TRAINING FOR TOMORROW

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1 32 TRAINING FOR TOMORROW In September 2012 Warsash Superyacht Academy was launched, providing superyacht crew with industry-specific training. Just months after its opening, The Crew Report paid the academy a visit to better understand the philosophy behind the academies that support the superyacht crew of tomorrow. WORDS BY LULU TRASK, MANAGING EDITOR OF THE CREW REPORT IMAGES SUPPLIED BY WARSASH SUPERYACHT ACADEMY With a maritime history dating back to 1946, Warsash Maritime Academy was established in Southampton just after the Second World War. Merchant shipping cadets have been attending for almost 70 years, and for many years the superyacht industry has trained off the back of this academy. But today s training regulations for superyacht crew are becoming stricter, and these academies are cementing themselves on the superyacht map. In 2012 Warsash Superyacht Academy opened its doors to crewmembers from all over the world, but unlike any other in the superyacht arena, the academy finds itself in the unique position of having an affiliation with a higher education facility. Its attachment to Southampton Solent University allows the academy to offer its students undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and diplomas, some via distance learning, in the areas of business, design, finance and management, an increasing request due to the sheer value of today s larger superyachts. Financial investments are an additional benefit of the affiliation, and in 2011 the university invested 2.7 million in the academy s Timsbury Ship Handling Centre. Captain Brendan O Shannassy attended the centre prior to the launch of 96m Vava II (then Project 55), and told The Crew Report: It seemed expensive and almost indulgent to attend, however it had been two-plus years since I was last at sea and the cost of making an error in ship handling during sea trials far outweighed the cost of the course. The facility was exceptional and the instruction equal to the facility. The basin for the launch of Vava II was tight (23m wide for a 17.5m beam yacht), so to help the captain prepare, the instructors mock built the Devonport Yachts basin using floating dock bricks and Captain O Shannassy practised on an 11m model of a 156m, twin-propeller, independent-rudder vessel originally made for a cross Crew having to pay for their own training is a big Achilles heel in the industry. Ideally the owner of the boat should contribute. Ben Benson channel ferry. The instructors observed and gently guided each manoeuvre to improve my confidence and in turn performance, he said. One year later I can state that the increased knowledge gained from this has improved my performance and ability to develop bridge officers in their ship handling. The academy s bridge simulators another large investment are used for approximately 50 weeks of the year. Standing in the control room I

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3 TRAINING 35 watched 12 students in the final stages of their two-week Yacht Masters 3,000gt Navigation and Radar course take part in a bridge role-play, the passage plans of the individual yachts displayed on a wall of computer screens. I was even invited to try my luck at steering a superyacht into port, seeing first hand the enormous variety of conditions the control room can place upon the students, from 40-knot winds and 30ft waves to torrential rain and bridge power shortages. The simulator educates by enabling the deliberate escalating of situations and increase of pressure in real-life situations, allowing the students to learn from their mistakes without putting anyone at risk. These simulators were also used by Captain O Shannassy s Project 55 team. The instructors took the bridge team through case studies and introduced the ideas that have now become fundamental to the Vava II bridge operation, including the development of a challenge culture, identifying error chains, raising awareness of power distance cultures and, of course, the master-pilot relationship, Captain O Shannassy explained. With these fundamentals understood and There isn t enough money currently being invested in crew training and I don t understand it. The crew are the yacht operators. Lars Lippuner embraced the team were taken to the simulator using the model once created for motoryacht Evergreen (now Attessa IV). Sea trials progressed very smoothly and today there is a true team in operation on the bridge looking out for the safety of the yacht together. Joining the Warsash students and instructors in their simulator debrief I got a chance to ask the students about how useful this training was. It s really stressful, I ll be honest, one student said, who admitted he even lost sleep over it. But it s a process, and because you re put on the spot you have to work as a team and sort out any problems, and the confidence starts to grow. That s why I came to this facility. Another student told me, If you re relying on equipment you need to know how to use it, or there s no point in having it in the first place. I also stepped into the brand new engine room simulator, installed in October 2012 after a 1 million investment, with an adjacent computer room complete with screens providing 360-degree virtual walk arounds of an engine room. A power loss blackout and alarm-sounding inclusive was demonstrated on the emergency generator, followed by a visit to the high voltage room, one likely to see even more use under the STCW 2010 Manila Amendments requirement of vesseldependent high-voltage training. Previous page: A student uses Warsash Superyacht Academy s full mission simulator This page: A bridge team uses the full mission simulator

4 36 An enormous amount of money has been pumped into the academy, but its financial situation is unique. In some respects we re in a lucky position, said the academy s director, Andrew Hair. As part of Southampton Solent University we receive significant investment in our training facilities and lectures, but we remain a non-profit organisation. We re not here to squeeze money out of our students. This is all well and good when there are structures in place to support training of crew, but today the question of where the money comes from is a minefield. Stepping into the classroom portion of the students ECDIS training I spoke to two crewmembers in two very different positions. The first was told he could take the course during onboard working hours but must pay for it himself, while the second had his training paid for but was told he must take it during his annual leave. So as a non-profit organisation I was interested to hear the views of those in charge on who should be investing in crewmembers using these investedin facilities. One thing we need to look at is how the industry supports crew in getting their training and certification, explained Lars Lippuner, Warsash Superyacht Academy s business development manager. In many ways it is insurance for the industry going forward, because despite very few serious incidents there have been some big near misses. Anything the industry does to enable crew to take the training or support it financially with time off or training contracts will benefit the industry too. Let s face it, build quality is all up there anyway, but the memorable thing for owners will be the service they receive. It s having a crew where everyone goes just that little bit further, gives that ultimate, superb service, and reads off the owner s lips what he wants, but that s not Godgiven. There isn t enough money currently being invested in crew training and I don t understand it. The crew are the yacht operators. We are putting vast amounts of money into the design, the build, everything. We don t shy away from yachts that cost fifty million euros, but then you put them into the hands of the crew; how can you not care about how or where they are trained? Ben Benson, course leader and senior lecturer for the deck programmes, agreed. Crew having to pay for their own training is a big Achilles heel in the industry. Ideally the owner of the boat should contribute. If they pay for your training, you commit to staying on the boat for two years. There s no harm in putting that in your contract. And if not, you give them the money back. The other issue is time, Benson added. It concerns me that we have guys coming on a course straight off a boat after a busy Med season and they re on their knees. Even worse, many have actually resigned from an on-board position just so they can do their training. Boats can work with a relief skipper or mate while a crewmember leaves to do his training without eating into his annual leave as part of a financial package. Then the same guy will end up coming back on board having progressed his career. For Lippuner this is something the industry can expect to see more

5 TRAINING 37 Opposite page: The Crew Report s managing editor steers a superyacht into port in the simulator Centre: Students use the photo-realistic engine room Above: Students take part in fire-fighting training Anything the industry does to enable crew to take the training or support it financially with time off or training contracts will benefit the industry too. Lars Lippuner of in the future. We do foresee an increase in crew being on training contracts or other attractive employment packages, including rotation, that allow them to progress their career. These incentives, when set correctly, can also be effective for crew retention and ultimately contribute towards increased safety and efficient operation of the yacht, as well as achieving the main goal, which is to provide the charter guests and owners with the ultimate experience. The facilities at Warsash are undoubtedly extensive. During the trip I also visited the engineering and electronics laboratories, the two firefighting units, the ETO laboratory soon to be two and the extensive marine library. But for those at Warsash there is a bigger industry picture. The ideal world would be that it didn t matter where you go for your training. That s the ultimate aim: to raise the bar across the field and make sure everyone provides training of the highest standards, Lippuner told me. The owners might make the industry exist, but it is the crew that, quite literally, make the industry move, and it is the crew that provide the service that the owners buy into with their millions. The owners need to step back, re-evaluate and look at the bigger picture. An investment needs to be made into the training of our superyacht crew. The training academies are already beginning to do this, as Warsash has quite clearly proved; now it s time for the owners to play their part.