After three years, Shell’s Dr Grahaeme Henderson stepped down as OCIMF Chairman at ExCom 80 in Singapore in November.
Henderson commented, “After three years I am delighted to pass on the baton to Mark who has served as vice-chair since 2015. OCIMF has a critical role to play in driving improvements to industry safety and his broad experience and focus on safe shipping will be a great asset to the organisation.”
Ross said, “I would like to thank Grahaeme, personally and on behalf of the organisation, for the significant contributions he has made over the past three years where he has seen the membership increase to more than 110 member companies. I am honoured to be working with OCIMF members to advance our priorities. First and foremost, we must continue to focus on the safety of the people that work in this important industry. We also must care for the environment and protect the oceans for the future. I also believe we must collaborate and build links with other shipping bodies to develop a more cohesive and effective community.”
BIMCO secretary general & CEO, Angus Frew, has extended his contract to the end of 2022.
He said that his top priority next year will be environmental legislation. Over the past four years, Frew has been instrumental in modernising BIMCO and in increasing its member-focus, the organisation said.
"Right now, is a very interesting time for shipping, and I am very happy to be offered the opportunity to extend my contract. I can continue to lead an organisation that has the practical expertise and the scope to make a real difference on crucial industry issues, for example, the current environmental discussions and the establishing of a greenhouse gas strategy and objectives for the shipping industry," Frew explained.
As for the environment, BIMCO's aim is to make sure the industry retains a level playing field, and that practical hurdles are removed for shipowners, so they can comply with new environmental legislation.
BIMCO also announced that the organisation and CIRM (Comité International Radio-Maritime) have sent a proposal for an industry-wide standard for software maintenance to the IMO for consideration. Without an industry-standard, BIMCO said it saw an increasing risk of severe incidents on ships, delays and costs to shipowners and cyber security problems.
"We hope the entire industry will adopt these standards, to make ships safer, to prevent cyber security problems and to save money," Frew said. “The industry has been living in a world of hardware. But software has been integrated into most physical equipment on the vessels, and the systems and procedures to manage the software has not kept up with technical developments, and it creates problems."
The industry standard was compiled over a four-year period in collaboration with several industry leaders, such as BP Shipping, Maersk Line and Emarat Maritime.
Skuld has appointed Rachael Simpson as senior vice president, London P&I Operations.
Simpson's primary focus will be on business development in North America, reflecting Skuld's strengthened commitment to this market.
She will report to Matthew Burton, head of London P&I, when she takes up her new role in March, 2018.
Simpson brings more than 20 years' P&I experience to Skuld as she will join from Steamship Mutual where she is the underwriting manager for its American business. Prior to this, Simpson has held senior broking roles at Aon, Benfield Corporate Risk and Marsh.
Ståle Hansen, Skuld president and CEO, said: "The North American market has been a growth area for Skuld these past years, with strong development and performance noted across all classes of P&I: mutual, fixed, charterers and, in particular, offshore. Recruiting Rachael clearly demonstrates not only our commitment to our London P&I operations, but our intent to develop further our business in North America.”
Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC), manufacturer of patented polymer high performance industrial coatings, has promoted David J Keehan to President.
The announcement, made by APC chairman Donald J Keehan, is designed to ensure management continuity for future years in the closely held family business.
Previously David Keehan was APC vice president of sales and marketing from 1993 to 2017, engaged in introducing, promoting and selling the company’s leading patented coating brands - ChemLine for a wide range of industrial coating and tank transport equipment applications, and MarineLine for coating cargo tanks of chemical and product tankers carrying hazardous and other chemicals.
Donald Keehan said, “I am pleased to elevate my son David to this new post. He has spent considerable time in presenting our coatings to new markets, and consolidating our worldwide relationships in key territories. He understands the intricacies of the business and what we need to achieve in future years to continue APC’s legacy as a quality, premier coatings solutions provider.”
APC’s senior management team now includes Donald J Keehan as chairman, David J Keehan as president, Denise Keehan as executive vice president, and Darrin Keehan as vice president of manufacturing and technical services.
Pat Donnelly, of Braemar ACM-GFI, has been elected as chairman of the Tanker FFA Brokers Association (FFABA), replacing Ben Courtney of ICAP Energy who has chaired the group since 2016.
Working with the Baltic Exchange, FFABA organises educational workshops and industry forums in major shipping centres, with the aim of promoting FFAs as an important tool for managing exposure to freight rates.
He joined Braemar ACM-GFI in 2012, where he focuses on tanker FFAs. He has also previously been active as a broker for LPG, fuel oil and dry FFAs.
National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) has appointed Abdullah Aldubaikhi as the company’s new Chief Executive Officer, effective 1st January, 2018.
Aldubaikhi will be responsible for setting and overseeing the implementation of Bahri’s core strategic direction.
The appointment was made at a time when the company is gearing to enter a new phase of expansion and development following its growth over the past few months, the company said.
Abdullah Aldubaikhi said: “My immediate priority will be charting short and long-term goals for Bahri while strengthening the company’s commitment to the Saudi Vision 2030 and ensuring a positive impact on the continued growth of the global maritime sector through ambition and innovation.”
A Saudi national, Aldubaikhi joins Bahri from Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC), where he served in the same role for six years.
Safety solutions provider Survitec has revamped its lifeboat services operation into a global offering with the addition of 14 engineers across a range of sites worldwide.
Customers ordering lifeboat services – along with all their other needs, such as liferafts – can now enquire with their local branch, then have services delivered wherever they need globally.
This will now mean that engineers will be available in five continents, supported by flying squads in the main global ports. Survitec previously sent engineers from the UK and Scandinavia round the world to conduct inspections, but the enhanced service will be quicker and more cost-effective for customers, as well being able to be booked locally, the company said.
The enhanced service will be co-ordinated through one point of contact as opposed to multiple sites; reducing the administrative load for the customer. By providing services for all lifeboat brands and types, complexity is also reduced for users.
Paul Watkins, Survitec’s regulatory & compliance manager, explained: “We have always offered a global proposition, but these expansion plans give us an even larger footprint, which in turn offers operators greater peace of mind that we can reach them wherever they sail. Our cross-trained service agents can help companies improve their operational efficiency, not only saving them time and money, but also ensuring their statutory obligations are met. Customers can contact their local branch and the services can then be delivered wherever their ship is going to be globally. ”