Joint Initiative Tackles Common Causes of Maritime Accidents

Press Release – ABS – (Houston) ABS, the American Club, and Lamar University are launching a new initiative aimed at reducing maritime-related safety incidents. The initial focus of the partnership’s analysis and industry guidance will be on slips, trips and falls, a significant cause of maritime injuries.

Commenting for ABS, Manager of Human Factors, Dr. Kevin McSweeney said, “We are excited to work with our partners to develop pragmatic guidance for some of the most common hazards and behaviors affecting maritime personnel. Much still remains to be done in reducing these incidents.” McSweeney provides more detail, “Slips, trips, and falls have received a lot of attention over the years but remain a leading cause of incidents aboard ship. This initiative will identify, prepare and share actionable safety-related guidance to help organizations better prioritize resources and measure progress to improve seafarer safety and health.”

According to the ABS Mariner Safety Research Initiative, the commonly reported causes of slips, trips, and falls are situational awareness (40%) and poor housekeeping (29%). The American Club’s Senior Vice President William Moore emphasized the collaborative nature of the initiative, “The specific talents of all three partners have come together in identifying common behaviors and hazards impacting maritime personnel; developing recommendations for interventions that can improve safety, as well as presenting guidance to marine owners and operators in understanding key causes, with the ultimate aim of implementing onboard strategies to mitigate these incidents.”

“Our goal with this initiative is developing practical industry recommendations that can be applied to improve the day-to-day safety of maritime crews and staff,” said American Club’s Moore. “By working with ABS, a recognized leader in maritime safety, and Lamar University, this effort will move the ball towards the ultimate objective of reducing work-related incidents; we all fully appreciate what impact fatalities and serious debilitating injuries will have on associated costs to marine liability insurers – let alone the abject misery caused to the families of affected seafarers.”

“Through the ABS/Lamar University Mariner Safety Research initiative, we have a long history of providing solutions to help prevent maritime injuries”, stated Lamar University Professor and Chair of the Department of Industrial Engineering and Director of the Mariner Safety Research Initiative, Dr. Brian Craig. “By collecting and analyzing injury and incident data we can identify lessons learned and corrective actions to aid in preventing the occurrence and reoccurrence of maritime injuries. We all believe that this partnership will help improve the welfare of the maritime industry’s most valuable asset; its seafarers.”

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