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Annual Review 2005/06 - Operations Back to Contents
- Fight to save the whale
- Furhter improvements in Port Control Centres
- Navigation safety management system continues to evolve
- Royal Terrace Pier - Historic infrastructure made fit for 21 century
- Lowest ever workplace accident rate
Thames Whale
The battle to save a northern bottlenose whale, weighing four and a half tonnes and measuring over 6 metres, that strayed 40 miles up the River Thames in January 2006 involved several PLA operational departments and received the widest possible coverage by the world’s media. It has been estimated that about 200 million people around the world watched the saga on television. The PLA was widely praised for the central role it played in the rescue attempt which, sadly, did not have a happy ending.
As the statutory authority on the River, we had the responsibility of leading the many different agencies who worked together – including police, fire service, marine experts and British Divers’ Marine Life Rescue – in the attempt to save the whale. At the same time, we had to ensure the safety of other River users.
After the whale was first sighted at Dagenham by the PLA Harbour Service on the Thursday morning, contact was maintained to protect the creature. A moving ‘exclusion zone’ was placed around the whale to ensure its safety and also that of others on the River.
During the Saturday, the RIB ‘Ebbsfleet’ was used to ferry marine mammal experts and PLA staff around and later helped to tow the whale in an inflatable harness from shallow water to be lifted on to the PLA salvage vessel ‘Crossness’.
On board the ‘Crossness’ the whale was cushioned by one of the Towed Inflatable Rescue Rafts, designed to assist people who get into difficulty and sited at strategic points in the River. Additional airbags and flotation devices were also used to keep the whale upright.
Racing against time, the ‘Crossness’ made considerable progress downriver and out to the Estuary. Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of vets and marine mammal experts on board, the whale died near Cliffe on the north Kent coast. The whale’s remains were subsequently landed at our marine operation facility at Denton Wharf.
Port Control
2005 was the first full year of operation for the upgraded Port of London Vessel Traffic Services (VTS), which benefited from a £1 million package of investments in 2004.
Further improvements were made during 2005 to increase the efficiency of the Port Control operation, with the entire system designed to be future-proof so that particular pieces of equipment can be updated independently of each other as required.
Software modifications were also made,enabling information from the Automatic Identification System (AIS) to be fully integrated into the upgraded SOFRELOG computer network which is the heart of London’s VTS system.
Further improvements include the capability to switch all VTS functions fully between the Port Control Centres at Gravesend and Woolwich, and to communicate with ships throughout the Port from either.
An integrated call-out aid for emergencies, to guide VTS operators through the emergency procedures, is being incorporated within the communications system and further developments will integrate more of the emergency management procedures.
Radar Network
The PLA’s radar network was expanded during the year with the addition of a 15th radar, at the north-east corner of the Kentish Flats windfarm. In addition, the 12-year-old Margate radar was replaced and upgraded to the latest standards with simultaneous dual transmission capability with a consequent improvement in performance. We plan to conduct a study into the future maintenance of the whole radar network in the coming year.
CCTV Coverage
Three further cameras were added to the PLA’s upriver closed-circuit television (CCTV) network, enhancing safety of navigation in central London where the numerous bridges make radar surveillance impracticable.
A site visit and condition survey carried out in August 2005 led to recommendations for upgrade and remedial works to the Richmond Lock CCTV and external alarm monitoring system.
As well as the installation of additional and better quality day/night cameras and digital recorder technology, the recommendations included improving the local monitoring of both public and private access paths on to and across the bridge by the use of infra-red detector beams which give operational staff on site early warning of any external malicious attempts on the weir controls, as well as enhancing staff protection.
A contract was awarded to Chroma Vision in December 2005 to upgrade the system.
Tidal Monitoring
A new tidal monitoring system was installed at Richmond Lock and Weir to provide accurate information on water levels either side of the weir and to provide an alerting system for the operators. This has improved our consistency in keeping the correct maintained level upstream of the weir.
With two stages of alert, the system gives additional warning time to operational staff before adjusting the weirs. We have worked with the contractors who carry out engineering supervision and maintenance at Richmond Lock on our behalf, to examine the feasibility of semi-automating the movement of the weirs in keeping with all states of the tide. The result of their work is awaited.
Buoys and Lights
Work was completed to change the lights of all navigational buoys from conventional incandescent lamps to light emitting diodes (LEDs). The process, which was spread over 18 months, involved 38 floating buoys and 18 fixed lights. As well as providing a better light, the LEDs require much less energy and maintenance. The changeover will reduce costs, increase safety and provide a more environmentally sustainable system.
Buoyage at the Oaze in the Outer Estuary has been substantially altered and augmented to ease congestion in the area and to improve pilot boarding arrangements for smaller vessels at The Warp.
Pilotage
The PLA’s ship manoeuvring simulator - installed at Gravesend in 2003 - has proved an invaluable training tool for pilots, as well as being used to test the viability of proposed new berths and the associated vessel manoeuvres.
Pilot familiarisation training included manoeuvring panamax ships on Tilbury Power Station’s new jetty, larger than usual cruise ships onto the upriver moorings and stern first approaches into Tilbury lock thereby potentially widening the access window for larger vessels.
A planned upgrade of the simulator will give it more realism and increased usability. During 2005, PLA Pilotage Directions were reviewed with the revisions sent out for consultation before finalising.
All our pilots are now equipped with personal locator beacons as an added safety feature. Should a pilot fall into the water while attempting to board or leave a ship, the beacon’s locator signal would be automatically activated, sending
out a signal that could be received by pilot launch, lifeboat or rescue helicopter.
Hydrographic
PLA Hydrographic remained busy through 2005. As well as routine work, significant extra effort was needed to monitor dredged areas and adjacent sea and riverbed to assess the nature and extent of environmental impacts which may have been caused.
A significant task, which continues, is the survey of the proposed London Gateway channel, in addition to sounding work, wrecks and other sunken obstructions need to be investigated and assessed. Elsewhere, a large surveying contract was completed for another major UK harbour authority.
A total of £400,000 has been invested in equipping two boats with multibeam echo sounder systems (MBES), to give increased capability to the hydrographic team when carrying out inspections and surveys.
The systems, installed on the ‘Verifier’ and ‘Yantlet’, give a complete picture of the riverbed, not only providing total coverage for depths and safety of navigation but also giving invaluable information to engineers, geophysicists and archaeologists. The MBES equipment will also enable the hydrographic team to extend the third-party services it offers to customers and, by making the craft more productive, free up spare time that can be used commercially.
Moorings and Diving
Over the past year Marine Services inspected a total of 143 PLA moorings and also carried out the installation, maintenance or repair of moorings on behalf of various berth operators.
A total of 256 diving operations were undertaken, ranging from standard inspection dives of moorings and riverside structures, including the Thames Barrier, QEII Pier and Tilbury Lock sluices, to clearing fouled propellers, cargo slinging and inspection, and recovery of objects for the London Gateway project.
Dredging plans to serve the new London Gateway Port made it clear that more than 400 obstacles needed to be identified or eliminated before dredging could begin, either to avoid accidents to the dredger or because of their potential historical or cultural interest.
Obstacles included old wrecks, a lightship sunk at the start of the Second World War, and the remains of a sailing barge thought to have been carrying bricks from Faversham to Deptford in preparation for the start of work on London’s railway arches.
Our divers brought to the surface five two-metresquare blocks of concrete, the remains of First World War boom defences, which were used to anchor down the nets for the system installed to protect the city against submarine incursion.
Denton Wharf
Increasing use is being made of the recently improved facilities at our marine operation facility at Denton Wharf by commercial operators. Closure of other river-based facilities has increased Denton’s importance to River users.
The facility’s 70-tonne boatlift was used for 163 lifts, of which 106 were PLA vessels and the rest outside customers. A further 46 lifts for customers were completed using the 40-tone fixed quay crane.
Our Marine Services team based at Denton Wharf, received praise from the Royal Navy for the part they played in the removal and destruction of a Second World War mine they had discovered in the Thames.
Divers were sent to investigate an object discovered by sonar survey and at first thought it was an old electric motor. Loaded on to the ‘Crossness’, it became clear that it was an unusual type of mine – an L Mk 3, weighing 3,503 lbs. The ‘Crossness’ carried the mine to Blacktail Spit, where it was placed in deep water and detonated by Royal Navy bomb disposal experts.
Further improvements will take place during the coming year with our £2.5 million investment in a new shed and offices at Denton. Adsteam, the tug company on the Thames, has agreed to relocate its administrative offices to the new facility at Denton, having stationed its tugs at Denton since 2004.
Windfarms
In mid 2005 a consortium of leading windfarm specialists submitted a planning application to site the London Array windfarm 20 kilometres off the coast of Essex/Kent and at the mouth of the River Thames.
This Round 2 development could involve 270 giant turbines feeding 1,000 MW of power into the National Grid – the biggest windfarm project in the world.
Whilst we support the British Government’s drive to develop alternative sources of energy, the PLA has continued to emphasise that it is essential for the potential effects of proposed windfarm schemes in the Thames Estuary to be properly evaluated with the effects on navigational safety and port access weighed against any possible benefit to the environment.
The offshore Kentish Flats windfarm, which came into operation in 2005, has been useful in drawing attention to a number of issues which could be relevant to navigational safety elsewhere.
In particular, problems with on-board ship radar interference, light effects and reflection have been raised, which were highlighted by the PLA in its response to the London Array proposal.
Princes Channel
Our plans to create a safe and sustainable access to the Port of London through the southern Thames Estuary, which meets customers needs has depended in part on finding beneficial uses locally for the dredged material. Good progress was made during the trial dredge phase which deepened the channel to 6.6m. We now anticipate additional opportunities arising in the near future which will permit further substantial progress this year towards the ultimate goal of an 8m channel. In parallel to this work, the PLA is actively studying how the benefits of this major project may be optimised for Port users.
Royal Terrace Pier
Our renovation of the Royal Terrace Pier, acquired from Adsteam in 2004, progressed during 2005 but was subject to some delay because of the need to comply with Gravesham Council’s Listed Buildings and Conservation Area consent process.
Revised proposals for improved lighting and a partial re-wiring of the Grade II listed Victorian pier are being drawn up, aiming for a better “period” appearance in an approximation of the pier’s first illumination in the 1870s. During 2006 the existing 1960’s fluorescent lighting will be replaced with fittings that are more visually in keeping with the original design but incorporating modern energy saving units of greater reliability. A rolling programme of other minor refurbishments will also be carried out.
Navigational Safety Management System
The PLA navigational Safety Management System (SMS) has been assessed as remaining effective as it continues to evolve in response to developments and changing priorities. It is reviewed by the Board and actively managed by our Navigational Management Team (NMT).
The first four-year hazard review cycle was completed in October. During this time, all identified hazards were reviewed at least once, with the highest ranked hazards being considered eight times during the period.
The NMT convened a Navigational Advisory Panel to review a number of issues including safety, regulatory and other procedures following two incidents on the Thames during 2005:
- The PLA was involved in the emergency response when the vessel ‘James Prior’ became stuck under Battersea Bridge on September 20. There was no injury to the three crew on-board but both the bow and wheelhouse were badly damaged. The vessel was taken in tow after the falling tide allowed it to come free from the bridge structure.
The bridge itself was also extensively damaged, necessitating the temporary closure to navigation of one arch and of the bridge to traffic.
- The vessel ‘George Lyras’ was in collision with drifting barges at Lower Hope on November 15.
The Harbour Master’s safety investigation into this incident resulted in number of actions, including the creation in the SMS of a new hazard in respect of the mooring breakout of unmanned vessels.
As a result, we have changed our VTS automatic acquisition thresholds to improve detection of slow targets moving out of land mask areas; in addition, steps have been taken to ensure that areas of little or no moving traffic can be monitored effectively by VTS staff.
We have additionally employed consultants to assist in a review of river works licence conditions in respect of the maintenance and operations of moorings.
Performace Measures
As required as part of our Quality Standard certification, the PLA regularly measures its performance and this data is reviewed quarterly by the Board.
This includes the reliability and availability of key systems, particularly those of the Vessel Traffic Services systems, where the target for the engineers is to maintain system availability and performance for a minimum of 99.9 per cent over a full year. This allows a maximum total out-of-service time for a system in constant 24-hour use of just eight hours and 45 m inutes per year. Once again, we achieved the target of 99.9 per cent in 2005.
Other measures, such as the availability of the main navigational marks in the channel, are also monitored – in this case against standards laid down by Trinity House, which also measures performance in an annual inspection.
Workplace Inspections
The health and safety of our employees and others working on our premises is of paramount importance to us.
In 2000 we commenced an annual regime of workplace health and safety inspections and to date, over 150 assessments (including operational sites, buildings and craft) have been undertaken. The inspections require the full support of line managers, safety representatives and staff working in or responsible for those areas to ensure a meaningful outcome.
Any significant findings are openly discussed at the appropriate Health & Safety committee for that area and are also briefed to the PLA Executive Committee and Board members.
With three lost time accidents reported for 2005, the figure translates per 100,000 employees (as per Health & Safety Executive calculations) to 838, well within the comparative UK ports industry figure for 2004 of 2,514 (supplied by Port Skills and Safety Limited). We believe that the preventative actions that have been taken following these workplace reviews contribute to our low accident figure.
National Standards for Inland Waterways
We continue to work closely with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and industry on the development and introduction of new competency and technical standards for passenger and freight-carrying vessels on inland waterways, which includes the tidal River Thames.
The MCA has completed a second public consultation in regard of the competency standards for the new Boatmaster Licence and a number of supporting specialist endorsements, including local knowledge. The plan is for the new standard to be introduced from 31 December 2006, following consultation on the enabling legislation.
At that time, the PLA’s local Watermen & Lightermen Byelaws will be repealed, with all such licence holders being able to exchange their qualification for an equivalent BML, based on relevant experience.
Although work on the new technical standards has essentially been completed, lack of parliamentary time means that this legislation will not be enacted until 2008.
In addition, the MCA has recently launched a new Fitness For Purpose (FFP) standard for freight vessels on inland waterways, and owners are being asked to comply on a voluntary basis in advance of new legislation being introduced.
The new FFP scheme is based on the British Waterways inspection system, which was in turn developed from the PLA’s vessel licensing regime. The PLA has now adopted this more comprehensive standard together with the Inland Waters Small Passenger Boat Code and is working closely with owners towards achieving full compliance by 2008.
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