Transcript Current Status of Shipyard Competent Person Programs in
Current Status of Shipyard Competent Person Programs in Louisiana and Texas
Laura Hartline Weems United States Coast Guard Safety and Environmental Health Officer
What do you think of when you think of the South?
Perhaps...
POPEYES Fried Chicken
Winn-Dixie Supermarket
Drive through Package Stores
Or maybe you think of the boats...
Objective of research
Evaluate Shipyard Competent Person programs and facility safety programs
Background- Marine Inspectors
Coast Guard has Marine Inspector program for commercial vessels Inspectors often conduct inspections on vessels in shipyards Principle hazard- confined space entry on vessels (fuel tanks, cargo tanks, voids)
Background- confined spaces
Confined space entry is serious hazard • CG definition: Limited openings, unfavorable ventilation, & not designed for continuous human occupancy • Ships have many confined spaces • Ships also carry many hazardous chemicals -cargoes, fuel, cleaners
Background- confined spaces
Confined space are normally first verified as “Safe for Workers” by Marine Chemist OSHA allows Shipyard Competent Person to recheck spaces to maintain MC Certificate Safety is rarely their primary duty
Background- SCPs
OSHA only requires that SCPs know how to do their job, does not require formal training SCPs are usually the new employees at a facility. Receive little training on instruments & recognizing hazardous conditions There is no formal audit program in place to evaluate SCPs
Background- CG’s position
Coast Guard safety policies are more stringent than OSHA’s OSHA’s regulations -29 CFR 1915 Safety standards for shipyard employment OSHA allows for: • Oxygen 19.5% - 22.0% • 10% of Lower Explosive Limit • Toxic vapors/gasses < PEL
Background- CG’s position
Coast Guard Marine Safety Offices usually add more restrictions to CG safety policies Policies for each MSO may differ Shipyards are expected to abide by all policies when CG inspectors are at their facility
Background- Why District 8?
Background- Why District 8?
Total Marine Inspection Cases 1993-1998 D8 39% Coast Guard 61%
Background- Why District 8?
Tank Ship Inspections 1993-1998
36% 64%
District 8 Other CG
Background- Why District 8?
Tank Barge Inspections 1993-1998 34% 66%
District 8 Other CG
Background continued
Examples of common shipyards in Louisiana and Texas...
Description of research
Survey tool was designed to gather info • shipyard competent persons • facilities policies and procedures Planned visits to shipyards in Louisiana and Texas to conduct survey
Research Methods
Questionnaire used to survey SCPs and facilities 3 main sections • Background Information (6 questions) • Basic Knowledge (15 questions) • Facility policies and procedures (17 questions)
Example Questions
9. Define LEL (Lower Explosive Limit): _________________ 16. What is the normal atmospheric level of oxygen? _______% 20. What does it mean to visually inspect a space? _____________ 30. How often do you zero your instrument(s)? ______________
Research Methods
Pilot administration in Rhode Island • 2 SCPs at 2 shipyards Revisions made Over 3 weeks, visited 46 SCPs in 24 shipyards in New Orleans, Morgan City and Houston
Research Methods
Port
New Orleans
No.
SCPs
22 Morgan City 17 Houston 7 9 5
No.
Shipyards
10
Research Results
35 of the questions had point values of 0-4 pts for total possible score of 140 pts.
• Lowest: 55 pts • Highest: 125 pts • Mean: 95 pts Very broad distribution of scores
Comparison of zone scores
140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 88 94 119 Morgan City New Orleans
DISTRICT EIGHT ZONES
Houston
Project Results- Distribution
The distribution of scores was determined. Surprising results:
• 40% knew term Lower Explosive Limit • 30% knew term Adjacent Space • 75% knew what normal atmospheric level of oxygen was • 65% knew what results constituted safe oxygen levels and Lower Explosive Limits
Project Results- Summed Score
Tests were performed to compare scores between different groups of SCPs Chose the 95% confidence interval as significant
Project Results- Summed Score
Not significant:
• High school graduate vs. not a high school graduate • More than 3 years on the job vs. less than 3 years
Significant:
• NFPA 3-day course vs. other courses • Large (>200) shipyards vs. small (1-99) or medium (100-199)
Project Results- Summed Score
Significant:
• NFPA 3-day vs. Marine Chemist course &/or in-house training programs
Not significant:
• Marine Chemist course vs. in-house training
Conclusions
Questionnaire is good survey tool SCPs & facilities are not up to regulatory standards • Average score for basic knowledge: 70% • For facility practices and procedures: 75% The Coast Guard should continue to set stringent safety guidelines for its personnel
Conclusions
Inadequate evidence that CG inspectors can uniformly rely on SCPs & facilities Training appears to have strong influence on SCP competency Larger shipyards had better programs in place than the smaller ones
Recommendations
Surveys should be done of SCPs & facilities by CG units every 12-18 months Coast Guard should make policies even more conservative to match needs of units
Recommendations
OSHA should require that SCPs be trained in a course similar to NFPA’s • “empowerment” education • 3 days versus 1 or 2 days • professional instructors Biannual refresher training should also be required
With a little help, we can be like-
Thank you...
Any Questions?