.2 Black-out Black-out or electrical power outages is an
occurrence when the electrical power generator or other ancillarys
related equipment fails the supply of electricity onboard.
Chapter 1 - Safety in the Engine Room
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This scenario is very rare to occur but proper knowledge in
prevention and countermeasures is a must for engineer officers to
take charge of an engineering watch. When Black-out occurrence
prevails, do the following: a. Initially, the duty engineer must
check and try to recover the electrical power supply and report the
situation to the bridge and to the Chief Engineer. b. Identify the
direct cause and judge the possibility of restarting the main
electric power supply, or of starting the auxiliary or stand-by
generator and closing ACB, etc. c. Restart the auxiliary or
stand-by generator automatically or manually and close the ACB. d.
Stop, slow-down and restart the operation of the main engine as
occasion demands. e. Sequentially restart the vital auxiliary
machinery or manually restart them in succession as occasion
demands while watching the electrical loads. f. Restart the other
auxiliary machinery such as purifier, air cond. system, etc. g.
Recover and maintain the operating parameters of the main engine.
h. Investigate the cause and take countermeasures. 1.4.3 Flooding
Flooding is an occurrence when there is breakage of sea water
piping or tearing of the ships hull that will cause flowing of sea
water in the engine room. When flooding is detected in the engine
room, you should: a. Raise alarm to crew around, notify the bridge
and give information regarding the situation and inform the Chief
Engineer. b. Conduct initial damage control bearing in mind the
following concerns: i. Isolation of the affected area. ii. Protects
all machinery especially those used for damage and flooding control
such as the electrical equipments, pumps, etc. c. When the on-scene
leader has arrived, brief him regarding the situation such as the
location of source of water, the possible cause, etc. d. When all
relevant information has given to the on-scene leader, ask
permission to proceed to your muster station and follow the order
of your team leader. 1.5 Hazards Related to Job Activities in the
Engine Room Various hazards are involved while working in the
engine room. Some cases are discussed here are to be used for
guidance and may not be complete. It is recommended that hazards
related to job activities are to be identified and discussed among
the crew to improve the safety procedures and to prevent accidents.
a. Drilling hole on metal using bench drill machine.
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Point of Hazards: i. Not wearing of safety goggles or glass.
Metal chip/ powder may likely enter the eyes. ii. Wearing of
gloves. The hands maybe caught by the rotating elements of the
machine. iii. Work piece is unsecured and is using the hand. Work
piece must be fastened by securing tool to avoid swinging and
thrown due to rotating force that may cause injury to a person
(Fig. 1.6-1 Drilling Hole).
b. Grinding work on bench grinder. Point of Hazards: i. Work
supporting block clearance (d) is too big. Block clearance must be
adjusted to minimum distance to support the work piece and to avoid
flying off. ii. Work piece is secured by pliers. Pliers cannot
support the work piece securely and may cause the work piece to
fly-off (Fig. 1.6-2 Grinding).
c. De-burring work. Point of Hazards: i. The work is not secured
completely, it maybe sent off flying. ii. The air sander may
jump-off from the hand that can hurt the user (Fig. 1.6-3
De-burring work).
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d. Cleaning of filter elements in the workshop. Point of
Hazards: i. Cleaning of filter while welding jobs is being carried
out on the other side. This can cause fire in the area, if the
chemical is combustibles and used as cleaning materials. ii. Do not
work at welding area as this may injured your eyes. iii. Water
shall not be used near the welding area otherwise electric shock
may occur (Fig. 1.6-4 Filter Cleaning). e. Lifting/Carrying of
objects while in the Engine Room Point of Hazards: i. Lifting
position. Even though the lifting position is correct and the
weight is enough, never attempt to lift object above you. This will
cause tip-off especially when the ship experience rolling or
pitching. ii. Non-secure objects. Avoid manual lifting of heavy
object and as much as possible ensure that it is fully secure. Use
lifting devices as necessary or ask assistance when carrying heavy
objects. Be careful with stairs. When lifting object in stairs,
always free up one hand to hold on rail (Fig. 1.6-5 Lifting
Object). f. Working with ladder. Point of Hazards: i. Falls from
height above the ground. Select the right ladder for the job. Never
splice two ladders at a time. ii.Falling tool and equipment. Secure
all tools that are being used on top. iii. Slips. Be sure to
position the ladder and properly secured (Fig. 1.6-6 Work with
Ladder).
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g. When entering a tank for inspection or maintenance. Point of
Hazards: i. Asphyxiation from oxygen deficiency. Oxygen content of
the tank must be continuously monitored as most of accidents inside
the tanks are caused by oxygen deficiency. ii.Falls As the tank was
not cleaned, be precautious in stepping at the steps and flooring.
iii. Communication Failure. Common problems when entering tanks is
communication. Use buddy system and always confirm that proper
communication is established at all times (Fig. 1.6-7 Entering a
Tank).