from help desks to websites: through the indian gateway steensland

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ISS Rep rter
Issue 4 • June 2007
INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES
FROM HELP DESKS TO WEBSITES: THROUGH THE INDIAN GATEWAY
STEENSLAND PROFILED
LOCAL EXPERTISE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA AND THE GULF
THIS IS MY JOB: LEE HUBER
THE ISS CODE OF EXCELLENCE
Contents
Leader
3
CEO Claus Hyldager addresses some hot topics and
gives notice of some exciting acquisitions in the
pipeline.
The Legal Eagle
14
Lawyer Julian Gray examines the importance of
fast turnarounds and good communication when
it comes to charter party performance.
Editorial
4
The website is launched. And a word on the diverse
cultural mix within the ISS Global Village.
Group Operations
15
The ISS Code of Excellence is published and the
new Help Desk in Mumbai is launched.
Local Expertise: Western Australia
16
As China, India and other Asian economies demand
this region's mineral resources, ISS plays its part in the
export process.
Around the Network
5
We report on greeting British Royalty in the Gulf,
attending a newbuilding delivery in Japan, winning
new business from an old customer in Wales and
a lot more besides.
This is My Job
10
Lee Huber has worked in our Baltimore office for forty
years. This unsung heroine recalls agency work in the
Sixties and how things have changed over the decades.
Customer Call
11
Odd Magne Vigso of Norwegian brokers, Inge
Steensland AS, relies on prompt response and
accurate information from ISS.
Group Information
www.iss-shipping.com
18
More charity events, customer receptions, staff parties
and golf tournaments - all in a good cause.
12
Staff News
20
The employment of two young orphans in Mombasa and
the untimely death of David Tomlinson in Dubai illustrate
the highs and lows across our broad organisation.
13
The redevelopment of the ISS website is much more
than a cosmetic makeover as Web Content Manager
Suzy McGregor explains.
2
17
ISS has been involved throughout the chartering,
conversion and mobilising of a special barge stationed
in the Northern Arabian Gulf on maritime security
operations.
That's Entertainment
Group Information Director, Bryan Phillips describes
how his vision of an in-house software development
centre has become reality in Mumbai.
Communications
Local Expertise: Middle East
Defence Services
Notice Board
22
Beautiful mermaids, fishing competitions, bowling
glory in Saipan and model building in Quebec…..
ISS REPORTER • ISSUE 4 • JUNE 2007
LEADER
A clear strategy for success
Dear Colleagues,
A warm welcome to the fourth edition of the ISS Reporter.
In the last edition I highlighted our excellent financial results for 2006 and it gives me great pleasure to
confirm that we have completed the first four months of this year in an equally excellent fashion. At Group
level our profits have increased by 20% year on year and in comparison with Budget our trend line is above
target at all levels.
We are experiencing substantial growth within Marine Services, Liner Agency and our Machinery Division,
and our profit in comparison with last year is up 26%, 46% and 53% respectively.
It is naturally exciting for me to head up a Group that outperforms all financial targets, but what excites
me even more is the enthusiasm, dedication and “can do” attitude I am met with when I visit our regions
around the world. It is hard to believe that we will not be able to continue to outperform our targets with
such a great team truly dedicated to our strategic goals.
Excellent results are great but as with so many things these days they are only a snapshot of a particular
moment in time. It is consequently of the utmost importance that we follow our strategy to the letter in order to
build on our achievements and ensure that our growth line is not only sustainable but also offers our current and
future client base a value proposition that will enable them, like ourselves, to improve their bottom line results.
You have during the past months seen a flurry of activity from Corporate Services with regards to port
operation, sales and marketing, business development and finance and whilst I acknowledge that such
requests are a drain on your time I wish to stress that they are designed to ensure that we can continue to
produce results and sign contracts with new clients.
HOT TOPICS
There are a few initiatives, which are “hot topics” for the Board, our main shareholders and myself, namely: Data
Integrity, Operational Excellence, HSSE & QA and Financial Governance.
We have made significant investment in operational and financial software applications in order to
improve our internal processes and provide our clients with the added value they are looking for. The low
level of interest shown so far in providing timely updates and data entry to our applications will not be
accepted in the future. I therefore ask that you all work together with our respective Corporate teams to
ensure we achieve the targets set including first class performance at the sharp end as well as achieving the
goals set to maximise our cash flow.
To fulfil our promises with regard to communication and understanding we decided back in March this year to
commence a major Strategy Mapping & Alignment Survey among 170 managers across ISS. This was to establish
how well our new strategy has been communicated and understood, and how this is impacting on the roles,
focus areas and time spent on different tasks among managers.
We were aiming to establish whether there were significant discrepancies between what is perceived as
company strategy on the one hand, and the associated individual roles and activities to achieve the desired state
of affairs on the other. This enables us to plan and initiate appropriate action in the form of communication and
training activities so we can align the perceptions with the “real” strategy.
Whilst there is still some detailed analysis to be done, I am happy to share with you that although we still
have a fair way to go to achieve the final goal, 90% of the respondents were clear about our strategic goals.
There is a strong operational focus on existing and new business, communication has improved overall and
our efforts to include all levels within the decision making process have been met with enthusiasm.
After further analysis of the data over the next months, a specific action plan will be put in place and
executed to ensure that the overall strategy is fully embedded across the company at all levels.
EXCITING NEW INVESTMENTS
As previously mentioned our plans include mergers and acquisitions and you will over the next month be
informed about the completion of some very exciting new investments both in existing and new areas
around the world.
Are we successful? Well action speaks louder than fancy words and that is why our valuable existing
clients are entrusting us with more and more business and that we have been able to conclude contracts
with blue chip companies like ENI, Ligabue, Varun Shipping, Diamond Shipping, Jan De Nul, Essar Oil Field
Services and Hapag Lloyd just to mention a few.
Again many thanks to everybody for a sterling performance. We are truly underway to fulfilling our
ambition of “Let's do it again by 2010”.
Claus Hyldager
Group CEO
ISSUE 4 • JUNE 2007 • ISS REPORTER
3
ISS Rep rter
Issue 4 • June 2007
EDITORIAL
INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES
FROM HELP DESKS TO WEBSITES: THROUGH THE INDIAN GATEWAY
STEENSLAND PROFILED
LOCAL EXPERTISE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA AND THE GULF
THIS IS MY JOB: LEE HUBER
THE ISS CODE OF EXCELLENCE
Cover Photo: The Gateway of India, Mumbai
The
Mumbai Factor
Editor
Nick Elliott
Editorial & PR Coordinators
Head Office
Donna Noble
Europe/Africa
Christel Van Der
Mueren
Middle East/
South Asia
Bhavna Lakhiani
Asia Pacific
Vincent Hong
This, our fourth issue, appears hot on the heels of the new website's launch. If anyone hasn't
seen it yet, pay a visit at www.iss-shipping.com. Your views and input are always appreciated.
In this issue Suzy McGregor explains the thinking behind the new site, how it was developed
so quickly and efficiently thanks to the unstinting efforts of our IDC team in Mumbai - and of
Suzy herself - and how we can expect it to develop in the future. The website forms a critical
element in the business of communicating with our customers, via the media to our broader
audience, and with each other. It is the means by which we can reach out to our world with
news of what is happening at ISS and with useful facts and information from our many offices
and business streams. It will be kept fresh and up to date and we have many ideas for how it
can be further enhanced in future. So it is a constantly evolving project.
And Group Information Director Bryan Phillips describes the realisation of a dream in the
opening of our own software development division in Mumbai. It is this dream team that are
responsible for building the new website with Suzy.
The Bulk, Cruise and Tanker Help Desk - also based in Mumbai - is announced here too so it
is no accident therefore that the Gateway of India in Mumbai features as the view on the cover
of this issue.
We recently held a Press Day in London which saw journalists from all the leading maritime
press join us for a presentation delivered by CEO Claus Hyldager and Group Commercial
Director Rodney Lunn. A lively Q&A session followed (journalists are not noted for their shyness
in such situations) and the positive coverage received in the days that followed is posted on the
new website.
A CULTURAL MATTER
Japan
Yasuhiko
Tsukamoto
Australasia
John McGoogan
North America
Linda Clayton
South America
Paulina Guerra
Design/Production
Dave Blake
Printers:
Holbrooks Printers Ltd., Portsmouth
4
“Culture is defined as a system of values and beliefs which we share with others, all of which
gives us a sense of belonging or identity. It can be discussed in terms of ways in which people
pertaining to a group, society or organisation behave, communicate, think and perceive reality.
Each culture exhibits differing value and belief systems, which effect how people perceive
reality and react to it.” - Culture, Communication and Conflict: Readings in Intercultural Relations,
Gary R. Weaver, 2000.
In Houston recently for the North & Central America Management Meeting I was struck by a
society where everyone is used to having their say - and volubly exercising that right. The
participants didn't hesitate to recommend changes and different ways of doing things. In that
sense the whole meeting had a real workshop feel to it - sleeves rolled up with everyone
focusing on dealing with their particular concerns and putting forward their ideas - very
democratic, very American.
There is a cultural dimension to this. Across our broad network of offices there are as many
different ways of doing things as there are cultures and nationalities. In Bahrain for a similar
managers' meeting a few months ago, the' interest desks' were a very effective means by which
those who didn't get the chance to stick their hands up - or were reticent to do so - could more
comfortably chat with individual presenters.
The point is that ISS is a Global Village where cultures mingle and sometimes no doubt
bump up against each other, but where with clear leadership, mission, vision and strategy, we
can most certainly get the job done. That much is very apparent within these pages.
Nick Elliott, Editor
AROUND THE NETWORK
Easing Congestion
Following a successful audit by principal STASCO of ISS Japan's Tanker operations
receiving compliments for the high standard of our operational and accounting
performance, Shell's Debbie Grunsell (back row, third from right) commented: “I think we
all make a great team! It was a pleasure to see you all again and your efficiency and
professionalism makes our job much easier and is much appreciated and acknowledged.”
Two Catamaran ferries are discharged at
Derince, Turkey as part of a project to
reduce road traffic congestion in
Kocaeli. The city is divided in two by
Izmit Bay and the ferries will also reduce
commuting time. Kocaeli lost nearly
20,000 people during the devistating
earthquake in 1999 and is still
recovering. ISS has the highest volume
of traffic of any agent in Derince by a
considerable margin and from there
serves all ports in Izmit Bay.
Careful Now
When HRH The Prince of Wales
commissioned FLYING ANGEL in
Dubai, he met with RMD Chris Stone,
Capt. Iyer Narayanan, GM Marine
Services and Fujairah Port Manager
Sanjeev Sarin. Stephen Miller of the
Mission to Seafarers explained ISS'
role in managing the vessel in Fujairah
for which he was very appreciative and lauded ISS for their efforts.
FLYING ANGEL (seen in cake form, inset) is customised from the original design of a pilot
cutter and was built by Albwardy Marine in Dubai. Funding came through the US$1m 'Angel
Appeal' organised by The Mission to Seafarers in Dubai to coincide with the society's
anniversary celebrations. ISS is providing its vessel management services for a nominal rent –
effectively free of charge – and she is now in service off Fujairah. Photo shows the Prince
watched by (l-r) ISS' Chris Stone, Capt. Iyer, Sanjeev Sarin and Stephen Miller.
ISS' Don Maney cautiously boards a bulk
carrier for a hold inspection of its coal
cargo at the Annapolis, Maryland
anchorage. The boarding party
embarked the vessel via rope ladder and
disembarked via the vessel's gangway.
5
AROUND THE NETWORK
The Master of cruise ship SEVEN SEAS
VOYAGER asked ISS Hong Kong to remit
US$6,400 to a RIB boat builder in
Qingdao for shipment and delivery on
vessel's arrival.
Shipment was delayed due to bad
weather so ISS coordinated with all
parties to arrange delivery in Port Klang
where ISS was also attending.
Additionally, there were many medical
appointments including specialist
consultations plus land transportation
requirements for the ship's crew and
passengers. Nonetheless, all
arrangements were duly performed by
ISS Hong Kong over a hectic weekend.
The following brief message from
SEVEN SEAS VOYAGER's Capt Dag, says it
all: “Thank you very much. Thank you for
great service during our stay in Hong
Kong. Best from Dag.”
The arrival of the Chinese registered 159,000DWT tanker, DA MING HU, at the ExxonMobil
(Esso) Fawley refinery, UK, was an example of our diverse activities in that port. The vessel was
carrying a completely new grade for Esso (Dalia) crude from Angola and the refinery had to
make certain operational adjustments for this.
The plan was that the vessel would part discharge in Rotterdam, prior to arrival at Fawley.
However, on arrival in Rotterdam a flurry of email exchanges developed following the decision
to change the discharge volumes in each port. The agency department in Fawley became
heavily involved in the communication chain between Charterer, Vessel, Terminal and Port
Authorities due to the changes in arrival drafts and timings for pilots and tugs. Despite severe
weather en route, the vessel was able to arrive on time for tide and pilots.
The picture shows the vessel manoeuvring prior to berthing assisted by two tugs of Solent
Towage for whom ISS Fawley has been responsible for manning and financial services since
1993. The two tugs, owned by the parent company Ostensjo Rederi AS of Norway, are at the
forefront in tug design and are also used for escort and fire-fighting duties.
With DA MING HU alongside, the ISS managed waterborne and land-based garbage service
is utilized. 1,500 other vessels also use its high-standard service each year.
Due to Fujairah's strategic location at
the entrance of the Gulf it has grown
to be the second largest bunker port
in the world with a bunker market of
over 1m tones per month. ISS was
there 25 years ago when the port was
in the early stages of creation.
When Fujairah hosted its 7th annual
bunkering conference ISS sponsored
what was supposed to be a 30 minute
coffee break but which turned into
two hours of solid networking!
6
Greek owner Tsakos Shipping recently appointed ISS Japan, the first agency being a
newbuilding delivery from Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Yokosuka. Tsakos has ordered eight
Aframax tankers with delivery through 2010. The first are IZUMO PRINCESS and SAKURA
PRINCESS, both naming ceremonies simultaneously performed with the attendance of Her
Imperial Highness Princess Takamado and Tsakos VIPs. ISS' Hideo Murata also attended and
presented Captain and Mrs Tsakos with a framed Japanese painting.
AROUND THE NETWORK
Andrew Montero and PR Bhasi were
warmly thanked by the Master of
Greenpeace's RAINBOW WARRIOR
when she called Dubai recently.
Unfortunately pirates harassed the
ship after her departure - but she
sailed away at full speed.
The Toyota Europe Vehicle Logistics Partners Conference was held in Brussels recently.
Toyota's sales for 2006 were 7.9m units worldwide whilst its expectation is 8.4m for this
year. And for the first time, Logistics Partner Awards were given to service providers
including our own Dabkovıch MOL Auto Termınal Derınce, for Compound Operations.
Photo shows ISS' Yavuz Tarku (top row second from tight) with the Award.
Every year at the end of the cruise
season the ISS South America team
visits their customers in the USA and
Europe to discuss the past and coming
seasons. In these workshop meetings
full operational and financial details are
presented for analysis and to confirm
we have reached our promised targets.
Here discussions are underway with
Princess Cruises/Cunard in their office
in Santa Clarita, Los Angeles.
Participants in the North & Central America Management Meeting got together for group
photo in Houston. The meeting was a lively and vocal affair with everyone expressing
enthusiasm and optimism for the way business is going in their region and for what the future
holds. The atmosphere was further enlivened by a session that saw everyone divided into
groups according to their personality types and matched against other types in a variety of
tasks - much more fun than it sounds!
When its Chinese operation needed
offshore supply vessels in a hurry, Trico
Marine decided to send some of their
own boats to China. The five vessels
were reflagged and sailed from Houma,
Louisiana to Norfolk, Virginia where ISS
assisted in repatriating the crews and
making ready for shipment. The boats,
weighing about 700 tons each, were
lifted aboard the heavy-lift vessel ZHEN
HUA 10 with the help of Donjon
Marine's floating crane CHESAPEAKE
1000 ready for the 56 day voyage to the
Chinese oilfields.
7
AROUND THE NETWORK
When agents beg
Owners of the LPG tanker, CLIPPER SKY,
had arranged for an underwater
inspection for mid-term class at
Providence, Rhode Island but due to bad
weather it could not be carried out. ISS
obtained permission from the US
Coastguard and arranged divers after
final discharge Norfolk. In addition, since
the vessel was proceeding to the inside
anchorage for the survey, owners
ordered bunkers as well.
All was going to plan and we kept
all parties advised. The bunker barge
and divers where waiting for when the
vessel undocked from the Atlantic
Energy Terminal at daylight. Fifteen
minutes prior to sailing, we received a
call from the Coastguard saying they
had changed their minds and the
vessel would have to proceed directly
to sea. But she had insufficient bunkers
to make West Africa and the mid-term
class inspection would be overdue.
ISS' Scott Schubart immediately
called the terminal manager and
begged him to allow the vessel to stay
on berth for another 24 hours to bunker
and conduct the underwater survey.
Although the terminal's policy is not to
allow bunkering or underwater
operations, they made an exception in
this case. The lack of swift currents
normally found at the anchorage,
allowed the divers to perform the
underwater survey in record time,
saving at the very least a one day delay.
Thanks to Scott and his team for
their service and huge efforts were
expressed by Owners Solvang ASA.
Twelve ISS country finance managers were invited by Tom De Clerck (CFO Europe & Africa) to
Istanbul for a financial workshop. The Company mission, vision and strategy were presented
and the impact on the structure and the changes after the acquisition by Istithmar, were
discussed, particularly how everybody could contribute to achieving the new strategy.
Analysis of how to maximise cashflow and working capital and what our three key personal
objectives for 2007 would be, were also examined.
A presentation was made on ISS Group Acquisition Criteria, and the basics of financial
algebra (IRR and NPV) were explained to be used to measure Capex projects pre and post
completion. Finally a case study on a real acquisition (Ancon) was presented for which the
participants had to calculate the price we paid for this company and list the key elements for an
integration plan. The workshop was a great team bonding exercise and will stimulate all of us
to contribute to the challenges of the future.
ISS GFW to the rescue
Working on behalf of TBS, a New York
based company operating a fleet of 35
ships, ISS Global FilmWorks has arranged
for a TV production company in
Guangzhou to shoot a segment of TBS's
corporate video. The video involves their
AINU PRINCESS undergoing maintenance
repairs in a local shipyard. Despite time
constraints, ISS GFW, through its film
production and marine knowledge plus
the effectiveness of the ISS network,
managed to meet the customer's demands
and provide the required material.
ISS GFW thanked David Young, GM
Shanghai, for his excellent efforts and
cooperation. Even the film production
company in New York TBS hired
couldn't get the job done but we did
and at a day's notice in China, were
able to bring it all together.
8
Mark Stanley, GM Financial Solutions and Suellen Yuen, Business Systems Analyst, spent
a busy week in Tokyo during the cherry blossom season on a POPDA acceleration
mission, writes Yasuhiko Tsukamoto. Marathon investigation meetings were held with
accounting and operations staff. This followed another mission to ISS Machinery in Osaka
helping to document the new Machinery Services accounting system, Proactive.
The two visitors said their visit had been very successful and great progress was made.
ISS Japan is very positive about POPDA and the discussions were very helpful in
finalizing the issues and enhancements. Thanks were expressed to Wakana-san, Namekisan and Tsukamoto-san for their support which is key to making this project a success.
AROUND THE NETWORK
ISS Peru reports on COMREL (Community Relations) delivered courtesy of USCG MUNRO WHEC
724 in Callao when she called under ISS' agency: 43 all American guys painting, cleaning up,
smiling, pushing up, cheerleading and sharing a wonderful time with young orphans – even
babies – around them. They found time to invest in a local children's orphanage all day long with
no interruptions, at the end of which they received just big smiles and deep thanks as reward.
Captain Craig B. Lloyd took brush, paints, buckets, soap and water and the fun commenced. We
as agents were really proud to attend with the assignment demanding all our resources and skills
to complete our own job. No way to improve our service, they stated in our QQ before sailing.
ISS Singapore received a welcome gesture from Titan Ocean Singapore's Senior Manager, Capt.
Sartaj Gill: “As a token of appreciation for the excellent support provided by ISS to Titan, we
wish to present a picture of M/T TITAN TAURUS to your organization. We hope to receive the
same support and service in the future”. A presentation took place at Titan Ocean's office where
President David Lim (pictured presenting the photo to ISS RMD Jan Lauridsen) said based on
the feedback he was receiving from his team, the ISS-Titan alliance was working extremely well
and ISS was adding value to their operations.
Our agent for Galápagos and the Captain
of the Danish HDMS VAEDDEREN on her
scientific visit to the islands.
The USS TARAWA called at Mazatlan on
Mexico's Pacific coast as a trial by the
Navy to see if services can be provided
to a large ship at this port. All went well
and the Navy gave ISS and sub-agent
Maritimex a very positive report.
Peter Harris of ISS Swansea wishes
Capt. Knut Strandheim of the ferry
VICTORIA Bon Voyage on the inaugural
sailing of the new ro-ro service
operated by HJ Lines (Cardiff ). The new
route between Swansea and Cork (Eire)
is dedicated to freight and will
accommodate 65 trailers per crossing.
HJ Lines is the brainchild of Hugh
Johnson who has 30 years experience
managing Air Cargo Wales. The service
starts with three sailings per week with
capacity to increase to four crossings.
The route between Swansea and Cork
is well established, however the
previous operator was unable to secure
a passenger ferry vessel which meant
lorry drivers had been forced to divert
to other ports proving inconvenient
and more costly. The news of the new
service has been welcomed by the Irish
Road Haulage Industry. ISS Swansea
have been appointed by HJ Lines who
took into account ISS' previous 25 plus
years experience in managing the
freight service on this route.
9
THIS IS MY JOB
Lelia (Lee) D. Huber is
Administrative Assistant in
ISS Baltimore. Here she
describes her job, and
looks back on a lifetime in
shipping reflecting on the
changes she's witnessed
along the way.
But Lee is the modest type so talking to her
doesn't really give a fair reflection of her
worth. For that we turned first to her boss,
Baltimore Port Manager, Don Maney: “Along
with her administrative assistant duties for
the Baltimore office, Lee keeps many critical
components of our business stream running
seamlessly. She is what we like to call our
POPDA “guru”. Generating operations file
numbers and preparing operations folders
for upcoming vessel calls, Lee also assists our
Accountant, Joe Mangan with POPDA input.
“She handles the import traffic, sending
out arrival notices, collecting OBLs and
releasing the cargo for our long time
customers, Star Shipping, Volkswagen, NYK
and other lines that call on Baltimore to
discharge their cargo. We in Baltimore are
fortunate to have a person such as Lee.”
‘CAN-DO’ ATTITUDE
And from her old friend and colleague Linda
Clayton, PA to North & Central America RMD
Lars Westerberg: “In all the years I have been
in this business I haven't met many people
with her “can do” attitude. She has fearlessly
taken on every change systematically,
■ Lee with boss
Don Maney Linda Clayton (inset)
lending insightful suggestions along the way.
So many times over our long term together
in Baltimore Lee has gone above and
beyond, when we needed her most. The
epitome of humility, but even that word isn't
strong enough to describe her. I feel honored
to be able call her friend and co-worker.“
It was 1967 when Lelia - or Lee as she is
known - started her shipping career. Age 18
she joined what was then known as Lavship
and later became Lavino Shipping Agencies
in the port of Baltimore, supporting the
office's four boarding representatives in
their daily boarding duties.
Forty years on, she has just been
presented with a long-service award.
Back in the Sixties things were very
different - mainly on the communications
front. Telex was the messaging system of
the day. There were no pc's or laptops, no
fax and certainly no cell phones.
This meant Lee prepared the Port Call file
which contained all relevant telex messages,
ready for the boarding staff to take on board.
Because the ship had no access to phone
or email (what?!), the Master, together with
any of his officers who needed to, would
come ashore and sit at the Captain's Desk in
the office. Here he could call his owners and
charterers, discuss his ship's needs with the
agent and generally attend to shore
business before returning to the relatively
isolated confines of the ship.
memories of talking with skippers and their
crews from all over the world. She
remembers one Master buying her an Easter
basket for her birthday.
Steel, coal and grain were the principal
cargoes handled. Containers came later.
Lavino was a big agency but when an ILA
strike hit, Lee remembers the concern
in the office that they might all be laid off if
it continued.
Lee has fonder memories of 1976. The
commemoration of the Bicentennial of the
United States of America went on for
months and is remembered by people of
the time as a major cultural event. Lee
remembers the 360 degree view from the
office in the Baltimore Trade Centre and the
tall ships that crammed into the Inner
Harbour for the event.
She counts nine office moves during her
career working for essentially the same
agency. Lavino Shipping changed hands
several times before ISS acquired it which
must have been somewhat unsettling for
the staff at the time.
When ISS took over in 1992, computers
were introduced and the boarding officers
began to handle their own files and
paperwork. Lee's job changed. Instead of
helping the boarding officers, she took
control of setting up the port call files for
them then letting them manage the call
from there. Lee became involved in
preparing port D/As, settling accounts and
arranging cash to Master.
Lee lives just 15 minutes from the office
with her mother and aunt. The eldest of five,
she never married and admits she's wed to
her job.
MISSES INTERACTION
■ Baltimore’s Trade Centre
10
The Captain's Desk, as such, no longer exists
and the Master normally remains on board
where he has access to all the
communication devices he needs.
Lee misses that interaction and has fond
■ Tall Ships in Baltimore’s Inner Harbour
CUSTOMER CALL
Odd Magne Vigso of Norwegian brokers, Inge Steensland AS, writes about his company's
activities, the role that ISS plays in the fixing and chartering process, the state of the market
and the way he expects it to evolve in the future.
INGE STEENSLAND AS
Inge Steensland AS was established in 1960.
Today we are a 50-strong shipbroking
company and we specialize in the gas,
chemical and product tanker trades. Our
clients are mainly shipowners and operators,
traders and producers within these segments.
We are constantly striving to provide the
best possible solutions to our clients'
individual transport needs, whether to
optimize our charterers' transport
requirements or assisting our shipowners
and operators in chartering, buying,
building or selling tonnage.
At Inge Steensland AS we have skilled
chartering and S&P brokers, plus an
experienced and knowledgeable post-fixture
and operator team. We also have a renowned
research department where we have built
extensive market research services on the
basis of our in-house knowledge as well as
from our broad contact base.
In Singapore, our “I.S. Shipbrokers”, which is
a joint venture with Island Shipbrokers, provide
a similar service to our clients in that region.
For more information, please go to
www.steensland.com
The operation/post fixture department
handles the fixtures after the fixture is
concluded between the charterers and the
shipowners. We then handle the 'practical'
part of the fixture such as voyage planning,
agents details, special terms/condition as
agreed in the charter party, bills of
lading/letter of indemnity issues, freight and
commission part, laytime and demurrage
related issues, claims and other items which
naturally occur.
There are some parts which can be
referred to as routine-like, but we strive to
be ahead of the challenges and take action
before things actually happen and the
agent's role is an important part of this.
DEMAND FOR INFORMATION RISING
The agent's ability to keep the parties updated
on a frequent basis with accurate
information/details is vital for how smoothly a
voyage can be executed. The information flow
produced by agents is important to various
parties involved in the fixture and we can see
the demand for information is now rising.
ISS are preferred agents because of their
global network. Often prior to fixing we
need to obtain information about a port like restrictions in order to have the vessel
cleared. Naturally receiving accurate
information by return from ISS will make it
easier for us to conclude business, and as a
consequence recommend ISS as agents.
The ISS port directory (comprehensive
guide to port offices) is an important tool
for us and we also use the ISS website to
obtain necessary details.
Most of “our” markets remain in general
active with rates and values at
comparatively high levels. All our markets
rebounded in 2002-2003 driven by strong
global economic growth and partly limited
fleet growth at that time. Since then,
ordering has been very active, only to be
outpaced by the demand growth.
Higher freight rates and earnings have led
to an increased ordering of newbuildings
and we now see that the global economy will
“ . . . receiving accurate
information by return
from ISS will make it easier
for us to conclude business,
and as a consequence
recommend ISS as agents.”
Odd Magne Vigso
have to continue to grow strongly also in the
coming years for the market to absorb
double digit fleet growth.
We have also seen LPG carrier rates and
values strengthen significantly since 20022003, fuelled by limited fleet growth rather
than strong demand growth. And we have
seen an increased ordering also of LPG
carriers over the last couple of years, so
most size segments are now balanced, apart
from the largest LPG carriers (VLGC'S).
Owners are positioning themselves for
strong demand growth, mainly driven by an
expected increase in LPG exports from the
Middle East and West Africa as well as an
expanding trade of petrochemical gases.
■ Higher freight rates and earnings have led to an
increased ordering of newbuildings
11
GROUP INFORMATION: INDIA DEVELOPMENT CENTRE
The Group Information
Division of ISS, under the
leadership of Bryan Phillips,
Group Information Director,
has been a busy division
since the organisational
changes in June last year.
One of the key technological challenges facing
ISS over the past 5 years has been the
development of software. Through YourISS,
WWCraft, e-NOADS and GAMS, significant
amounts of money have been spent on
developing industry leading technologies.
Now that has been achieved, the challenge is to
ensure continued delivery and improvement
to the existing product line as well as
development of new technologies required to
meet the Groups strategic objectives.
To do this we had to re-engineer how we
approached software development; the cost
and delivery times of outsourcing was
making it difficult to meet the demand.
YourISS is a large application with a large
customer base and this success was
hogging all available funds! We needed to
think out the box. A long standing dream of
Bryan's became a reality: with the support
of Group CEO, Claus Hyldager, we decided
to open our own software development
division in Mumbai.
Kasi Viswanathan was relocated from
Singapore to Mumbai to take on the
position of General Manager IDC. Samuel
Salinas, a key employee of the previous
vendor and the senior analyst responsible
for the YourISS project was brought into the
ISS fold. Full approval was given in early
December and work began to get the office
opened and the recruitment done with a
target date of 1 May 2007. We took
possession of the new office on
1 January 2007 and were ready to move in
by the 1 March. The official opening was on
the 28 March. 2.5 months to take possession
of an office, refurbish it from furnishing to
IT Hardware being ready and recruiting
25 people was a mammoth achievement
and credit must go to Kasi and his team.
Kasi says: “The signage was put up as the
finishing touch at 0500 hrs on the 28 March.
4 Hours before Bryan arrived to inspect the
final environment!”
IDC allows us to:
● service customer enhancement requests a
lot faster and more cost effectively
● be in control of our own destiny, with no
real vendor exposure
12
From Dream to
■ Kasi and Bryan in the new office
● develop
many more major products to
facilitate Group objectives
● develop new features to Your ISS
● better maintain quality of all current
YourISS functions more cost effectively
● create a pool of skilled staff enabling us to
retain and enhance the knowledge in house
● control the quality of staff and the process
● control deadlines, timeframes and costs
● launch major technological strategic
growth through applications.
The decision to take this on made sense,
however the planning and hours that went
into seeing the official handover on the 1
May was immense. One of the major
considerations in moving to India was to
ensure that we maintain, if not improve
upon, the already good quality of our
Software Development Methodologies and
frameworks to ensure we develop quality
products using the best technologies with
the right process. To ensure this the IDC
office is working to meet the Capability
Maturity Model Integration level 5 standard.
(For the non techies out there, it is certified
proof we are as good as we tell you we are!)
Since the opening of the office we have
undertaken significant development. Key
projects to date have been:
● Taking over the support of YourISS from the
previous vendor. A significant challenge as
YourISS is the flagship software of ISS and
the industry. We have invested millions of
dollars. We have in the region of 4,000
users, have done calls in more than 1,732
ports and have completed more than
140,000 port calls since going live on the
1 February 2002. We had to take over the
knowledge of more than 2,500,000 lines of
software code!
● Development of the ISS Palm application
prototype. This is a project under the
ownership of Trond Baade - Group
Operations Director. Over the last few
months we have been working to get the
crew management prototype ready and
recently Neville Newman, Marine Support
Services Manager from ISS Dubai and
Juliet Serrao of Business Solutions, visited
the IDC to test the prototype of ISS Palm.
INDIA DEVELOPMENT CENTRE: GROUP INFORMATION
Web Content Manager,
Suzy McGregor, describes the
work behind our brand new site.
■ The IDC Dream Team
o Reality
● It
is a product focusing on the husbandry,
logistics and procurement services of ISS.
This will meet the demands of some of the
growth targeted by the Group Business
Development stream under Jon Corner.
Core modules to be developed are Crew
Management, Ships Spares Management,
Transport Management, Procurement
Management and Cash to Master
management. The live version of the Crew
Management module is targeted for
release on the 1 June 2007.
● Development and release of the new ISS
website. Nick Elliott and Suzy McGregor
joined the IDC team in India to specify the
requirement and we are launching the
new look site on 1 June.
● We held a CRM support workshop in the
IDC with Elroy de Menenez from Group
Commercial there to define the support
and development needs from a customer
and user perspective.
Just for the first two months of opening we
estimate a total of US$156,000 of software
development has been delivered without the
need to go and raise the funds. The exciting
thing is that we are scratching the surface; with
the strategic direction we are taking, this office
is the start of an exciting journey to change the
face of technology in our industry. The IDC team
are proud to be the vehicle to get us there.
The development of the new ISS website has been divided into
different phases. During Phase 1, which ended on 1 June with
the launch of the new website, the intention was to provide “like
with like” with some major improvements, all concerned with
usability.
There has been a complete restructure of the information
contained within the website, including the introduction of
subsites for our various business streams. This will allow
visitors to access the information they are interested in more quickly.
A new updated design has been applied and a great deal of thought has gone into
improving the usability of the site - for example, each page now has a unique URL which
makes for easy bookmarking and there are more ways for site visitors to interact with us via
the use of simple, user-friendly web-based forms. Some of these forms within the Bulk,
Tanker and Cruise pages, will allow us to provide quotations based on information received;
others give users an opportunity to get in touch with our staff with general enquiries to
find out more about what we do. In many cases we have also provided email links for users
who prefer to contact us in this way.
We have also inserted the code that enables us make use of analytical tools. These statistics
allow us to find out who is using our site, how long they stay, which pages they use and where
they tend to exit the site from. Using these figures will let us know which pages receive either
the most or least hits and will allow us to plan content for the future accordingly. We may
decide to discard some pages altogether and/or introduce new areas based on the
information received.
The News and Media area of the site has had a major overhaul with the intention of
facilitating access to the information visitors are searching for, more quickly and
intuitively. Visitors are now able to search all articles in a variety of different ways
including by category, region and by keyword.
Phase 2, which is commencing directly after the launch of the new website, will involve
the creation of microsites for each port office with individual organograms and a reworking
of the port directory including the addition of photographs of personnel. The new design is
to be applied to both the Cargo Services and the Machinery Services sites to provide
improved consistency in terms of branding and we hope to include a Community area to
showcase the different ways in which ISS is contributing to good causes and projects all over
the world and encourage more of our staff to get involved.
If anyone has any suggestions/comments they would like to send me regarding the
website just email me at [email protected]
Suzy's Diary
I was delighted to make a trip to visit both the Dubai offices and also the newly
established India Development Centre in Mumbai. It was a wonderful experience
and an opportunity to meet some interesting people and also to see around some
very different parts of the world.
Living on a farm in rural Scotland, both Dubai and Mumbai were a culture shock in totally different ways - but it was an experience I shall not forget seeing the vast
scope of work that ISS is involved in, in different parts of the world.
The visit to India, with Bryan Phillips and Nick Elliott, coincided with the opening
party of the IDC - a very special evening where all staff got together for a meal and a
drink to celebrate their hard work and achievements in setting up the new office.
It was a pleasure to be included in such a positive occasion.
IDC manager, Kasi Visnawaithan, assigned a three-man team - Viswa, Sharad and
Kannan - as my main points of contact for all technical issues and change requests.
After a two day marathon, we'd pretty much redesigned the site and re-thought
much of its content and functionality ready for top management's approval.
I hope to return to Mumbai to start work on phase 2 before long. I am looking
forward to it already.
13
THE LEGAL EAGLE
Timing is
Everything
Julian Gray, Partner
in Ross & Co., gives
some useful advice
on how we can best
protect and serve our
principal's interests.
Time is money - and nowhere is that more in evidence than in the
world of shipping, save perhaps for those involved in the noble
profession of maritime lawyer. They, as is well known, do everything
for love not money. But usually, whenever time is lost, somebody
ends up paying.
Who should pay is the commonest question to end up before the
Court or Tribunal. In fact, it is often the only question. So, if the
opportunities for delay can be reduced or avoided, everybody stands
to benefit. How can that be done and who is most at risk?
The commonest types of charter are time charters and voyage
charters. The Charterer pays a lump sum to the Owner under a
voyage charter for him to perform a specific voyage. In a time charter,
he pays hire for the use of the vessel over a defined period.
In the latter, the Owner does not really mind how his ship is employed
so long as it remains on hire within the charter's terms and he
continues to be paid for it. The greater risk of delay under a voyage
charter therefore falls on the Owner; under a time charter it falls on
the Charterer.
Delays can of course occur at any stage of a voyage. The vessel
might suffer a breakdown. More likely, she will be delayed by bad
weather. There is probably not much that those in port can do about
that. But the way in which a vessel's call at a port is planned and
implemented, both by those on board and those in port, can
obviously have a huge bearing. Good communications, anticipation
of problems that might arise, thoughtfulness, and attention to detail
are all key.
Where a ship on voyage charter takes longer to load or discharge
than is allowed under the charter, 'demurrage' is payable by the
Charterer. Demurrage can be thought of as liquidated damages
(i.e. fixed by reference to a rate in the charter) for breach of contract,
14
the breach being the failure to load or discharge within the time
allowed (laytime).
MINUTES AND SECONDS
Demurrage is calculated very precisely, sometimes in minutes and
seconds, and precision and accuracy are therefore required in any
paperwork upon which such calculations are to be based. In a recent
case, heard in London, a claim for demurrage brought by Owners
arising out of the unloading of cargo in China, was allowed for only
one of four contested periods. The evidence showed that discharge
had been suspended in the other three periods due to bad weather.
The evidence upon which the court largely relied took the form of
agreed statements of facts prepared by the port agents. They
obviously did their job well.
Similarly, an agent must be punctilious in his accurate and careful
handling of a Notice of Readiness (NOR) - the notification by a vessel
that it is ready to load or discharge. An agent may give an NOR on
behalf of the Owner, or receive it on behalf of the Charterer,
depending on which is his principal. Many a case has turned on when
an NOR was given or, more importantly, whether it was validly given.
I have also suggested the value of good communications,
thoughtfulness and anticipation. An agent told well beforehand of a
ship's particular characteristics, or the crew's needs, will be better able
to assist when liaising with the port authorities and ensuring a
speedy turnaround.
Likewise, the agent will be aware of particular customs of port
usage, and the idiosyncrasies and foibles of its personnel. Some
things might be regarded as common knowledge and obvious to all
that work in the port but they may not otherwise be obvious. Perhaps
a light buoy has shifted or perhaps a channel has not recently been
dredged and neither has yet been acted upon, or properly recorded
and notified by the relevant port authority. A timely warning could
avoid at best a delay, at worst a disaster.
Not only is this consistent with commonsense and good business
practice, it is consistent with the law. In fact, all three go hand in hand
far more often than many suspect.
In the absence of express instructions a port agent's general
duties are to stand in his principal's shoes. He also owes his principal
the duty to act with reasonable care, diligence and skill. In
discharging his duties as efficiently as he can, and doing everything
possible to minimize the possibility of delay, the agent acts with the
best commercial and legal logic and therefore in his own and his
principal's best interests. In so doing, he benefits everybody except perhaps the poor old lawyer who is left to get on with his
charitable work!
■ Julian Gray has practiced as a maritime lawyer for over twenty eight
years, seventeen of which were spent working in the Middle East and
Far East. He brings to this subject a wealth of practical as well as
legal experience. He is now based in LondÏon.
GROUP OPERATIONS CODE OF EXCELLENCE & HELP DESK
The ISS Code of Excellence
Our Mission Statement
ISS is committed to delivering a range of quality-assured marine services to its clients across
the industry. We take care to tailor those services to the individual needs of the client whether a fully integrated global package, the handling of a local port call, or the ad hoc
delivery of a single spare part.
To reach the highest standards we depend on our people - their welfare, training, and
expertise. We foster strong ethical values and a team spirit that rewards commitment and
initiative. By committing to excellence, accountability and transparency, ISS can best serve
its valued customers - efficiently and competitively.
And in our race for excellence there is no finish line!
1. Port Information
We will ensure that our customers are regularly and fully updated on aspects of local
port conditions that could be of value or affect their shipping interests.
2. Enquiries
A response to any enquiry from a current or prospective customer will be made within
a maximum of 24 hours of receipt. A holding message will be sent if the required data
is not immediately available. The holding message, if sent, will specify when the desired
information will be forthcoming.
3. Communications
All communications will be brief, clear and relevant. Format and style will be neat and
well structured.
4. Actions prior to the port call
A ship's port call will be planned to ensure the most efficient and expedient despatch
of the vessel, keeping the principal, ship, authorities and other interested parties, fully
informed of all arrangements and the anticipated port stay schedule.
5. Actions during the port call
The ship will be actively assisted during the port call to expedite the despatch of the
vessel, keeping the principal, the Master and interested parties informed of the arrival
conditions and the expected port programme. Progress reports will be sent out at least
daily confirming the schedule and ETD with revisions and reasons for revisions, if any.
6. Actions following completion and sailing
The principal will be promptly advised of the vessel's sailing and provided with full
details of the port call including the departure conditions, the ETA at the next port and
the applicable cargo and ship husbandry information.
7. Boarding Staff
Boarding staff will be smartly dressed, fluent in English, courteous, capable and well
informed about the port and vessel's requirements. The Master is to be fully briefed on
all aspects of the call.
8. Disbursements
An accurate disbursement account will be prepared and promptly submitted to the
principal. The account will outline the costs incurred and party responsible for the
expenses. The accounts will be in the common agreed Group-wide format and style.
9. Complaints
Any difficulties arising during the course of an operation will be formally handled in
accordance with procedures found in the ISS Quality Management System.
10. Professional, Ethical and Environmental Responsibility
All regional and local managers, as well as our service centre managers, accept the
responsibility for ensuring that the service offered by their operators, their sub-agents
and their sub-contractors meets Group standards.
In order to ensure a Group-wide performance culture of Service Excellence, every
employee is expected to live up to the Mission Statement and to ensure that they
uphold and live by the company's values in each task they perform. This includes
observing the highest ethical standards and adopting environmentally sound
behaviour in all aspects of their work.
In recent weeks Group
Operations has produced
two documents that
underline the importance
given to operational
excellence and client
service by the Company.
We review them both here but first, please
keep the Hotline Card handy in case you
need to contact our Help Desk. We have
printed enough to ensure further
requirements can be met.
The ISS Code of Excellence is reproduced
left. Copies are being circulated in A4 and
A1 size for use in and out of the office.
HELP DESK
The Bulk, Cruise and Tanker Help Desk
Procedures Manual is the second important
document to appear from Group Ops
recently. The Manual is divided into nine
chapters as follows:
● Introduction
● Scope of Work
● Key Activities & Business Processes
● Process Overview
● Operational Procedures
● Quality Assurance
● Documentation & Reporting
● Contact Details
● Appendix
This invaluable tool, together with the
training and familiarization that has
accompanied it, ensures our Code of
Excellence is extended to the India Help
Desk which has been entrusted with the
responsibility of coordinating real time
response to client queries.
The Help Desk has the following objectives:
a. Provide ready accessibility for our current
and prospective Principals to communicate
with the ISS Network irrespective of the
subject or the time zone they are in.
b. Provide a channel for routing
communication from Principals to our
offices for business growth
c. Support, monitor and follow-up on
commercial enquiries
d. Provide value addition and support in
generating revenue to the ISS Network
These queries may originate from the
Bulk, Cruise or Tanker sectors. The
document describes the scope of the tasks
to be handled, the communication (verbal
and email) process, documentation,
reporting and Quality Assurance.
For this purpose a dedicated team has
been engaged in the ISS Service Centre
based in Mumbai specifically charged with
the above responsibilities.
■ Cooks’ Corner will return for the next issue.
15
LOCAL EXPERTISE: WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Western Australia is the country's largest state covering a third of the mainland. The capital,
Perth, is closer to Jakarta than Sydney and the entire state has a population of just 2,050,900.
However, Western Australia has the highest per capita output of any Australian state with
an economy largely based on iron, alumina, natural gas, nickel and gold exports. It is the
world's third-largest iron ore producer with around 15% of the world's total output. Trade
with East, South East and Southern Asia accounts for much of the State's business.
Boom Town
ISS covers all of this vast and vital region from its offices in Fremantle,
Bunbury, Geraldton and Dampier.
In Fremantle a team of ten man the office handling container, steel
scrap and bunker calls in the Inner Harbour, along with grain, alumina,
cement, LPG, and Exxon-Mobil petroleum cargoes at Kwinana.
■ Fremantle staff
Our office in the BP Kwinana Refinery has two fulltime vessel
operators solely attending BP owned and timechartered vessels. The
refinery has an annual throughput of 5.8m tonnes of crude oil around 130,000 barrels
per day. Crude is
sourced from the
North-West Shelf of
Western Australia,
Southeast Asia and the
Middle East. Most
product is used within
Western Australia
■ Kwinana staff: Chris Evans and Miro Amidzic
whilst motor spirit,
aviation fuel and lubricating oil base stocks are exported to Asian
markets. Around 170 vessels call at the refinery each year.
Bunbury is the second largest city in Western
Australia, with a population of just 50,000. But
Bunbury is the largest alumina port in the world
with approx 9m tonnes exported annually. This
is expected to increase to around 12 million
tonnes by 2012. Our office here handles
alumina, woodchips, mineral and silica sands,
fertiliser discharge and coal.
■ Officer-in-Charge, Bunbury: Brian Ponton
16
Moving north, Geraldton is one of Australia's
busiest regional ports and the gateway to Western
Australia's abundant mining and agricultural
hinterland. 424km north of Perth, more than half
the port's exports are generated from minerals
and iron ore. Exciting expansion programmes are
in the pipeline as the port moves to cater for an
increase in export requirements brought about by
the resource boom gripping Western Australia.
■ Geraldton Branch
Heading up the coast, ISS' Dampier office is
Manager Robert Scott
located in the Northwest Western Australian
town of Karratha, handling iron ore, LPG, crude, petroleum products,
solar salt and generals. From here ISS attends vessels at Dampier, Port
Walcott, Exmouth and Port Hedland.
The office is run by two operators, an accounts clerk and Branch
Manager, Paul Marion. Attendance to vessels at the export terminals
requires driving on country roads and it is not uncommon for staff to
dodge - or hit - the odd kangaroo, echidna or Perente lizard.
When not busy with port calls, local activities include fishing,
snorkelling and diving around the 42 islands of the Dampier
archipelago; camping and motorbike riding.
All the ports in this part of WA are seeing impressive expansion
projects to cope with burgeoning demand from Asia. Ports are recording
record growth and ISS business is riding the wave too. To name but a few:
At Dampier Port, Pilbara Iron is building to increase trade throughput
to 89m tonnes.
Port Walcott is also expanding to keep up with the high demand for
iron ore from China and is planning an annual capacity of 80m tonnes.
The ISS office also tends vessels loading crude at most of the
offshore facilities on the North West Shelf, as well as vessels loading
condensate and LPG/LNG from Woodside Energy's Withnell Bay Jetty
at Dampier. Current expansion works include Woodside Energy's
dredging works and construction of its second LNG berth to cope
with the increased export volume with the completion of LNG train V.
Rio Tinto has continued its port expansion works and is currently
extending its Parker Point Jetty to accommodate four Capesize
bulkers and a new service jetty.
At Port Hedland, Australia's largest tonnage port, Finucane Island
C Berth is being replaced
with a new facility to
accommodate vessels up
to 300,000dwt. The new
berth will bring total
annual throughput
capacity to 129m tonnes ■ Dampier staff: L to R – Paul Marion (Branch Manager),
and will be operational
Mira Tollaczko (Operations), Jonathan Wicks
(Operations), Charmaine Ferreira (Accounts) – absent
from August this year.
LOCAL EXPERTISE: MIDDLE EAST DEFENCE SERVICES
Ocean 6 deployed
ISS Defence Services has commissioned and mobilised an accommodation barge for the
US Navy hosting 150 personnel deployed in the Northern Arabian Gulf. The barge was
chartered by ISS Defence's Dubai office with support from our Port Agency division and
initially positioned in Bahrain for modifications carried out by ISS in line with US Navy
standards and requirements. She was later deployed for operations further north.
OCEAN 6 is self-sustaining with facilities in keeping with the highest
ergonomic standards including a fully fledged operations centre,
closed circuit TVs to monitor all onboard activities, quality
accommodation, dining room, recreation room, internet café,
gymnasium, store room and a medical room.
The ISS launch INCHCAPE 14 carries out the role of supply vessel for
the OCEAN 6 and all logistical support is provided by ISS Kuwait.
Regular trips are scheduled between barge and Kuwait for conveying
fresh food and vegetables, personnel, equipment and stores to ensure
operational readiness.
The day to day activities associated with the barge are monitored
and coordinated by ISS's Defence Operations team in Bahrain. Her
requirements are conveyed by the US Navy and the support of ISS
Kuwait obtained to provide these services. Regular change of crew,
transportation of stores and perishable items are the main activities
coordinated on a daily basis.
The barge is also provided with meteorological information on a
day to day basis. This information, which includes wind speeds and
wave heights, helps the barge master to access weather deterioration
data and take effective action as required.
■ ISS Defence’s Capt. Madhu Gopinath with US Navy
crew member onboard OCEAN 6
■ John Lietao of ISS Defence Services onboard OCEAN 6
The deployment of OCEAN 6 is the first ever project of this nature
undertaken by the US Navy in this region. According to the on-line US
Navy source, Navy Newsstand, she serves as an afloat forward staging
base for the Combined Task Force conducting maritime security
operations (MSO) in the Northern Arabian Gulf. OCEAN 6 is a central
command and control hub to coordinate all MSO activity with
coalition ships in the area. Its primary mission is the protection of Iraq's
oil platforms.
OCEAN 6's sailors work to detect, deter and deny terrorists from
entering Iraq by sea, protecting shipping and preventing maritime
crime. They also train Iraqi sailors and marines how to conduct small
boat and combat operations. The training is helping Iraqis to
independently guard their assets and sea lanes in the Northern Gulf.
“Being here helps show the Iraqis the steps they need to take to
defend themselves and their resources,” said Lt. Todd Hutchison, OCEAN
6's acting chief staff officer. “Our eventual goal is to turn over the
responsibility of maritime security within the North Gulf to Iraqi forces.”
“It's a great experience to work with all of these different forces,”
said OCEAN 6's Engineman Fireman Apprentice Christina Hoeffler.
“Iraqi, Australian, American and British troops all work together to
accomplish a common goal.”
■ OCEAN 6 alongside the oil rig
17
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
Good enough reason
to celebrate
ISS honored the Greek shipping community
by hosting a reception in Athens recently.
Many prominent representatives from
amongst the Greek owners attended whilst
ISS Greece was represented by GM Christos
Makrialeas and Commercial GM, Vivi Pagoni.
Tormod Ognedal, Senior GM Commercial,
Europe, Francesco Gianolli, GM Commercial
(Italy), Laki Pribilovich, Port Operator
(Istanbul) and a number of other ISS staff
also attended, underscoring the attention
that we devote to this market. “ISS is
establishing a strong tradition within the
Greek shipping community,” reports Vivi.
“Business was left aside for one evening, as
the contribution of the Greek owners to
worldwide shipping is always a good
enough reason by itself to celebrate.”
For charity
Five members of the British Military Mission in Kuwait took part in an arduous sponsored walk
from the Iraq border down to the Commando camp in Kuwait, a distance of some 84km
covered over three days, with each soldier carrying his 40kg Bergen pack.
The effort was on behalf of the Kuwait Association for Care of Children in Hospitals KACCH and
ISS provided sponsorship plus ISS T-shirts and caps. The funds raised will help with the provision of
much needed equipment across all six hospitals affiliated to the Charity and provide Kuwait
children with greater care and improved environmental conditions during any hospital admission.
Entertaining in Oslo
Dubai staff party
ISS has held a number of customer
receptions recently including an event in
Oslo which gave Group Commercial
Director, Rodney Lunn (top, right) and
GM Commercial Europe, Tormod Ognedal
(bottom, centre), the opportunity of
entertaining their guests.
ISS Dubai hosted the annual staff party for all its Dubai and Northern Emirates employees, reports
Bhavna Lakhiani. Almost 600 people attended including employees' spouses and children.
The evening began with a welcome speech from Capt. Trond Baade - Group Operations Director
(top right). Special arrangements were made for children who had a room all to themselves.
The evening was full of enjoyment as the staff danced to the live band and DJ. There were
23 raffle prizes and many other spot prizes for winners of various games. It was a colourful
evening filled with fun that saw everyone leaving the hall late in the night with big smiles.
18
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
ISS Coalition Cup Challenge launched
■ Dan Fox flanked by CEO Claus Hyldager and RMD Lars Westerberg
New York, New York
It was the coldest night of the winter but it didn't stop a multitude of
appreciative guests turning up to celebrate Dan Fox's distinguished
career. We can do no better than quote Fairplay magazine's account:
“Fewer and fewer maritime industry denizens can tell first-hand tales
about the way it used to be back in the early 1960s, when the power of
personality was greater than today.
One such personality is Dan Fox. Worldwide giant Inchcape Shipping
Services hosted a party at Manhattan's Waldorf Astoria Hotel to
celebrate the retirement of this consummate maritime industry
professional with a superb dinner and drinks in the famed Empire Room.
His blend of people skills and business knowledge came shining
through as he addressed the gathering, which was attended by dozens of
clients and a high-level delegation from Inchcape Shipping (in town for a
management conference).
Inchcape's CEO Claus Hyldager and its worldwide commercial
director Rodney Lunn paid tribute to Fox's skills in handling a demanding
group of customers in a rapidly changing business environment.”
Norfolk Virginia is home to the largest naval facilities in the
world, writes Mike Carlson.
The citizens of Norfolk organize an annual Azalea Festival to
salute the allied forces with a different nation serving as host
each year. This year, in recognition of the 400 year anniversary
of the founding of the original British colony in Virginia, the UK
was chosen, with Winston Churchill's great granddaughter
Emily McManus, as Queen, and one of the UK's larger ships,
HMS OCEAN sailing in for a two week visit.
Together in one place were our two largest defence customers,
along with many other NATO and coalition force representatives.
So, when OCEAN's advance planning party queried ISS Norfolk
about golfing opportunities during their stay, the seeds were sown
for ISS's version of the Ryder Cup between the US and other NATO
forces in our own defence forces “ISS Coalition Cup”.
■ The US team and inset: Winston’s gt granddaughter,
the Azelia Queen
Eighteen competitors from NATO and OCEAN squared off
against eighteen from the US Naval Supply Corps and US Navy
did what their professional counterparts have been unable to
accomplish since 1999 - they took the title by a mere 21⁄2 points.
At the barbeque reception, all were unanimous in their
appreciation of ISS in putting together the event and enjoyed the
opportunity to meet their defence counterparts in this spirited
event. Like the Azalea Festival, a rematch is planned for next April.
Houston Rodeo…
ISS hosted a dinner at the Houston Rodeo which included a concert
featuring Country singer, Gretchen Wilson. Pictured are guests from
Petrobras Americas (left) and Teekay Shipping.
…and Houston hoedown
Meanwhile, line dancing was on the agenda in Houston at the
North & Central America Management dinner.
Teeing off in Kansai
The ISS Machinery team enjoyed a Spring golf match at the Kansai
Classic Golf Club together with 21 of their valued business partners.
Press Day
A highly successful Press Day was held in London attended by 14
journalists representing the world's maritime press. CEO Claus Hyldager
and Group Commercial Director, Rodney Lunn gave a joint presentation
and answered a flurry of eager questions resulting in extensive and
positive coverage in the days that followed.
19
STAFF NEWS
ISS Kenya has employed two 19 year olds Dianne Wabosha (right) and (Trikuti)
Sawako Takaiishi - from one of the local
orphanages in Mombasa. Dianne has now
been with ISS for two months and is
undergoing training in the Documentation
department after familiarization in Marine
Services, Liner and Cargo Services. She is
settling in extremely well, reports MD David
Mackay. “Her peers say she is extremely hard
working, versatile and friendly.”
Trikuti, who is half Japanese and has
been working with ISS on Saturdays and
Wednesdays, is still going through her
familiarization training. She is completing
two ''A'' levels in English and Physics in June
and will then join ISS full time. “She is young
and talented with excellent school grades
and we hope she can develop a good career
in shipping,” says David.
Paul Wagstaff has
joined us as Financial
Reporting Manager
reporting to Group
CFO, Chris Whiteside.
His role will
encompass group
financial reporting,
tax planning,
elements of treasury
and act as a support to Chris based in Dubai.
Paul joins us from Amsterdam where he
worked both with Disney and the NFL. He is
a member of CIMA and brings a wealth of
international reporting expertise.
Larry Cosgriff has
been appointed
Senior Vice President,
Defence Services. His
role entails the
strategic positioning
of ISS to meet the
future demands of
military customers
around the world.
Initially, this will involve mapping, evaluating
and building upon the Company's existing
Defence service capabilities to assist the ISS
team in developing new and expanded
services for its customers.
20
Larry brings over thirty years of maritime
industry experience to the job, including
service as a Merchant Marine officer (USCG
Master's license), chartering, port operations
and executive management experience in
major shipowning and operating
companies. He has extensive knowledge of
security issues and is an expert on emerging
maritime security threats. Larry is based in
the US and reports to CEO Claus Hyldager.
Dave DeBoer has joined as Vice President,
Defence Services in Washington, DC.
Dave has more than 22 years experience
in the maritime industry. Dave is a graduate
of the US Merchant Marine Academy, Kings
Point and has an MBA from Keller Graduate
School of Management and Business. In his
new role, Dave will be concentrating on our
sales and marketing efforts in North
America. He reports to Larry Cosgriff.
Dan Whysall has been
appointed General
Manager, Business
Development Streams,
based in Dubai. Dan
has been our GM in
Bahrain since 2003
and previously ran our
Abu Dhabi office after
originally working for
ISS in the UK.
Dan's focus will be to drive the Offshore
Agency and Logistics stream forward both
in terms of working with the regions to
identify develop and implement
opportunities. He will also be involved in
projects in the Humanitarian Logistics
stream and in the development of stream
related opportunities in the Dubai
World/Istithmar family companies.
Dan's replacement as GM in Bahrain is
Clinton Evans.
Amit Bhardwaj has
joined our Asia Pacific
regional team as
Assistant Regional
Manager, Asia Pacific
reporting to RMD Jan
Lauridsen. Amit joins
us from the AP Moller
- Maersk organisation,
with whom he had
been employed in the various positions
since 1997. He has a wealth of commercial,
operational and general management
experience in liner agency and logistics.
His role will be to assist Jan in all port
agency and marine related business with a
focus on identifying, developing and
implementing business plans, forecasts,
budgets and sharing of best practices on
operational process efficiency and profitability.
Amit will also be involved in our geographical
expansions throughout the region.
Tom Wilson, Regional Manager QA &
HSSE based in the UK, has been
appointed a Fellow of the Institute of
Chartered Shipbrokers. As a result he
is formally permitted to be called a
Chartered Shipbroker under the Royal
Charter of the Institute.
Becoming a FICS is no mean
feat. To secure this professional
standing with the Institute requires
significant study of the theory, law
and practice of the maritime trade
and the business of shipbroking
followed by a battery of
examinations. Tom was also
required to have recommendations
from industry representatives in
good standing with the Institute.
The ICS sets the highest
standards of professional service to
the maritime industry worldwide
through education and example. For
Tom to have achieved this status at
his age is rarely done and reflects
well on him and the Company.
Brian Mest has been
appointed Regulatory
& Training Manager
for North America. He
will support the
region in
communicating all US
Government
regulation changes
and implementation
requirements to ISS North American
Management, port managers and port
offices, as well as to our Principals. RMD Lars
Westerberg commented: “This is an
important area of our business that requires
considerable focus and a dedicated
resource to stay abreast of the ever
changing regulations to ensure that this is
well communicated among our operational
team and the owners we represent.
STAFF NEWS
Nabil Al Wahaibi has won the coveted Inchcape Innovators
Award launched by ISS Oman. The scheme gives every staff member
the opportunity of being entered for the Award once every three
months. Winners excel in Innovation - creating new and better ways
of performing your job and/or Teamwork - proving beyond doubt
what a good team player you are. Nabil, an Omani national, won for
Teamwork, Cost Savings and Exceptional Customer Service.
“In his short tenure he has built up an exceptional rapport with the
Ministry of Manpower and has gained their absolute confidence
which has helped us move our papers with ease,” said Jim Robb, GM,
Oman. “He has put great effort into processing visas for our clients
Boskalis, much to their satisfaction. He is an excellent team player and
has always assisted our staff with their official and personal needs
related to administration.
Captain David Tomlinson
who was employed by
Inchcape Shipping Services
in Dubai as an offshore
Marine Consultant for
Nakheel Developments,
sadly passed away on the
12th April after suffering a
heart attack. David who was
52 years old leaves a wife
Joyce and son John who are
residing in Scotland.
David had a very varied
and interesting career serving
for 14 years in the Royal Navy,
first with the fast patrol squadron and then operating as a
commanding officer in mini submarines where he saw active
service in the Falklands war.
After David left the Royal Navy he worked as a Salvage
Captain for 3 years clearing wrecks in the Shat al Arab Waterway
following the cessation of the Iran/Iraq war, and then went on to
manage a turnkey project for the design, construction and
commissioning of a Hydro-electric scheme in Scotland. Prior to
joining ISS, David was employed in Oman managing the design
and construction of a canning factory near Salalah.
David joined ISS in Dubai in October 2006 and quickly
established himself as a popular, professional and competent
member of the management team. He was very highly
regarded by our client Nakheel and will be sorely missed by
all who knew him.
David, may you always have the sun on your face and the
wind at your back.
Chris Stone
Betty Murphy has retired recently after 18 years with ISS and
Gellatly Hankey. Betty is pictured here (right) with her successor,
Human Resource Manager, UK, Amanda (Mandie) Ridge, at Betty's
farewell party. Betty is already using her spare time traveling in
Australia before returning to UK to tackle a home and garden
renovation project.
Tod Gannett Vice President, US & Canada West Coast & Hawaii,
expressed his thanks to Ellen Barnhill (left) who recently announced
her retirement. Tod referred to Ellen's dedication to ISS and her Global
AMS customers: “Among the many accomplishments she has had
over her career, we must stress how instrumental Ellen was in getting
the ISS GAMS and e-NOA/D Service Center off the ground three years
ago,” said Tod. “If it weren't for her pouring her heart and soul into it,
it would not be the success it is today.”
Temple Martin, in the Portland, Oregon office will take over the
function as Manager, ISS Global AMS and ISS e-NOA/D Service
Centers. She has been in the ship agency business for almost 30 years,
working in various departments including Traffic, Operations along
with Marketing and Sales.
21
NOTICE BOARD
Seeking Revenge
A Winter hobby
“The idea was to find a hobby for the
winter,” explains ISS sub-agent for the
Quebec ports of Grande Anse, Matane, Gros
Cacouna and Les Mechins., Jean-Marie
Jourdain. “I decided to start this project, an
'S-TYPE' vessel named GOINGRACHT. Most
S-Types load woodpulp here. They are very
nice looking and I also have a great
relationship with all crewmembers, captain,
mates, mostly very friendly Filipinos. This is
my second ship model. The first was a small
cargo ship owned by my father who was
captain on it as were my three brothers. So
shipping is a family affair. Everything is
made on the basis of photos taken of this
particular type of ship and using tools such
as sandpaper, knife, dremel drill… that's all.”
The GOINGRACHT is a newbuilding of
our principal Spliethoff and is due to be
delivered this year.
The annual Yokohama Port Cutter Race saw
188 teams including 24 female crews
participating. Toyomi Shimizu reports.
ISS Japan, who have participated for many
years, fielded two teams: “Inchcape Dolphins”
and “Inchcape Mermaids”. This year both
teams lost out in the heats although RMD
Daiki Wakana and other staff from ISS Japan
cheered them hard from the shore. The
beautiful Inchcape Mermaids drawn from
Port Agency, Machinery Services and P&I
department pictured here, have sworn they
will take revenge on the winners next year.
A fishy tale
The Fujairah Fishing Competition went off well albeit we did not catch as many fish as we
would have liked, reports Port Manager Sanjeev Sarin. Members of MIUWU-112/ US Navy team,
as well as RMD Chris Stone and family, joined in the fun and Morale Welfare & Recreation
officer, Kevin Murray, promised that because of the support the US Navy gets from ISS, they
would be pleased to fly our flag (literally) on their small boats during all their missions as a
gesture of their gratitude and goodwill.
ISS Port Manager from Chile, Francisco
Villagrarn with Argentina GM, Oscar
Sotelo and Friend, taking a break from
cruise workshops in LA.
A good cause
Our principal OSG UK Ltd of Newcastle upon
Tyne, have entered two teams in this year's
24 Peak Challenge - 24 Peaks in the English
Lake District, in 24 hours. ISS is sponsoring
with a donation for this charity event.
22
NOTICE BOARD
ISS in Seventh Heaven
Stop Press from Saipan Tribune
Inchcape Shipping sailed through another winning season in the
Wednesday Night Mixed League and the team received its
championship hardware at the Saipan Bowling Center. According to
Robert Talavera the title is the seventh overall for the veteran team,
which is made up of captain Ariel Dumapit, Jun Canillo, Raul Dumapit,
Joven Abris, and Jon Eparwa.
So dominating was Inchcape Shipping throughout the season
that it had all but wrapped up the championship with still several
games remaining.
Speaking for his team, Talavera said Inchcape Shipping used the
same formula for success this past season - teamwork and confidence
in their abilities with the bowling ball.
Last but not the least, the SBC lanes supervisor also extended his
appreciation to team captain Ariel Dumapit for making Inchcape
Shipping the bowling power it has become. Talavera said Dumapit
(pictured with trophy) is currently off-island (in Guam) but always
shares the team's highs and lows.
With an average of 350 launch trips per month, the ISS
launch crews are on call 24/7 and must adjust their lives
around their work. But Fujairah Branch Manager Sanjeev
Sarin decided a party was in order at a local hot spot - the
Seamen's Club. Launch staff were invited from all boats
based in Dubai and Northern Emirates to join in a night of
festivities which included a raffle, games, live band, food
and other entertainment with the main attraction being a
belly dancer. The thinnest moustache contest was a close
call between Marselino Nofri from the FLYING ANGEL and
Andi Nuryadin from INCHCAPE 12. After much deliberation
by Marabella Youkhaneh, Assistant Manager in Fujairah,
Marselino took home the prize.
Summarised from Clarksons Research, a useful table showing the
world commercial fleet.
Ship Type
Number
%
General Cargo ships (a)
17,774
37%
Oil Tankers
8,584
18%
Bulkers
6,412
13%
Containerships
5,451
11%
Offshore
3,475
7%
Chemical Tankers
2,651
5%
Ro-Ro/Car Carriers (b)
1,794
4%
LPG/LNG Carriers (c)
1,266
3%
903
2%
Others
Total
Newbuildings
An artist's rendering of MT AURORA which calls 20 or so times a
year at Morehead City under ISS ' agency to offload molten
sulphur from Venezuela and often backloads phosphoric acid.
48,310
100%
6,575
a) General Cargo - 15,083 / Multipurpose - 2605 / Combos - 86
b) Ro-Ro vessels - 1,187/ Car Carriers - 607
c) LNG -227 / LPG -1,030
Status as at 1st April 2007
23
Inchcape
Shipping Services
Marine
Management
A World of Local Expertise
Inchcape Shipping Services
5/7 Lakeside Business Village
Fleming Road, Essex RM16 6YA
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)1375 484900
Fax: +44 (0)1375 484984
Email: [email protected]

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