INTERNATIONAL SAFETY MANAGEMENT (ISM)

INTERNATIONAL SAFETY MANAGEMENT (ISM)

The safety management system (SMS) is an organized system planned and implemented by the shipping companies to ensure safety of the ship and marine environment.

SMS is an important aspect of the International safety management (ISM) code and it details all the important policies, practices, and procedures that are to be followed in order to ensure safe functioning of ships at the sea. All commercial vessels are required to establish safe ship management procedures. SMS forms one of the important parts of the ISM code.

The safety management system (SMS) therefore ensures that each and every ship comply with the mandatory safety rules and regulations, and follow the codes, guidelines,  and standards recommended by the IMO, classification societies, and concerned maritime organizations.

Every safety management policy should satisfy some of the basic functional requirements to ensure safety of every ship. They are:

• Procedure and guidelines to act in an emergency situation
• Safety and environmental protection policy
• Procedure and guidelines for reporting accidents or any other form of non-conformities
• Clear information on level of authority and lines of communication among ship crew members, and between shore and shipboard personnel
• Procedures and guidelines to ensure safe operations of ships and protection of marine environment in compliance with relevant international and flag state legislations
• Procedures for internal audits and management reviews
• Vessel details

In short, a safety management system would consists of details as to how a vessel would operate on a day to day basis, what are the procedures to be followed in case of an emergency, how are drills and trainings conducted, measures taken for safe operations, who is the designated person etc.

Safety management plan is mainly the responsibility of the owner of the vessel, or the designated person, or the person appointed by the owner. However, the ship’s master and the crew are the best people to make an SMS as they know the vessel inside-out.

An SMS is divided into sections for easy reference. They are:

• General
• Safety and environmental policy
• Designated person (DP)
• Resources and personnel
• Master’s responsibilities and authority
• Company’s responsibility and authority
• Operational procedures
• Emergency procedures
• Reporting of accidents
• Maintenance and records
• Documentation
• Review and evaluation

These are the main parts of a basic SMS; however, the plan might vary according to the type of the vessel and the cargo carried by the same. SMS play an important role in the process of ISM code implementation on ships.

The International safety management (ISM) code ensures the safety of life and ship at sea by implementing various safe practices on board ships.

ISM code works with the motive of satisfying three important goals:

• Safety of people on board
• Safety of ship and cargo
• Safety of marine environment

For implementing ISM code on ships, all the three – the shipping company, the governing authority, and the ship’s crew together play an important role. Every seafarer should know the important aspects of the ISM code in order to create a safe working environment while at sea.

Implementation of SMS

Plans and checklists form the most integral part of the implementation procedure of the ISM code on ships. Checklists for safe starting and stopping of shipboard machinery, along with plans to carry of various work procedures on board ship ensures safety of the ship and marine environment.

Procedures are formed to tackle emergency situations on board ships. This emergency preparedness to respond to emergencies is inculcated in the ship’s staff through drills and various emergency training programmes.

Every activity on ship is a team effort. Effective team meetings and discussions helps in a great way to take the security of the ship to an all new level. (Find out how to conduct effective team meetings on board ships)

In order to ensure utmost safety of the ship, the ISM code targets the very basics of the ship’s functioning – ensuring proper maintenance of ship’s machinery. This includes

• Inspection of ship machinery at regular intervals of time
• Taking the right actions in case of non-conformity
• Keeping a record of the causes and maintenance activities for future reference
• Regular testing of equipment and systems
• Training ship personnel and keeping them updated with the latest in the industry

A maintenance plan is made is order to carry out ship machinery and repair work out
Every ship has a safety committee, along with a safety officer, to discuss and implement new safe working practices and update the existing ones. The master of the ship is the chairman of the committee and ensures proper functioning of the same.
Every detail of the ship is noted down in valid documents, which are available all the time on board the ship. These documents are reviewed at regular intervals of time during audits.
All the changes in the documents are reviewed and approved by the authorized personnel.  Moreover, all the documents necessary for the safety of the ship are mentioned in the SMS manual.
The shipping company pays an important role to ensure that the ISM code is properly implemented on the ships. The company also appoints a safety officer, who is requires to carry out his duties properly by providing all the necessary information regularly.
Following strict safety policies implemented under the ISM code not only helps in ensuring safety of life and environment but also benefits the shipping company in a variety of ways.
Every seafarer should develop the right safety attitude on board ships.
The type of procedures adopted for a ship under the ISM code, depends on the type of the ship and the shipping company.
The International Safety Management (ISM) Code was entered into force to ensure safety of people, safety of ship and cargo, and safety of environment. The ISM code was brought into action to inculcate safety culture at the sea and at all levels of seafarers working on ships.
In order to understand ISM, it is important to know definitions of a few important terms which determine the whole structure of IMO’s ISM code. If you are a seafarers working at the sea, then you must know these six definitions which forms the main structure of the ISM code.

The International Safety Management (ISM) Code was entered into force to ensure safety of people, safety of ship and cargo, and safety of environment. The ISM code was brought into action to inculcate safety culture at the sea and at all levels of seafarers working on ships.

In order to understand ISM, it is important to know definitions of a few important terms which determine the whole structure of IMO’s ISM code. If you are a seafarers working at the sea, then you must know these six definitions which forms the main structure of the ISM code.

1.       Safety Management System (SMS): The safety management system is a structured and documented system under the International Safety Management (ISM) code which enables shipping companies and its ship’s crew to effectively implement all safety policies regarding ship, crew, and environment while at sea.
2.       Document of Compliance: Document of compliance is a certificate issued to a shipping company which complies with all the requirements of the ISM code.
Document of compliance is one of the most important documents of the ship which are often checked during port state control survey.
3.       Safety Management Certificate (SMC): Safety management certificate (SMC) is a document provided to a ship signifying that the company and its ship personnel operate in accordance with the safety management system (SMS).
SMC should be produced by the ship whenever asked by a PSC.
4.       Objective Evidence: Objective evidence is any form of information, records, or statements of facts which indicates implementation of safe management system by the shipping company and its ships. The objective evidence is based on observations, measurements, or tests that are made during an audit and which can be verified.
5.       Non Conformity and Major Non-Conformity: When objective evidence indicates non fulfilment of a specific requirement stated by the safety management system, a situation of non conformity is considered to have occurred.
A major non-conformity is an extremely serious situation which poses serious threat to the safety of personnel, ship, or the environment. It indicates a major lapse in effective and systematic implementation of the ISM code. Major non conformity would require immediate corrective action to be taken by the ship’s management.
6.       Anniversary Date: Anniversary date can be defined as the day and month of each year which marks the expiry of a relevant certificate or document of the ship under the ISM code.

Credits: imo.org