MARITIME BEST PRACTICE LIMITED

Phone: + 852 93088915

Compliance & due diligence:
The ISM code provides the regulatory basis of compliance and due diligence for all ship owners and managers in the operation of their fleets. However industry demands have encouraged many operators and managers to also adopt and be certified for ISO 9001, 14001, 18001 systems to enhance the quality of operations on board and ashore. While periodical audits of the system are designed to identify non conformance, often the root cause(s) of the non conformance is/are not properly identified. This leads to ineffective corrective and preventive actions and the purpose of the audit itself is defeated. Thus the continual improvement that is expected is not achieved. We can provide value added services to your in house auditors and/or conduct third party audits and assist in the process of root cause analysis. This provides a unbiased view and holds up a mirror to the organization of its operations, so that senior managers can implement beneficial long term actions and achieve continual improvement.

We assist with restructuring of Safety Management System (SMS) into an Integrated Management System (IMS)in line with the High Level Structure (HLS) of ISO 9001, 14001, 50001 latest 2015 standard.

We provide advice to ship managers, maritime insurance providers, P&I clubs and law firms on all aspects of due diligence as per the ISM code. Our expertise in this area comes from long experience in practical and sustainable high quality ship management activities. Expert witness services are available.

Risk management & Loss prevention:
The basics of hazard identification and action to mitigate the likelihood of the hazards causing harm are often not well understood resulting in incorrect assessment of residual risk, and insufficient mitigating measures to reduce risk to an acceptable level. This leads to degradation of due diligence and thereby the propensity for loss increases. We can assist in training executives and sea staff to gain a comprehensive understanding of risk management as it applies to ships operations and onshore management.

We work with clients in designing and delivering loss prevention programs based on the residual risks that are identified in the clients operations. The approach is pro-active, concentrating on leading indicators rather than lagging indicators.

Casualty & Crisis management (accidents of all genre):
Casualty & Crisis management is an "art form" and requires the duly qualified mariner to be a highly effective leader and manager. It is of utmost importance to be confident and “to keep your head while all others are loosing theirs”, so that the right mitigating actions can be taken and corrective measures implemented. We have had extensive experience in this field having managed almost all kinds of accidents very effectively. We can assist ship owners and managers and their crisis management teams in actually handling particular incidents. On the other hand we facilitate the conduct of mock drills and exercises in the handling of a variety of casualty scenarios (including media management), to hone the skills of the management team.

Marine accident investigation:
We can provide comprehensive, independent, accident investigation services to ship owners, ship managers, law firms, P&I clubs, flag states and any organisation with an interest in marine accidents. Expert opinion and witness services are also undertaken.

Insurance claims handling:
In the aftermath of an accident, liaison work with H&M underwriters and P&I clubs becomes of paramount importance to mitigate loss and to gain maximal reimbursements from the insurers. We have several years of experience in handling all kinds of H&M, P&I, crew illness and injury, GA and PA claims. Thus we are well positioned to provide guidance to ship owners and managers and add value to the claims handling team of the owners. We have worked with most prominent insurers and claims adjusters in this field. We assist with third party claims, to achieve amicable settlement or if necessary assist with mediation, arbitration or court cases.

Special projects and/or Management Of Change (MOC) for shipowners and ship managers and institutions:
Be it a complete re-organization, or a minor tweaking of systems or structure that is required to make the organization more efficient the MOC becomes a very important aspect of the project. This requires proper impact analysis and risk management activity before embarking on the subsequent phases of the change. The prospect of change, by its very nature, brings about uncertainty, and this has to be effectively countered by a transparent process of explaining the benefits of the change to the stake holders in order to create a “buy in” towards the change. It may also involve educational seminars on relevant subjects. Once these steps are taken only then can the change be meaningfully effected. We provide a unique perspective and the necessary tools to make the project successful by assisting and guiding the MOC in the organisation.

Learning and Development
We have considerable experience in presenting at Ship managers and Ship owners seminars as well as to a large maritime audience on a variety of topics e.g. Quality management systems and their effective implementation, commercial awareness, loss prevention and insurance related topics, motivating staff and developing accountability. We are available to travel to clients overseas seminars or conduct in house presentations as per the clients requirements.

Counseling and Mentoring
Our seafarers today suffer from a variety of anxieties and often need some mature discussion with another experienced seafarer or experienced counsellor. Such services can be provided on a case by case basis tailored to an individuals need.

Security
We provide guidance on ship hardening, and ship security and risk analysis for security in HRA and GOG based on each ship’s profile so that Ship owners and managers can decide on company policies for employing armed guards. We can also assist owners in procuring top quality armed guards services at economical costs.

Services