Sea Malta meets ISPS code deadline

Shipping companies and port facilities across the globe have regarded the date of July 1 with great apprehension. This was due to the fact that the date represented a tight deadline to meet the implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security code - a mandatory regime that has come along as one of the after-effects of the tragic September 11, 2001, events in New York.

It must be underlined that the haste with which this code was introduced in the maritime world has not only created a lot of pressure on shipping communities at large, but considerable time and effort were expended on a learning process.

The entire process involved the thorough assessment of the two ships owned by Sea Malta, where sensitive security points, emergency escapes and restricted areas were identified and clearly marked. This exercise was then followed by the drawing up of two ships' security plans, which detailed exactly what crew members are expected to do under different security threat situations.

The ISPS code categorises security threats at three levels. Through this code, ships are permanently mobilised for security threats and so the lowest degree of threat is always at level 1, which implies, among other measures, stringent access control and questioning procedures prior to unauthorised personnel boarding ship.

In recognition of the successful and timely completion of the certification process, Sea Malta has officially received the International Ship Security Certificate from Bureau Veritas. BV is a French vessel classification society but also recognised as a security organisation. This society is officially authorised to conduct the necessary assessments, audits and release ISPS certification.

During a short presentation, Nicholas Baldacchino, chief executive officer of Bureau Veritas Malta, presented the certificate to Marlene Mizzi, chairman of Sea Malta. In a short statement, Mr Baldacchino praised the company's wholehearted commitment to meet the deadline. He commented that this was not an insignificant feat for Sea Malta considering that the great majority of shipping companies, the world over, have already reported that the chances of meeting the deadline were practically nil. Mr Baldacchino, cautioned that grave consequences were in store for noncompliant companies, which may be barred from docking their ships in most ports.

Mrs Mizzi, who thanked Bureau Veritas for their assistance during the certification process, expressed her satisfaction that Sea Malta, as always, has risen to the occasion and met set deadlines. She reminded that at the beginning of this process, a year ago, Sea Malta had taken the lead together with the Malta Maritime Authority and Bureau Veritas to create greater awareness on the issue through a seminar.

This seminar, which was organised at Sea Malta's expense, was attended by a number of organisations involved in the local maritime scene. She also pointed out that, to acquire this certification, the company has again embraced the determined approach that it had adopted to acquire another demanding code - the ISM.

Sea Malta general manager Joseph Bugeja, who was highly involved in the entire preparatory work leading to the compliance, stated that besides the sheer hands-on work related to the ISPS, Sea Malta had invested in formal training to produce a number of Ship and Company Security officers. Only this month, another eight Sea Malta personnel have attended this course and have successfully sat for the exams. These officers are now fully compliant with ISPS code requirements.