TVIB News News and Updates

USCG: Maritime Commons – Towing Vessel Under Charter? Don’t Let it Cause a Break in the Safety System

Originally posted LT AMY MIDGETT ON DECEMBER 6, 2019 (Coast Guard Sector Upper Mississippi River on the USCGs Maritime Commons Blog 12/06/2019. Click here to view the original post.

The Coast Guard published Marine Safety Alert 12-19 to educate the towing vessel community of the need to maintain clear communication with all parties involved in their Towing Safety Management System (TSMS).

Recently, an investigation of a towing vessel loss of propulsion revealed gaps in the implementation of the vessel’s TSMS that were causal to the incident and a direct result of a poor TSMS-to-TSMS transition during the chartering of the vessel.

The ownership and operational management of a ship can be complicated. The common use of charter relationships among inland towing vessel operators, coupled with a potentially large number of involved parties (Coast Guard, Third Party Organizations (TPO), auditors, surveyors, owners, operators, etc.) and myriad documentation requirements (Certificate of Inspection, TSMS, surveys, audit reports, work lists, maintenance schedules, logs, etc.) makes this especially challenging.

In this case, an inspected towing vessel was chartered (bareboat) to another operator with a different TSMS. During the handoff to the new operator, the vessel was added to the chartering company’s TSMS. However, the handoff did NOT adequately address how to bring a chartered vessel under the new TSMS, the receiving TPO did not adequately survey the vessel, and the receiving operator did not understand the existing deficiencies or pending repairs/maintenance. During subsequent operations by the charterer, the vessel experienced a loss of propulsion due to insufficient fuel in the day tank. Upon inspection, the fuel transfer pump and the tank’s low- level alarm were both found inoperative. Only one of these issues (the low-level alarm) was known prior to the incident and that fact was not communicated during the vessel’s handoff. The investigation also revealed that the crew had no knowledge of the charterer’s TSMS procedures, did not feel empowered to conduct any repairs on the vessel and were generally unfamiliar with the vessel’s configuration and arrangement.

The Coast Guard strongly recommends that parties involved in the chartering of towing vessels complete the following actions prior to offering or accepting a charter arrangement:

  • Ensure a vessel is in full compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements;
  • Establish clear procedures to transfer a vessel to a different TSMS;
  • Confirm that all parties understand their responsibilities for safety, repairs, and maintenance;
  • Outline the steps to transfer known Corrective Action Reports, deficiencies, and maintenance needs;
  • Ensure planned and unplanned maintenance continues under the charter arrangement;
  • Establish processes to provide indoctrination/on-boarding for new crew members; and
  • Notify the Coast Guard to ensure proper updates are made to the vessel’s Certificate of Inspection.

In summary, each party in the Subchapter M ecosystem has a responsibility to ensure that the transfer of a vessel in or out of a charter does NOT become a break in safety processes or safety culture.

This safety alert was created by Coast Guard Sector Upper Mississippi River and is provided for informational purposes only and does not relieve any domestic or international safety, operational or material requirement. Questions regarding this safety alert may be sent to the Sector Upper Mississippi River Inspection Division at marine-inspectors@uscg.mil.

Click here to download Marine Safety Alert 12-19

TVIB: 2019 Fall Informational Session

TVIB would like to invite you to attend our 2019 Fall Industry Informational Session to be held December 3rd, 2019 from 9am – 12pm CST at Turn Services, 3333 Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70117.

Agendas for the Informational Session and Board Meeting were sent out yesterday to membership along with registration links for each event.

Topics to be covered include:

1.  New Vessel Construction

               a.  TVIB Guidance Document and Experiences from the Field

               b.  Anticipated Path Forward for New Towing Vessels Being Built

2.  CG-835Vs and Marine Casualty Events

               a.  The Role of the TPO – what we can, cannot and must do

               b.  How TVIB is Involved in Processing and Closing Out CG-835Vs

               c.  Lessons learned

3.  Annual Surveys and External Vessel Audits in Years 2-5 of Phase In

               a.  Survey Review Process – Common Errors Identified

               b.  Changes in Review and Analysis

               c.  Developments with Coast Guard Required Limited Scope Audits After CG-835Vs

               d.  Effective Corrective Action Plans

               e.  Panel Discussion of Auditors/Surveyors – Lessons Learned, Tips and Tricks

4.  Evaluating Areas for Improvement in the TSMS

               a.  Internal Survey Program – Surveyor Qualifications

               b.  Permit to Proceed to Another Port for Repairs

               c.  Navigation Assessments

               d.  Drydocking Expectations Regarding Hull Repairs

Register at the following links:

Informational Session: https://tvib.z2systems.com/eventReg.jsp?event=841&

Board Meeting: https://tvib.z2systems.com/eventReg.jsp?event=846&

We hope to see you there!

TVIB Staff News

We expanded our staff this fall by adding the position of Training and Document Control Coordinator. We would like to welcome Melissa Hardy to the TVIB team. She will coordinate our quality management activities and manage our training design and development program, while supporting TVIBs core TPO responsibilities.  

Melissa brings with her 14 years of experience working in the maritime industry, which includes developing and maintaining safety management systems, maritime fleet management, and regulatory compliance. Additionally, she brings years of training needs analysis, design and development experience. She has assisted companies in the development, management and auditing of quality management systems, and holds ISO Lead Auditor certification. 

Melissa has expressed a desire to do her part in ensuring the safety of life at sea and on the nation’s inland river system.  Melissa and her husband reside in the Lake Charles, Louisiana area where she enjoys hunting and fishing and following NASCAR. She has a passion for working with animals and used to raise rabbits, horses and Labrador Retrievers. Please be sure to welcome her when you get a chance, you can find her contact info on the website Contact Us and Our Staff

With the expansion of our staff resources, TPO Customers are reminded that they should be calling our 24-hour Response Line when in need of assistance with CG-835Vs and Marine Casualty closeout when TPO involvement has been requested by the local OCMI. Utilizing the 24-hour response line will ensure your concerns are directed to the appropriate staff member.

24-Hour Response Line – 888-983-TVIB (8842)