The only specialised marine publication in Oceania that focuses on the maritime industry, from super yachts to small craft to large commercial ships, including coastal shipping, tugs, tow boats, barges, ferries, tourist, sport-fishing craft, je
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Effectively, no prescribed rules or procedures existed, so there was no alternative for many years but to rely on individual interpretation by the surveyors. Clearly this is now one of Maritime NZ's greatest concerns, as they have identified rogue surveyors and suspect SSM companies as they have set about a change with the pending introduction of the Maritime Operator Safety System (MOSS). It is on record that some companies chose to get out of SSM for valid reasons and Maritime NZ was seen to close down another. Whether this was fair or not, the courts have given mixed messages, but right or wrong, sadly this legal process saw the demise of Survey Nelson. Clearly Maritime NZ is set on change and once again the impact of this has the maritime industry nervous. For this reason, Margaret strongly disagrees that SSM has failed and focuses more on the need to improve an existing system, rather than starting from scratch yet again. She believes that to improve anything, one must learn from their mistakes, not start the cycle all over again (ie, retaining our All Black coach after the RWC loss in 2007 to learn how to win in 2011). Improvements are needed, but is MOSS the answer? Granted, there seems to be a disturbing and growing focus on paperwork, and less on the more important issues of safety. We know MOSS offers some excellent concepts for operators, but it also means another massive change for our industry. The concept of certifying vessels separately from operators makes good sense. Additionally, removing oversized SSM manuals from vessels and placing the responsibility on the owner or company director also makes a heap of sense. However, the devil will be in the detail and lie in the implementation of this product. The success and viability of MOSS depends on one major element, government resources. MOSS requires a large audit, technical and administration team that does not currently exist within Maritime NZ. At a time when New Zealand is reducing government spending, this funding can only be achieved through the "user pays" system and without commercial entities (SSM companies), Margaret struggles to see where competitive rates for surveys and audits can be achieved fairly. MOSS has been sold to the industry as being cheaper than SSM because responsibilities will lie more with the operator, thus reducing costs. Sadly, it would now appear MMS surveyors Robin Williams (left) and Peter Chard that given the financial review, the Maritime NZ costing structure is significantly out of step with what its true cost recovery should be, and it is anticipated that the services they provide under MOSS will be charged at the new rates, which may well exceed the current costs under SSM. Already, SSM companies who have to remain competitive to retain their market share are absorbing many of these costs. We understand this part of SSM has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous. In Margaret's view, major improvements can be achieved through Maritime NZ fine-tuning their operation and building on their partnerships with the private sector. This could be achieved through setting higher standards and key performance measures on the employers of surveyors, raising the bar in areas of training and compliance through a higher standard of auditing of SSM companies and surveyors by Maritime NZ. This enables overall control to remain with Maritime NZ whilst offering industry competitive choice. New Zealand commercial vessels already boast a higher standard than most westernised countries, despite the age of our fleet. As an island nation, our domestic fleet is vitally important to the local economy and when one considers the total number of passengers and tonnage carried and the amount of fish landed, our safety record is not all bad. Whaterever direction the next round of Maritime Rules takes, MMS plans to be around for many years to come. There will always be a need for quality surveying, design approval work and technical expertise under MOSS, and in conjunction with the strong existing relationships with NZMTA and its members, our industry shall endure. NZ WORKBOAT REVIEW 2012 29