Chapter 22
BOARDING ARRANGEMENTS
(Covers all aspects of boarding a ship)
General principles
Boarding arrangements must comply with the standards and maintained at all times.
Gangways and accommodation ladders are to be considered as lifting equipment and should be tested and recorded as such.
Where the equipment is used as safe means of access, it must be placed in position promptly, be properly rigged and deployed, safe to use and adjusted as necessary to maintain safe access. Rigging equipment should not form a trip hazard. Ships should comply with inspection, testing and maintenance requirements.
When access equipment is provided from the shore, it is still the responsibility of the master to ensure that the equipment meets these requirements.
Any access equipment and immediate approaches to it must be adequately lit.
The means of boarding and its immediate approaches should be kept free from obstruction and kept clear of any substance likely to cause a person to slip or fall. Where this is not possible, appropriate warning notices should be posted.
Each end of a gangway or accommodation or other ladder should provide safe access to a safe place or to an auxiliary safe access (Gangway to gangway).
A portable ladder should only be used for access to a ship when no safer access is reasonably practicable. A rope ladder should only be used between a ship with a high freeboard and a ship with a low freeboard or between a ship and a boat if no safer means of access is reasonable practicable.
A lifebuoy with a self-activating light and also a separate buoyant safety line attached to a quoit or some similar device must be provided ready for use at the point of access aboard the ship.
Safety nets
An adequate number of safety nets of a suitable size and strength are to be readily available. Where there is a risk of a person falling from the access equipment or from the quayside or ship’s deck adjacent to the access equipment, a safety net must be mounted.
The aim of safety nets is to minimize the risk of injury arising from falling between the ship and the quay or falling onto the quay, deck or between two vessels. As far as is reasonably practicable, the whole length of the means of access should be covered. Safety nets should be securely rigged, with use being made of attachment points on the quayside where appropriate.
Use of equipment
When suitable access equipment is provided from the ship or from the shore or from another ship, any person boarding or leaving the ship shall use that equipment.
The angles of inclination of a gangway or accommodation ladder should be kept within the limits for which it was designed.
When the inboard end of the gangway rests on or is flush with the top of the bulwark, a bulwark ladder should be provided. Any gap between the bulwark ladder and the gangway should be adequately fenced to a height of at least 1 metre.
Gangways and other access equipment should not be rigged on ships’ rails unless the rail has been reinforced for that purpose.
The means of access should be sited clear of the cargo working area and so placed that no suspended load passes over it. Where this is not practicable, access should be supervised at all times.
When an accommodation ladder is being rigged, this should be completed with the ladder in the horizontal position so that those working on it can be safely attached with a safety line to the deck and the ladder secured to reduce any unnecessary movement.
Portable and rope ladders (Pilot ladders)
Portable ladders are typical metal ladders. Following applies to its use.
It is very important that the ladder is checked regularly by a competent person.
When it is necessary to use a portable ladder, it should be used at an angle of 75° from the horizontal. The ladder should extend at least 1 metre above the upper landing place unless there are other suitable handholds. It should be properly secured against slipping, shifting sideways or falling and be so placed as to afford a clearance of at least 150 mm behind the rungs.
When a portable ladder is resting against a bulwark or rails, there should be suitable safe access to the deck.
A rope ladder (Covers Pilot as well as Monkey/coolie ladders) should be secured to a proper fixing point, and never to rails or to any other means of support unless they are constructed for the purpose.
A rope ladder should be left in such a way that it either hangs fully extended from a securing point or is pulled up completely. It should not be left so that any slack will suddenly pay out when the ladder is used.
Where the freeboard is 9 metres or more, a rope ladder(Pilot ladder) should only be used in conjunction with an accommodation ladder, leading aft and positioned in such a way as to provide safe and easy access from the rope ladder to the bottom platform.
Maintenance of equipment for means of access
Any equipment used for boarding or for hoisting boarding equipment, including lifting wires, should be inspected by a competent person at appropriate intervals, properly maintained and parts renewed in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. Additional checks should be made each time the equipment is rigged, looking out for signs of distortion, cracks or corrosion. Welding connections should be given particular attention in inspections.
Arrangements should be made to inspect the underside of gangways and ladders periodically. Any defects affecting the safety of any access equipment, including access provided by a shore authority, should be reported immediately to a responsible person and made good before further use.
Aluminium equipment should be examined for corrosion and fracture.
All inspections, maintenance work and repairs should be recorded. The record should include the date of the most recent inspection, the name of the person or body carrying out the inspection, the due date for inspection and the dates for renewal of wires for supporting the equipment.
Gangways, accommodation ladders and winches used for lifting or access should be tested in the same way as all other lifting appliances and records maintained, including any test certificates.
Where a vessel is moored alongside another vessel, there should be cooperation between the two vessels in order to provide suitable and safe boarding arrangements. Access should generally be provided by the ship lying outboard, except that, where there is a great disparity in freeboard, access should be provided by the ship with the higher freeboard.
Transfer of personnel between two unsecured ships at sea is potentially a particularly dangerous manoeuvre, and should be avoided where possible.
It is recommended that vessels undertaking ship-to-ship transfers while under way should carry equipment designed to aid in the rapid recovery of a casualty from the waters.
A working lifejacket should be donned when there is a risk of falling into the water when transferring to a vessel or structure that is not alongside. The transfer of baggage or other items should be done by the crews of the vessels and not by those boarding.
Access for pilots
The Company is required to provide pilot ladders and accommodation ladders that comply with the construction and testing requirements laid out in SOLAS
In addition, the master must ensure the following:
· All pilot ladders used for pilot transfer should be clearly identified with tags or other permanent marking so as to enable identification of each appliance for the purposes of survey, inspection and record keeping. A record should be kept on the ship as to the date the identified ladder is placed into service and any repairs effected.
· Each pilot ladder, accommodation ladder and their associated equipment are properly maintained and stowed, and regularly inspected to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, each is safe to use.
· Each pilot ladder is used only for the embarkation and disembarkation of pilots and by officials and other persons while a ship is arriving at or leaving a port.
· The rigging of the pilot ladder, accommodation ladder and associated equipment is supervised by a responsible officer who is in communication with the navigating bridge.
· This officer’s duties will include arranging for the pilot to be escorted by a safe route to and from the bridge.
· Personnel engaged in rigging or operating any mechanical equipment are instructed in the safe procedures to be adopted and that the equipment is to be tested prior to each use.
A safety line and harness, a lifebuoy with a self-igniting light, and a heaving line should be kept at hand ready for use at the point of boarding.
The pilot ladder, accommodation ladder and the position where the person embarks and disembarks on the ship should be adequately lit.
It is very important that the ship offers a proper lee to the pilot boat. The arrangements for boarding should preferably be sited as near amidships as possible, but in no circumstances should they be in a position that could lead to the pilot boat running the risk of passing underneath overhanging parts of the ship’s hull structure.
Safe rigging of pilot ladders
In addition to the general points, in order to minimize the danger to pilots when boarding and leaving ships, particular attention should be given to the following points:
· Pilot ladders should be rigged in such a manner that the steps are horizontal, and such that the lower end is at a height above the water to allow ease of access to and from the attendant craft.
· The ladder should rest firmly against the side of the ship.
· When an accommodation ladder is used in conjunction with a pilot ladder, the pilot ladder should extend at least 2 metres above the bottom platform.
· Safe, convenient and unobstructed access should be provided to anyone embarking or disembarking between the ship and the head of the pilot ladder.
· A lifebuoy with self-igniting light should be kept available at the point of access to the ship.
· At night, the pilot ladder and ship’s deck should be lit by a forward-shining, overside light.
See the ‘Required boarding arrangements for pilot’ diagram on the International Maritime Pilots’ Association website. http://www.impahq.org/
Accommodation ladders:
An accommodation ladder should be designed so that:
· it rests firmly against the side of the ship where practicable;
· the angle of slope is no more than 55°. Treads and steps should provide a safe foothold at the angle at which the ladder is used;
· it is fitted with suitable fencing (preferably rigid handrails) along its entire length, except that fencing at the bottom platform may allow access from the outboard side;
· at a maximum inclination, the lowest platform of the ladder is no more than 600 mm above the waterline in the lightest seagoing conditions;
· the bottom platform is horizontal, and any intermediate platforms are self-levelling;
· it provides direct access between the head of the ladder and the ship’s deck by a platform securely guarded with guardrails and adequate handholds;
· it can easily be inspected and maintained; and
· it is rigged as close to the working area but clear of any cargo operations as possible.
Pilot ladders:
Construction standards
A Pilot (rope) ladder must be of adequate width and length and so constructed that it can be efficiently secured to the ship.
· The steps must have a slip-resistant foothold of not less than 400 mm × 115 mm × 25 mm and must be so secured that they are firmly held against twist, turnover or tilt.
· The steps must be horizontal and equally spaced at intervals of 310 mm (± 5mm).
· The side ropes, which should be a minimum of 18 mm in diameter, should be equally spaced.
· There should be no shackles, knots or splices between rungs.
· Ladders of more than 1.5 metres in length must be fitted with spreaders not less than 1.8 metres long.
· The lowest spreader must be on the fifth step from the bottom and the interval between spreaders must not exceed nine steps. The spreaders should not be lashed between steps.
All pilot ladders must be certified by the manufacturer as being compliant with international standards.
Rigging directions
In addition to the standards above, every pilot ladder should be positioned and secured so that:
· it is clear of any possible discharges from the ship;
· it is, where practicable, within the mid-ship half-section of the ship;
· it can rest firmly against the ship’s side; and
· the person climbing it can safely and conveniently board the ship after climbing no more than 9 metres.
Where replacement steps are fitted, they should be secured in position by the method used in the original construction of the ladder. No pilot ladder should have more than two replacement steps secured in position by a different method. Where a replacement step is secured by means of grooves in the sides of the step, such grooves should be in the longer sides of the step.
Two man-ropes of not less than 28 mm in diameter, properly secured to the ship, should be provided.
Bulwark Ladder (Step ladder)
Where access is by bulwark ladder, the ladder should be securely attached to the bulwark rail or landing platform. Two handhold stanchions should be provided, each of which should be rigidly secured to the ship’s structure at or near its base and at another higher point. The stanchions should be at least 40 mm in diameter and extend no less than 1.20 metres above the top of the bulwarks.
Combination ladders
Where the freeboard of the ship is more than 9 metres, accommodation ladders must be provided on each side of the ship.
Such accommodation ladders should comply with the standards.
In addition
· the pilot ladder should extend at least 2 metres above the accommodation ladder’s bottom platform; and
· if a trap door is fitted in the bottom platform to allow access to the pilot ladder, the opening should be no less than 750 mm square, and the after part of the bottom platform should be fenced as the rest of the ladder. In this case, the pilot ladder should extend above the lower platform to the height of the handrail.