Clay Maitland

On a quest for quality in shipping

Shipwrecked – a must see for anyone

I have just spent the last few days in Singapore at the opening of one of the oldest and most important marine archaeological finds of the late 20th century – the fabulous Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures and Monsoon Winds exhibition which has opened at the ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sands. Continue reading

IMO needs Action plan from Piracy meeting

On the first Thursday of next month, the International Maritime Organization will host a ceremony to launch the Action Plan to promote 2011’s World Maritime Day theme: “Piracy: Orchestrating the Response”. Continue reading

Lifeboat failures highlight perils of sea

It is well known to those concerned with safety at sea that behind a thick hedgerow of rules and regulations there exist real people and, sometimes, real danger. Continue reading

Money and blood

It is not clear whether the loss of the Jian Fu Star (October 27th 2010: 13 fatalities); Nasco Diamond (November 10th 2010: 21 fatalities); or the Hong Wei (December 3rd, 2010: 10 fatalities) involved a ship that lacked P&I cover or that was not classed with a known classification society. Continue reading

Should we blame flag states for Nickel Ore disasters?

I wanted to follow up on a point Matt Turner made in one of the comments to my Nickel Ore disaster story. Continue reading

Where’s the response to Nickel Ore casualties?

For many years, cargo experts, underwriters, trade associations and the IMO have warned of the dangers posed by certain mineral cargoes. In little more than a month, three bulk carriers and their crews have been lost. Continue reading

Happy birthday to us

This week I was in London to have my annual meet the press day and also to celebrate a year of this wonderful blog.

With over 160 posts and over a thousand visitors a month I would like to say a big thank you to my contributors in particular Michael Grey and to the readers whose comments have me enthralled.

Here is an extract of a video interview that I had with Ship Management International at the event… Continue reading

Integration is key for risk management

In February, I spoke about the purposes that led to the founding of NAMEPA. It is now three years since we were organised, in October, 2007. Continue reading

Thank You USCG

At the start of this month and much to my pleasant surprise, I received a wonderful honour from the United States Coast Guard in the form of the Distinguished Public Service Award. Continue reading

The importance of something extra

Recent debate, arising from concern about the safety of deepwater drilling, has included discussion of whether and when backup or redundant safety technology is desirable. Continue reading

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