Aboitiz-Jebsen Rolls out Navigational Skills Program
Aboitiz Jebsen Company, Inc.’s (Abojeb) training arm Aboitiz-Jebsen Center for Excellence (ACJE) facilitated the first ever roll-out of the Navigational Skills Assessment Program (NSAP™) in the Philippines – also the first time outside of the US – with mariners from ship management company TBS-Roymar.
The two-day program integrates training elements in assessing and evaluating critical areas in navigation including Bridge Resource Management (BRM), compliance to International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS), situational awareness, prioritization skills, and communication and conformity to company Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) through a modern bridge simulator.
NSAP™ is compliant with the International Safety Management Code 1.2.2.2 that requires ship owners, managers, and operators to assess risk to ships, personnel, and environment, ensure appropriate safeguards. It also meets the Tanker Management Self-Assessment 2 (TMSA2) Navigational Safety Elements.
“The main purpose is to evaluate every navigating officer to specifically identify any skills gap that can potentially put the ship, its crew, cargo, and the environment at risk,” said Abojeb President and General Manager Ramon Villordon, Jr.
The entire process, he explained, involves company-specific task analysis, perceived and actual risks, skills measurement parameters, evaluation criteria, creation of simulated scenarios validated by subject matter experts, recommendations to mitigate any identified risks, and continual improvement.
TBS-Roymar signed up for a two-year NSAP™ process to cover its entire fleet. Through the program, the company will receive comprehensive reports including sessions and capstone reports that will identify key areas such as complacency, over-reliance to ECDIS, systematic and effective use of aids to navigation, performance level by age groups and by educational backgrounds, and the likes where appropriate metrics will be provided to allow the company to take appropriate action.
NSAP™, a program developed by the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies-Pacific Maritime Institute (MITAGS-PMI) which operates in Baltimore, Seattle and Houston, was initially used to qualify US pilots.
For the last six years, the program successfully served ship management companies as a highly effective tool in identifying risks.
Drawing from its success in the US, AJCE and MITAGS-PMI entered into an exclusive partnership to offer NSAP™ to the international maritime community starting off with the Philippines where 350,000 seafarers representing over 25% of the world’s maritime manpower is currently sourced.
“AJCE is focused on elevating the quality of Filipino and foreign seafarers alike. Its student-centric approach to training and development is very much aligned to MITAGS-PMI, which strengthens our partnership in ensuring safe navigation of ships,” Villordon noted.
AJCE and MITAGS-PMI are also in the process of developing a similar program for Engineers in order to offer a holistic approach to skills assessment for the maritime industry.
Aboitiz Jebsen Company, Inc. is 62.5%-owned by Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc., the publicly listed holding and investment company of the Aboitiz Group, which has major investments in power, banking, food, and land. The Aboitiz Group and the Jebsens Group of Norway have been partners for 30 years.
To know more about NSAP™, please send email to yourlearningpartner@ajce.com.ph.
