TankTerminalTraining

  MTPQ2 Release   The Ship-Shore Interfaces Expert Group are pleased to announce the release of the new MTPQ2 templates into production on 22 November 2021.   This release includes the following changes:   A separate Port Index has been created to reduce duplication against terminal particulars and provide a central source of Port data, providing an index of terminals at each port. The reduction in questions is designed to reduce the management burden upon terminal operators and to reduce the duplication of questions now included in the Terminal Information Booklet. The Vessel-Berth Comparison Tool (VBCT) has been developed that compares jetty published MTPQ2 data uploaded within MTIS, to vessel’s published HVPQ data from the SIRE database and provides a com...

 Als ik de controlekamer van een terminal bezoek, zie ik vaak dat er een whiteboard aan de muur hangt waarop bijvoorbeeld informatie over noodzakelijke reparaties wordt genoteerd, zoals defecte kleppen, de telefoon op steiger 5 werkt niet, regenwater van drijvende daktanks als gevolg van geblokkeerde dakafvoeren of apparatuur die buiten bedrijf is, enzovoorts. Deepwater Horizon; als je de film bekijkt zie je dat diverse apparatuur niet functioneerde. Die informatie werd genegeerd, de rest is geschiedenis. Landtanks op de Cilacap raffinaderij, Indonesië stonden deze week in brand. Ik heb daar gewerkt en begrijp dat een tekort aan informatie door slecht onderhoud de oorzaak kan zijn geweest. De informatietheorie en de cybernetica bewijzen dat informatie fysisch is. Bits van informatie zijn de fundamentele bouwstenen van de werkelijkheid. Inzicht in deze verbazingwekkende wetenschappen is van cruciaal belang voor de levensduur, de continuïteit, de veiligheid en de duurzaamheid v...

  When I visit a terminal’s control room I often observe that there is a whiteboard on the wall where, for example, information about needed repairs such as faulty valves, the phone on jetty 5 doesn’t work, rain water of floating roof tanks due to blocked roof drains or equipment out of operation, etcetera are recorded. Deepwater Horizon; when you watch the movie you’ll notice that various equipment was not functioning. That information was ignored, the rest is history. Shore tanks at the Cilacap Refinery, Indonesia were on fire this week. I worked there and understand that information deficit due to poor maintenance could have been the cause. Information theory and cybernetics prove that information is physical. Bits of information are the fundamental building blocks of reality. Understanding what can be done by these amazing sciences is crucial for the longevity, continuity safety and sustainability of tank storage and refining operations. Marine Storage Terminals and Ref...

Free Town. A few days ago a gasoline truck collided with another truck in the city streets of Freetown in Sierra Leone. This is what CNN wrote: ' The explosion occurred after two vehicles collided on the highway while the fuel tanker was about to enter a nearby filling station to discharge its fuel, the NDMA said in a statement posted to Facebook on Saturday afternoon.  Footage and eyewitnesses intimated that while the collision took place, both drivers came out of their vehicles and warned community residents to stay off the scene while trying to address a leakage emanating from the collision," the statement said. It added that while that was happening, "some community members rushed to the scene and took advantage of the leakage to scoop fuel and store it in nearby makeshift structures." Because I happened to train a group of Freetown Petroleum Storage Terminal operators and loading masters last week, I wanted to express my condolences to those families who los...

I just read an interesting article written by Richard A. Clarke and R.P. Eddy called;  'Why visionaries who can accurately predict looming disasters are often ignored’. I could not help feeling touched by this article as it exactly confirmed what I am experiencing myself. I have been writing this column and my blog for some years now, but despite the truthfulness and predictions based on logic and empirical research, most of what I write seems to be ignored. The column I write for Hazardous Cargo Bulletin and my publications on LinkedIn are well researched. I trained myself as a cybernetician and a systems and information theorist, because by combining these scientifically sound insights, I can predict looming disasters. I developed an early warning system and a mapping tool to do this. It measures the so-called limitations of reality by calculating the quantity of information present in an organisation, government, goal or a product which I coined; Realimiteit....

A crippling ransomware attack on one of the largest fuel distribution networks in the US has brought into sharp focus the cyber threats facing infrastructure of national importance. The taking of the Colonial Pipeline brought the authorities’ worst fears to life. The ransomware attack disabled the 5,500-mile network, causing fuel shortages in the south-eastern states of the US and prompting the Biden administration to declare a state of emergency. Although the Colonial Pipeline Company’s CEO, Joseph Blount, controversially paid the $4.4m (£3.2m) ransom, the network was out of action for a week. Let’s talk about automation. We can observe that more ‘crucial systems of strategic importance’ in our industry such as marine storage terminals, refineries, chemical production and distribution sectors are being maximally automated. This increases the risk of cyber-attacks. Therefore, our course on Cyberethics is valuable for those who are perhaps not fully aware of human actions in Artific...

Usually I travel to the marine storage terminals of our customers worldwide. Before the Corona outbreak I averaged about ten on-location trainings per year. My current travel has been reduced to once or twice a year. As a matter of fact I just returned from Walvis Bay, Namibia where I updated two terminals by implementing the latest ISGOTT (sixth edition, 2020). It was not easy to organise on-site courses because of the unpredictability factor of politicised politicians who perhaps listen to their health advisors, but not to us, business people or entrepreneurs.  For example: I was invited to fly to Namibia, so I had to buy a ticket, apply for a visa, book a hotel, make an appointment to be PCR tested within 72 hours of departure. All this without any certainty that this assignment could be executed until the very last minute, only if I tested negative. This means that thousands of euros were spent without knowing that this money could be made back from this deal.  This uncert...

A moment of reflection when I look back and wonder what happened to our industry, our society, and our world last year. I wrote earlier that ‘business as usual’ won’t be likely nor possible any longer, but that a new, sustainable method is needed if we’d like to preserve our yields and social cohesion. Venture capitalism is not that method. When Uber or Amazon grow more, most of our shops and businesses in our town centres will be closed. Hotels will suffer and professional taxi drivers will be left standing on the side of the road while a freelance Uber driver picks up the fare for half the price. How many people can we employ if hundreds of thousands of jobs can presently only be done by the cheapest laborers coming from Southeast Asia, Central America, and India? Shipowners profit from lower wages, but that profit can’t be sustainable unless ever more costs are cut. Several luxury cruise liners won’t survive the economic lockdowns taken by scared politicians who overlook proportio...