Our Members will be well aware that IMCA has been extremely active in our response to the COVD-19 crisis. This has taken the form of publishing good practice, lobbying industry stakeholders, and taking practical steps to use our influence to assist in the offshore crewing problems affecting the global shipping industry. This work has been under the leadership of IMCA’s Margaret Fitzgerald and will of course continue for as long as it is needed. Our diving committee has been fully engaged in addressing the risks of COVID in a wide range of operational matters, from the threat of infection in saturation systems to the difficulty of obtaining routine diver medicals. In the latter case, we all now recognise that the early lockdown actions in providing short-term extensions for diver fitness medicals were expedient, but cannot continue indefinitely, and that industry now needs to readjust and return to the normal cycle of medical certification. We have therefore recently issued a new Information Note addressing this difficult problem.

Coming back to more normal business, in April of last year, we started a new workgroup to develop a Code of Practice for Offshore Pipeline and Umbilical Installation Systems. This was in response to the unmanageable spread of opinion by third party consultants to the complex areas of system architecture, engineering design principles, and testing requirements. We recognised that our membership represents the largest and most successful pipelay contractors in the world, conducting all manner of pipelaying operations 24/7 and are therefore the undisputed experts in this field.

The workgroup brought together experts from Allseas, McDermott, Saipem, Subsea 7 and TechnipFMC to develop the Code of Practice, using their extensive industry knowledge. A total of 22 meetings have taken place under the chairmanship of Raymond Vink from Allseas and the organisation and leadership of IMCA’s Mark Ford. The result is a code which promotes safe and efficient practice based on sound engineering and the experience of laying millions of pipe joints. This shows what can be achieved when we put determined minds and great experience to work on a problem to be solved.

In terms of emerging new technologies, the term Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) was created by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to be utilised during their regulatory scoping exercise. There is a broad spectrum of vessels which fall under this term, however we have formed a workgroup to focus on Uncrewed Surface Vessels (USV). These are purposely designed vessels remotely operated and monitored. They may have a varying degree of autonomy but at no point is a human operator removed from the decision making.

In the absence of an existing regulatory framework, the initial purpose of the workgroup is to develop internationally recognised guidelines for the safe and efficient operation of USVs. These will act as a form of acceptance or mitigation in bridging the gap until IMO regulation is introduced. In the longer term, the intention is to present the guidelines to the IMO and its member Flag States to ensure USVs are placed at the centre of MASS discussions, and to assist in the development of legislation.

I hope this provides a flavour of the high level of workload at IMCA and the progress we are making in both traditional and new areas of our work.

As always, let’s all stay safe and healthy.

Allen Leatt, IMCA Chief Executive