DG comment

Open Day

Aberdeen YMEs

Silver Jubilee Medal

Branches

People

Organistation and Management - Part 4

Forthcoming events

DG's comment............

A professional society exists for its members and the cornerstone of any successful Institute is membership participation. That can take many forms, be it producing technical papers for meetings, seminars and conferences or just attending them, taking part in the Institute's social events, involvement in Young Engineers Groups, attending Branch events, or just making use of the many other services we offer.
The true foundation for the Institute, though, is through members' participation in committee work, both at branches and at HQ — on Council and committees like Finance & General Purposes, Membership, Professional Affairs, Technical Papers, Small Ships Group and many others.
All require much hard work and the giving of time, energy and intellect. I would laud on behalf of all our members the unstinting commitment put in by all those on these committees the globe over. A great number have served for many years with dedication to the Institute's cause.
But it would seem that the pressures of today's world increasingly mitigate against those who would voluntarily give of their time to organisations such as ours and it seems to be less fashionable to make such a commitment. The difficulties of recruiting members to fill the boots of `long servers' is well known. There are, however, many intangible rewards for those prepared to contribute and I would ask those who hesitate to do so to consider what they might be able to offer.
Voting papers for new members of Council have recently been sent out and it is gratifying to find that we have more than twice as many nominations for Fellows on Council than there are vacancies — democracy is at work — and I would urge all of you to play your part in participating by voting to ensure that it is your choice of member who will make the policy decisions that will take the Institute into the next millennium.
Meanwhile, from everyone here at Coleman Street, we wish you all the very best of happy and prosperous New Years.

Open Day goes with a bang

A surprisingly large number of members and their families enjoyed the Institute's recent Open Day which coincided with the Lord Mayor's Show in London.
Members were treated to a packed day with many interesting things to see and do. A technology centre was set up and some senior members discovered the world of the Internet and were able to send e-mails to their relatives in other countries, while the children had fun `surfing' the web, with both generations learning from each other.
The children were also kept busy finding the answers to a questionnaire based on the Institute and its history as they became Young Marine Engineer Detectives. The answers could be found from a slide show held in the Parson's Room and in various locations around the building. On correctly completing the questionnaire the youngsters received an Institute baseball cap and pen.
For many members it was their first visit to the new HQ and they were impressed with the building, its conference and communications facilities and thought it all gave a powerful backdrop to take the work of the Institute into the next Millennium. They were pleased with the way their subscriptions were being used to provide them with good facilities and services.
Members were given a tour of the building where the location and activities of each department were pointed out. Many were intrigued by the ship and other models, and by the computerised publishing packages used to produce the Institute's publications and electronic products. Members were able to see how this in-house expertise saved time and money, allowing more resources to be put into generating better services.
As the Lord Mayor's Show passed Coleman Street many popped out to see the procession, taking great interest in the P&O float which included a model of the cruise ship Grand Princess.
It was definitely a family orientated day with many members and their families staying for most of the day. Based on its success it is an event the Institute will consider repeating.

Kids become Young Marine Engineer Detectives

Aberdeen's Busy YMEs

Aberdeen's young engineers met recently to start-up a local branch of the Young Maritime Engineers (YME). The group was created after young IMarE members replied to a questionnaire that collected feedback on the feasibility of such a venture.
The evening was reported by the group to be a great success. Twenty-four enthusiastic young engineers supported the meeting, keen to meet like-minded professionals in the area and willing to promote the IMarE and careers in engineering.
A wide range of companies were represented by the group tending toward the oil and gas industry prevalent in Aberdeen (the UK oil capital!). Topics discussed were YME aims and objectives, the frequency and content of meetings and key initiatives.
The group agreed that meetings should be an equal balance of work and play, running every 4-6 weeks. Due to the incredible volume of technical meetings held weekly in Aberdeen, it was decided that YMEs should not organise additional meetings, but support those instead. To achieve this, an email contact list was established.
Social events are currently being organised for alternate meetings. Other local young engineering groups are expected to join the group in January for a bowling evening.
The YMEs discussed why students had been dissuaded from choosing engineering in the past, quoting examples of misinformation of the role of engineers and typical salaries. To set the record straight the Aberdeen YMEs are currently busy preparing `Career Profiles' to put into an information pack that will be given to schools and career services.
They will also try to educate the public about the role of an engineer and disperse myths that they just `fix broken washing machines and cars.' They are preparing presentations and activities to show schools what engineers actually do and will give pupils hands-on experience of engineering.
The group has already set up a dedicated IMarE notice board at Robert Gordons University which has been well received by students.

Engineering is certainly not boring, as these YMEs find at an informal meeting at a local hostelry

Helen wins Institute's Silver Jubilee Medal

Lt Helen Ashworth has received the IMarE Silver Jubilee Medal which is awarded to a Royal Navy Marine Engineer Officer, of either the surface or sub-surface specialisation, who achieves the best overall results from initial and professional training.
As part of Ceremonial Divisions held at HMS Sultan IMarE President Peter Gee presented the 1999 Medal to Helen, who joined the Navy aged 19 and attended Southampton University where she completed a Mechanical Engineering degree.
She has shown herself to be a highly motivated and knowledgeable Engineer Officer, who has achieved excellent results throughout her training, both at BRNC and HMS Sultan. Helen is presently serving as the Deputy Marine Engineer Officer of HMS Westminster.

Branches

St Petersburg

Tsar Peter The Great's flagship Shtandart

A wonderful sight greeted branch members when, in September, they visited Peter The Great's reconstructed flagship Shtandart (Standard).
The original Shtandart was designed by the Tsar after his visit to England in 1697 using the experience of British and Dutch shipbuilders. In 1703 Tsar Peter's flagship sailed for the first time under his command along the river Neva.
The reconstruction of Shtandart was initiated in 1989 by marine engineering graduates of St Petersburg's State Marine Technical University (SPbSMTU), Vladimir Martus and Victor Krainukov (the author of the project).
The actual construction of the ship was started in 1994, supported by Consulates General of Great Britain and The Netherlands and a number of other sponsors. It was completed in September 1999 and has an overall length of 105ft, maximum width of 25ft with space for a crew of 40.
During their visit onboard the members also attended the first part of a seminar on: `Maritime history, archaeology and reconstructive design of historic ships.' Part of the second part of the seminar featured papers by students and teaching staff of the University; this took place in the Central Building of the SPbSMTU.
On 2 November the Branch heard about the new SARTOR3 regulations, requirements and procedures for accreditation of educational programmes.
This seminar was held jointly with the St Petersburg State Marine Technical University. It attracted officials from marine-related institutions responsible for course management and curricula development and included Vice-Rectors for academic affairs and Deans from Makarov Marine Academy and the University for Water Communications and Marine Technical University.
The seminar was opened by the Rector of Marine Technical University Dr Konstantin Borisenko who welcomed the audience and gave the floor to the Branch Honorary Secretary Prof Kirill Rozhdestvensky who chaired the meeting.
Detailed information on SARTOR3 and considerations on conformity of the current courses with the new requirements were presented in the paper by Honorary Assistant Secretary Dr Ludmila Patrasheva. This gave rise to a long-lasting discussion which reflected different points of view and demonstrated great interest in the subject by all present.
The seminar adopted recommendations to take SARTOR3 into account when upgrading or restructuring current courses. The delegates also agreed that the Branch should organise regular seminars on academic accreditation so that all involved could hold further consultations and share experiences.

North East Coast

At recent evening meetings three members were presented with their 45-year membership certificates. Mr Hughlock is seen receiving his certificate during a visit to Teeside University Virtual Reality Centre (pic 1) while the other recipients were Mr Rowan (pic 2) and Mr Cherry (pic 3).
Last August the branch held its Golf Society Annual Trophy tournament. Leslie Wake was successful in both the morning and afternoon events and is seen here along with his golfing partner George Elsom receiving Silver Salvers for the morning pair's competition (pic 4).

Pic 1                 Pic 2                      Pic 3               Pic 4

          
If any members are interested in taking part in the tournaments please contact the Honorary Golf Social Secretary, Mr G Elsom, 6 Parkshiel, Cleadon Park, South Shields, Tyne & Wear NE34 8BU.

People

Prof Ernst G Frankel, BSc, MSc, MBA, PhD, DBA, FIMarE and Emeritus Professor of Ocean Systems at the School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has recently retired after over 50 years service.
He is now consulting for ports, shipping and logistics companies worldwide. He has also recently been elected as a director of American Eagle Tankers Inc and as Chairman of American President Lines.

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Sir Robert Hill (Past President IMarE) has been appointed to chair Lloyd's Register's new Naval Ship Technical Committee which will steer the development of LR's Naval Rules.

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Mike Langley, IEng, MIMarE has, after 28 years at sea, taken up the shore-based position of technical manager with cross-Channel operator P&O Stena Line. Mike is studying for an Open University honours degree following the Institute's study profile.

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Commander MAL Fisher, MBE, CEng, FIMarE, Fellow of IMarE Council has recently taken command of HMS Ark Royal. The aircraft carrier is currently undergoing a refit at Rosyth Royal Dockyard, Fife involving a major equipment overhaul in addition to being fitted to take RAF Harriers. Cdr Fisher, a submarine Engineer Officer, moves to this new appointment from the Ministry of Defence's Submarine Design Authority in Bath.

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Congratulations to Nathan Ward on being awarded the 1998/99 Institute Prize for the student achieving the best overall performance during the HND/NVQ Part 2 in Marine Engineering accredited by the Institute at Warsash Maritime Centre.

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The 1998/99 Institute of Marine Engineers Scholarship sponsored by Lloyd's Register of Shipping has been won by Frank J Ollerhead who is a projects engineer (Ship & Offshore) with Shell International. Frank (right) received his certificate from Roy Gardiner, LR's manpower resources manager and deputy head of personnel.

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Louise Rupp has become the first female engineer in Ireland to obtain the Class One Certificate of Competency.
During a recent meeting the Dublin Branch was pleased to present Louise with a prize for achieving that distinction. She is currently an engineering officer with Standard Marine Services of Southampton.

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Neil Hodgkins, a student who has just recently finished his final year at John Moores University, Liverpool has received an Institute award for the Best Overall Performance. Neil received his award from David Spence, the North West England Branch Chairman, at the Merseyside Maritime Museum.

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Obituary

Bill Williams, who died last September, was a man of many talents — surveyor, consultant, ship manager and serviceman. Bill started his maritime career as an apprentice with North Eastern Marine (Wallsend). He joined the merchant navy as junior engineer officer in 1934 and by 1939 had reached the rank of Chief Engineer.
That year he joined the Royal Navy as Lieutenant (E) RNR and in 1943 was promoted to Lt Cdr and appointed Marine Superintendent HM Rescue Tugs based at Admiralty.
A year later, as Acting Commander (E) RNR, he was seconded to staff of Admiral H Hallett in charge of operations at Mulberry Harbour. He was twice mentioned in Dispatches before being Engineer Officer in Charge of RMS Empress of Russia involved in the Normandy invasion.
A spell as Lloyd's Register's Engineer Surveyor Humber area was followed by the task to re-open LR's office in Kobe, Japan in 1948.
Task completed, he stayed in the region and joined John Manners & Co, Hong Kong as a Marine Superintendent in 1954 and then became Technical Director. His responsibilities included the management of some 30 ships and newbuilding work. He was also very active in the Hong Kong branch of the Institute and in promoting interest by young people in the engineering profession.
In 1974 he retired from the Far East and entered business as a Marine Consultant. He was still surveying ships and oil rigs in the South China Sea in his mid-70s and was active in local charitable organisations in North Yorkshire until his early 80s. Bill was born in 1913.

The Organisation and Management of the Institute

Part 4 — Professional Affairs - Membership

Ahe activities of the Institute's Membership Committee were described in some detail in the March Bulletin. Members will have noted the complexities associated with the various categories of membership and the considerations necessary to ensure that the required educational base, training, experiential learning, competence and commitment have been met and demonstrated by each applicant. The international nature of the Institute, the variety of academic qualifications available, the various categories of membership and the number of possible routes compound the assessment difficulties. Non standard cases are given special prior consideration through the Individual Case Procedures Board which comprises the Chairman, Deputy Chairman, other experienced members of the Membership Committee and senior members of the Professional Affairs Executive. These two committees meet on six occasions each year.
Executive Support for the Institute's membership activity requires considerable knowledge and understanding of national and international qualifications, the various pathways available for each category of member and the standards and procedures which individuals are required to satisfy for the various categories of membership. The preparation of documentation for committee meetings is therefore extensive and demanding. Anne Dewar, Membership Administration Manager, provides this expertise within the Professional Affairs Department and gives secretarial backup to the Membership Committee and the Individual Case Procedures Board.
Anne Dewar is also responsible for managing the membership administration section ably supported by Pam Hibbert, Records Supervisor, Jean Causton, Secretarial Assistant and Membership Accounts Administrator and Andy Wilkins, Membership Administration Assistant.
Those who have visited the Institute's web-site (http://www.imare.org.uk/) will have noted that subscriptions may be paid electronically and that membership application forms can be downloaded.
The move to Coleman Street heralded the introduction of a new membership database which embraces members' personal details, grade history, service requirements, registration category, subscription payments and from which subscription notices and reminders are generated. Additionally all members' application forms and correspondence are captured on optical disc thus eliminating the need to retain hard copy in the office. These systems give the administrative staff rapid access to members files and records on their desktop computers and will shortly enable them to e-mail updated membership lists to Branch Honorary Secretaries.
These developments exemplify the Institute's policy of making best use of developments in information technology.
The membership team deal with some 100 membership enquiries each week and process about 1000 membership applications each year. Additionally members' records have to be kept up to date, `lost' members have to be located and those who are late with their subscription payments have to be reminded. Members can help ease the administrative load by quoting their membership number in all inquiries, paying subscriptions by Direct Debit or credit card and by speaking to the appropriate person within the membership department.
Membership recruitment is the primary objective of Marie Barford, Membership Recruitment and Marketing Manager. Marie's wider responsibilities take into account the existing and future needs of members. Every UK college and university running a course accredited by the Institute receives an annual visit from Marie to ensure that all students are aware of membership and are given the opportunity to find out more about the activities of the Institute. Marie also gives presentations within companies on a regular basis to advise their engineers of the benefits of membership and of the activities of the Institute, giving each engineer an ideal opportunity to raise any queries about membership or on their own Professional Development. Many of these companies now have formally recognised training and experiential learning programmes, which provide their engineers with a structured and monitored pathway to membership and registration. Encouraging more companies to support their engineers and technicians in this way and to work in partnership with the Institute is an important feature of Marie's work. It is planned to extend these recruitment and marketing initiatives on a world-wide basis.
The support of members is vital in marketing the Institute and the recruitment of members. Many members keep in regular contact with Marie to ensure that she is aware of activities taking place at a local level or where promotion of or added support for a particular activity is required. This includes careers evenings or seminars, Junior Engineering Clubs, exhibition opportunities within the regions or making contact with new companies. For some time now it has been apparent that many younger members do not play an active part in their branch or in the activities of the Institute. So the Young Maritime Engineers network was born! The aim of this network is to consider what our younger members expect of the Institute, to help them to network with other younger members and to encourage them to give something back to their profession by promoting careers in maritime engineering. The Young Maritime Engineers network has been met with very positive feedback from both younger members as well as those more mature members wishing to encourage their greater involvement in branch affairs. On an international level, a number of younger members have already offered to establish a YME network outside the UK. To this end it is hoped that all branches and Divisions will support this initiative by ensuring that provision is made for the active participation of younger members in the activities of the Institute.

A happy membership team: Marie Barford, Andy Wilkins and Anne Dewar, with Jean Causton (seated) and Pam Hibbert

Forthcoming events

• Marine and offshore engineering in the 21st Century
  Millennium Lecture, London, 11January 2000

  The rebuilt national maritime museum
  Informal Technical Meeting, London, 28 January 2000

  Ship vibration and noise – problems and solutions during design and operation
  Informal Technical Meeting, London, 10 February 2000

  Club Luncheon
  Social Event, London, 11 February 2000

  A decision support system for heavy lift
  Evening Technical Meeting, London, 15 February 2000

  Feedback from seafarers
  Informal Technical Meeting, London, 24 February 2000

  Ninety Seventh Annual Dinner
  Social Event, Grosvenor House, London, 10 March 2000

  INEC 2000: Marine engineering challenges for the 21st Century
  Conference, Hamburg, Germany, 14 – 16 March 2000

  Results of the UK's bulk carrier seakeeping model test programme
  Informal Technical Meeting, London, 13 April 2000

  Risk analysis methodology used to determine marine environment high risk areas in the UK
  Evening Technical Meeting, London, 18 April 2000

  Marine and offshore gas detection equipment
  Evening Technical Meeting, London, 9 May 2000

For futher information regarding these events, please visit our website: http://www.imare.org.uk or contact Laura Crane, IMarE Events Department on Tel: +44 (0) 20 7382 2655, Fax: +44 (0) 20 7382 2667 or Email: Lc@imare.org.uk