On April 1, 2010 a new subsidiary of Sonangol Ship-ping Holding Ltd was incor-

porated, Sonangol Marine Services Inc (SMS). The offi-cers of SMS are Mark Heater - President, Mark Brentzel - Vice President and Afonso Kuvila - Secretary, Treasurer and General Manager, Finance. The SMS of-fices are located in the Sonangol USA building in Houston, Texas. All employees of Sonangol USA who were involved with the existing So-nangol Suezmax fleet transferred to SMS on April 1st.

SMS was created in recognition of the growth of the Sonangol shipping Suez-max tanker and LNG carrier fleets and the need to develop an organization dedicated to the commercial and technical support services of these fleets. While Sonangol USA proved to be a very effective solution to the provision of these support services in the past, the addition of 3 LNG

carriers and 5 Suezmax tank-ers in the next several years, to the Sonangol fleet made this solution obsolete.

As is the case of its sister company, Sonangol Shipping Angola (Luanda), SMS is a subsidiary of Sonangol Ship-ping Holding Ltd, the Sonan-gol EP subsidiary that holds most of Sonangol’s shipping assets. SMS is a service com-

pany, operating on behalf of the various Sonangol Shipping Holding Ltd subsidiaries in-cluding those that own the Sonangol Suezmax and LNG fleets. SMS’s primary respon-sibility is to provide oversight of the companies and joint ventures that technically and commercially manage Sonan-gol’s Suezmax tanker and LNG carrier fleets and new building

programs. This oversight activity is comprehensive and covers all issues involved in ensuring that these fleets are operated safely, efficiently and profitably. It includes issues as diverse as vessel operating and dry dock budget review, officer and cadet rotation plan approval, speed and consumption re-view, sea staff compensation

and employment documen-tation development and analysis, review of new building and dry dock pro-grams and plans, etc. Support is also provided to Sonangol Shipping Angola (Luanda), the Angolan Maritime Training Center program, Sonangol ship-ping’s cadet training pro-gram, the Sonaref project, etc.

Over time we hope that all of Sonangol shipping’s officers will be able to visit the SMS office to better understand the role that SMS plays in the Sonangol Shipping Holding Ltd organization.

Ins ide th i s i s sue :

Sonangol Marine Services

1

Safety Seminar 2

Food - Galley Hygiene

4

Behavior Based Safety

5

Cultural Aware-ness

6

Meet the Family 7

News 8

Sonangol Marine Services Inc

Sonangol Shipping Newsletter

J u n e 2 0 1 0 V o l u m e 1 , I s s u e 2

Spec ia l po in ts o f i n te res t :

• Sonangol Marine Ser-vices, the new subsidi-ary

• First Safety Seminar

• Meet TNO Iracelma Vuando, one of Sonangol’s female ca-dets

“On April 1, 2010 a new subsidiary of Sonangol

Shipping Holding Ltd was incorporated, Sonangol Marine Services Inc.”

This is the second issue of the Sonangol shipping newsletter. The first newslet-ter was well received by the Sonangol shipping sea and shore staff and a num-ber of useful comments were received. We have incorporated these comments into this newsletter and will continue to do so in future newsletters.

By Mark Heater

SAFETY SEMINAR

The Sonangol Shipping Safety Seminar was held at the Talatona Convention Center in Luanda on the 24th and 25th of February 2010.

This first major, formal Safety Seminar held by Sonangol Shipping was designed to raise the level of safety awareness of Sonangol seafarers in the interest of protecting the seafarers, the vessels and the environment. In order to bring new ideas and learn what others are doing, some of Sonan-gol’s key commercial partners were also invited to the seminar to give presentations on their safety programs.

In addition to the Sonangol seafarers in atten-dance, the seminar was attended by members of the Board of Directors of Sonangol E.P, CEOs of Sonangol Affiliates, Directors, Managers and other Sonangol employees, as well as representatives of various governmental and public entities associ-ated with the Angolan Maritime industry.

On the 24th of February, the following presenta-tions were made:

1. Challenges to Operate in Angola without com-promising Safety: Mr. Catarino Pereira – Sonangol Shipping

• Introduction of Sonangol Shipping • Mission • The importance of safety for Sonangol Ship-

ping commercial activities • Commitment with safety: zero fatalities, zero

detentions, zero, pollution, zero breakdowns; • Fleet and Personnel • Operations and conditions of operations in

Angola

2. Vetting Considerations and the pursuit of Op-erational Excellence: Captain Iain Chadwick – Chevron Tankers Ltd., London

• Fundamental Safety Principles adopted by Chevron

• Organizational Structure of Shipping at Chev-ron

• Importance of Vetting System • Objectives of inspections onboard the vessel • Risk management in the inspections and

Tanker Management Self Assessment pro-gram

• Inspection standards and best practices • OCIMF and SIRE inspections • Main deficiencies detected in the inspections

onboard

3. Tanker Management Self Assessment: Mr. David Price – V.Ships Ltd., Cyprus

• Mission • ISM Code and its importance for the shipping

industry • Oil majors inspections • Introduction to Tanker Management Self

Assessment –TMSA • Main elements of TMSA • Applicability and benefits of TMSA for oil

companies • V-Ships safety values

4. Introduction to Safe Operations: Mr. Rui Fonseca – Bureau Veritas

• Introduction to Bureau Veritas Group • Role of key players in the oil industry and

shipping • Regulations, rules, standards and procedures

adopted by classification societies • The role of classification societies in the

shipping industry • Classification, societies and inspections • Technical challenges faced by Bureau Veritas

in Angola

On the second day, the 25th of February, 2010, the seminar continued with the following presenta-tions:

5. Behavior Based Safety: Captain Srirang Man-jeshwar –Wallem Shipmanagement, Ltd. Mumbai

• General aspect of safety • Behavior onboard the vessel • Seafarer behavior and safety onboard the

vessel

6. Safety and Personnel: Mr. Paulino Baiona – Sonangol Marine Services, Houston

• Importance of “Safety First” • Safety Goals: no accidents; no injuries; no

pollution

• Safety Management System • Compliance with regulations, guidelines,

standards and safety procedures in shipping; • Culture and Safety Behavior • Emergency procedures and training onboard; • Technical management and protection of the

environment • Long term investment in training of Angolans • Officer and Cadet training program • Statistic data on Angolanization at Sonangol

Shipping • Plans for the future

7. Safety onboard (Engineering Department): Chief Engineer Francisco Miranda – Sonangol Shipping Sea Staff

• Safety equipment • Risks faced by engineers onboard • Frequent accidents • Measures and safety procedures • Safety at the engine room • Maintenance plan system • Tools and spares • Importance of bunkers quality • Measures to protect the environment

8. Deck Safety Issues: Chief Officer Frederico Pereira – Sonangol Shipping Sea Staff

• The importance of safety • Shipboard organization and rankings • Operations central • Main features of safety (navigation proce-

dures; communication; salvage equipment; prevention and fire-fighting equipment train-ing and performance)

• Impact of piracy in shipping industry

9. Marine Hull Insurance and P&I Clubs: G. Singh, Sonangol Marine Services, on behalf of AAA Insurance London

• Types of marine insurance • Historic evolution • Risk assessment and insurable interest • Insured risks and claims • Warranties • Insurance premium

After the presentations, Sonangol presented the speakers with a typical Angolan gift for their much appreciated efforts and participation in the semi-nar.

Wallem Shipmanagement Ltd took the opportunity to reward the following Sonangol Officers for the success and performance during their training program:

• Aderito Semedo • Alfredo Massango • Francisco Miranda • Frederico Pereira

Mr. Mateus de Brito, Member of the Board of Sonangol E.P made the closing remarks of the seminar on behalf of the Board of Directors of Sonangol E.P.

Guest and participants were treated to a cocktail reception and dinner after the seminar.

Chief Officer, Frederico Pereira

Captain Manjeshwar

Mr. Mondlane Boa Morte

2nd Engineer Aderito Semedo

Mr. Sumbe, Mr. Brito & Mr. Manuel

Mr. Baptista Sumbe

Mr. Mateus de Brito Mr. Joaquim Ferreira

Mr. Sumbe & Mr. Brito

Captain David Price

Mr. Heater & Mr. Ferreira

Officers and Cadets with Sonangol Management

Seminar Guests Mr. Ian Chadwick

Kay, Fernandes. C/E Miranda, Mr. Joao Conde & 2/E Semedo Mr. Sumbe & C/O Frederico Pereira

Chief Engineer Francisco Miranda

Mr. G. Singh Mr. Paulino Baiona

Chief Officer Frederico Pereira

Safety Seminar

Speakers & Guests

Food Glorious Food – Galley Hygiene

The galley is one of the most hazard-ous places to work, with the danger of hot fluids and sharp objects i n i t i a l l y springing to mind.

H ow e ve r , another important element of galley safety is food hygiene. Our cooks are professional, capable and proud of the fact that their skills go towards keeping a high level of morale onboard ship. Indeed there are very few cases of illness onboard our ships that come about as a direct result of poor hy-giene. Nonetheless it is a risk that we should be aware of and certain basic precautions must be taken to minimise that risk.

The first rule of hygiene is making sure that hands are always kept clean and washed correctly. Hands should be washed using soap and hot running water and then dried using a single-use paper towel or air dryer.

When receiving stores your hands must also be clean. Reject any fresh or frozen food that appears in poor condition or if the packaging is badly

damaged. Also, someone should check that food was been delivered at the correct temperature and within applica-ble ‘use by’ dates. Provisions should never be placed directly on the deck. Use clean gratings to land the food on. When placing into the provision stores, use the first-in, first-out principal (i.e. do not store new stock directly in front of older stock – the older stock must be used first). Also store frozen and chilled products before other produce. Raw meat and fish products must al-ways be kept separate from other pro-duce.

The temperatures of cold rooms and freezers are an essential part of food hygiene. Certain bacteria may grow unless strict control is maintained. For cold rooms, the temperature should be between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius, while freezers should always operate below -18°C. Doors and seals should always be in good condition to ensure good insulation.

When working in the galley, a few basic rules should be followed, namely:

Avoid contact between raw and cooked/ready-to-eat products

To prevent cross-contamination

cooked food must not be prepared using equipment or surfaces that have been used for preparing raw meat, raw fish or vegetables.

Always keep the galley clean and disinfect knives, equipment chop-ping boards and surfaces regularly to reduce the risk of cross-contamination

Do not use linen towels or aprons for long periods. Ensure they are washed regularly and kept clean.

Those that handle food must have good personal hygiene, wear clean clothes and ensure that their hair, hands and nails are kept clean. Jewellery should not be worn by those preparing food.

Should you have any concerns about food safety or hygiene on board the ship, or should someone fall ill with gastro-enteritis, the fact should be reported to a senior officer or the Mas-ter.

It is in everyone’s interest that strict hygiene precautions are always taken to avoid illness onboard.

HAPPY EATING!

By Captain David Price of V.Ships

Always wash your hands:

Before eating

Before handling food

After handling raw food and eggs

After using the toilet

After blowing your nose

Message from Mr. Mark Heater

BEHAVIOUR BASED SAFETY - BBS

What is it?

It is a process aimed at preventing injury to people and damage to vessels and the environment by reducing the emphasis on Reactive Safety Improve-ment and increasing the emphasis and focus on Proactive Safety Improvement.

It has been created by Chevron/Texaco and Behavioural Science Tech-nology. It looks at the way sea staff carry out their duties onboard, from the way they walk on deck or wield a ham-mer to watchkeeping practices.

It has been designed to supplement all of the existing procedures, pro-grammes, and processes that are in place to assure a safe working environ-ment and that the people have the skills and equipment they need to per-form a job safely. It also works along with Non-conformity Reporting where the observations made can become the basis for identifying and reporting Non-conformities.

How does it work?

All shipboard activities have been identified and categorised in individual “Safety Observation Cards” These cards are task-specific and have been made to guide the observers and focus on the area where preventive actions are re-quired. At least one observation is made on a day and the results are en-tered into a database through specific software installed in one onboard PC and then exported to the office.

It involves people in the process of identifying what is ‘safe’ and ‘at-risk behaviour’. Observations require the input of both the person making the observation and the person that is be-ing observed. This leads to identifying barriers to working safely and the op-portunity to provide feedback to identify safety improvement in the task. Every crewmember has the opportunity to be an observer and be observed in differ-ent occasions.

Behaviour Based Safety is made up of the following ingredients:

Identifying why people behave in a

certain way and what causes these behaviours. An established list of Key Safety Behaviours. Proper observation techniques. Quality observations to find barri-ers to working safely. Effective supervision. Providing positive feedback. Collecting and analyzing the data from the observations. Removing barriers identified by observations.

Observation

Each crew member will be assigned as an observer to another crewmember for a specific work activity. The subject being observed has to carry out his task as if he is not being observed as he would do in his normal routine.

Observers focus on behaviours, pro-viding positive feedback, and for at-risk behaviours. It must be a quality obser-vation and this will normally take 10 minutes. “While”, “was”, “because” are to be used for all at-risk behaviours comments.

Observers require good people skills so that the persons are not alienated from the BBS Process, focusing on the behaviour not the person. Being re-spectful of the person and showing genuine concern are traits that are required to be an effective observer.

A very critical aspect of the process is confidentiality during and after the observation. The data from this pro-gramme can not be used by Ship-board Management Team for disci-plinary purposes.

If an at-risk behaviour is observed where an injury might occur or a near miss does occur, confidentiality must be kept. In case of an at-risk behaviour being observed where someone may be injured, the observation stops and the Observer should intervene and make every effort to stop the person from being injured. Observers must use good judgment so as not to interfere unnec-essarily in the task that is being ob-served.

When making observations the Ob-server should provide positive feedback for observing safe behaviours and help-ful coaching for at-risk behaviours. For at-risk behaviours, using “while”, “was”, “because” will identify the barriers to safe behaviours. Removing the barrier will eliminate the at-risk behaviour. This is the main goal of the Behaviour Based Safety process.

Positive Feedback

The use of positive feedback is crucial to the Behaviour Based Safety Process. Without positive feedback, identifying barriers to safe behaviours will be diffi-cult if not impossible.

There are two aspects of positive feedback:

Positive reinforcement – given when an employee uses safe be-haviours.

Helpful coaching – used when an at-risk behaviour is observed.

Positive reinforcement needs to be frequent and the person receiving it needs to know which behaviour is being reinforced. The observed person also needs to know that what you are doing is reinforcing. In other words, your message to him/her is rewarding in that it is soon, certain and positive.

Data Collection

Data collection is important in this process to provide feedback to individ-ual vessels and the entirely fleet from the observations received.

The data collected onboard each ves-sel will be sent to the OFFICE BBS data-base. The S.E.Q Dept. will review data and provide feedback to the fleet.

By Chief Officer Frederico Pereira

The aim is to make people feel successful

in safety.

Definition: Cultural awareness involves continually developing your awareness of your own and others' cultures (including biomedical) to assist in the performance of your professional duties.

Examples: This could include learning about traditional beliefs, remedies, meanings of words, phrases, gestures, customs, significant days or holidays, activities and rituals.

The shipping companies are the ‘front-runners of globalization. They are moving from the proverbial local village to a global, borderless market and this has been crucial in creating a multicultural environment. This is not new in the ship-ping industry. A recent study reports that approximately 65 percent of the world merchant fleet has adopted a multicultural strategy, which is an irreversible trend in the maritime world. The very nature of worldwide trades have helped the flexibil-ity of the global human resources market, and this has created over a period of years a multicultural community bounded by the expertise in the maritime industry. Hence shipping as an industry that can be char-acterized as a largely international and most globalized one.

Sletmo (1989) identified four stages in the evolution of shipping, which named them also as ‘waves’ of evolution.

The first wave – “The era of maritime exploration” can be termed as the period when the leading elements of shipping were the seamen, the sea and the weather.

The second wave – “The use of ship-ping for maritime power” can be termed as the period when a few regions were in the forefront due to their national fleets, sailors and seamanship.

The third wave – “The internationali-zation of shipping” can be referred to as the result of the flagging out and the in-creased dependence upon manpower from the developing countries.

The fourth wave – “The evolution of modern ship management companies” can be termed as the last, where compa-nies have developed expertise in operating efficiently and reducing the variable costs with a combination of recruiting low-cost labor from the developing countries, the de-flagging method, and drawing on West-ern technology and capital.

The different cultural backgrounds of the crew manning a ship could present issues in the safe and efficient operation of a ship. Reports have shown that casualties have occurred more often on ships with mixed crews than on ships operated by a single nationality (IMO News, No. 3: 1994).

Today almost eighty per cent of the world’s merchant fleet is staffed by multi-national crews, some of them working out of ports not in their own homeland. Al-though mixed crews have been around for a number of years, they are now “consciously” put together, with crew members of different ranks and from dif-ferent parts of the world assembled by networks of agencies.

How do we succeed in making multi-national crews live and work to-gether?

It is important to know that communi-cating with other seafarers from a wide range of cultures is an integral part of our job. The development of our own cultural awareness will enhance our effectiveness and is an ongoing learning process.

Our ability to understand the various cultural differences can make an enor-mous difference in facilitating and enhanc-ing seafarers’ lives on board.

A 2004 DNV Report gives a definition of a socially responsible shipping company as being one that is working actively to inte-grate social and environmental concerns in its operation, and which finds a sound balance between the need for operational efficiency, shareholder value and attention to the interests of non-financial sharehold-ers. The shipping companies, who run their business in an innovative way and behave in accordance with the expecta-tions of the society and try to minimize

the negative externalities, can be consid-ered as socially responsible.

Crews that are able to communicate with each other, laugh together and – importantly – joke together are more likely to work in a safe and efficient manner irrespective of the mix of their nationalities.

The Values of Seafarers

Sincerity and affinity

Ability to adapt and adjust to a multi-cultural environment

Capability to use non verbal commu-nication

Patience, tolerance, and hard work-ing

1. Non traditional seafaring nation: Although Angola has about 1, 600 Km of coastline, with main ports and harbours in Cabinda, Soyo, Luanda, Lobito and Namibe, historically the Angolan has not been exposed to a Marine environment, and sailing is still a new adventure and challenge to its people.

2. Portuguese colonization: Coloni-zation for over five hundred years, has resulted in a mixture of cultures, a non racial environment and Portuguese as an official language.

3. Rich ocean: Good local fishery activity.

4. Largely a Christian nation.

The above factors definitely have a very big impact on the life onboard. De-pending on what other nationalities are present onboard he may feel isolated or uninvolved on ship’s matters. Misunder-standings could give rise to differences and changes in the ships’ atmosphere.

This is so because the Angolans by nature are a very simple, friendly easy going people. Introducing new behav-iours can be a challenge.

Music and songs Dancing at get-togethers. Cuisine & dishes Sports fever

The Angolans onboard bring synergy that changes the lifestyle of the ship. They have that very special empathy that motivates others.

CULTURAL AWARENESS By Paulino Baiona

“The modern seafarer

commonly sails in ships with

multicultural crews whose

cultural / nationality mix may

vary from year to year or even

from one voyage to another.”

Meet the Family Iracelma Carina Vuando

RANK: Trainee Navigating Officer (Sonangol Girassol)

Iracelma lives in Luanda, Rocha Pinto with her mother, brother, two sisters and two nieces. She has studied Sciences – Physics and Biol-ogy in High School and was learning Basic Industrial Electrical Systems before enrolling into Sonangol Ship-ping Deck Officers Training Program. After completing a 6 month English course and 4 Basic Safety Courses in India, she is presently sailing on-board the Suezmax Tanker Sonangol Girassol where we have interviewed her.

GENERAL

Q. How did you get to know about this career? A. I got to know about this career from a newspaper advertisement. Q. What made you chose coming to sea? A. Two things: first is the chance to pursue a good career with quality training and second the opportunity to be able to help my family financially in the future. Q. What made you chose Deck/Engine? A. I have chosen Deck because I would like to be a Captain. Q. What would you like to be, if other options where available? A. I would like to be a Civil Architect. Q. Do you miss home a lot? What do you do when you miss your family? A. Yes, I miss my home a lot. When I miss my family I look at their pictures and I call them as well to have a chat and know how they are doing.

SHIP

Q. What was your first impression when you saw the ship? A. I was surprised with the size. I thought it was too big when I saw it for the first time, and I still think it is big. Q. How do you feel being onboard? A. I’m feeling good. Q. How do you describe life onboard? A. Life onboard is different. One has to work hard, everything has got its own time to be done, but has got a lot of funny moments. Q. How has your experience been so far? A. My experience has been good until now. Q. What difficulties have you found so far? A. The only difficulty I found until now was to know the location of port side and starboard side when I am moving inside the accommodation. Q. What things fascinate you more, onboard? A. I like to see the sky and the sea at night. Q. How far do you aspire to go in this career? A. I would like to become a Captain. Q. What would you like to see onboard, that is not yet there? A. I would like to see some hair care equipment onboard, so that we can take care of our hair.

PERSONAL

Q. What do you like to do in your free times? A. In my free time I like listening to music, preferably slow and house music, I also like to read and watch TV. Q. What message would you like to give to other girls/females about life at sea? A. My message to other girls is: Life at sea is not bad, if you dream with it, do not hesitate, go for it! Believe in yourself and tell yourself, I can do it! And you will get it. Q. How is your family feeling about your being at sea? A. My family is happy for me.

Iracelma is one of the

few Sonangol female ca-

dets and was interviewed

by Capt. Deepak Ni-gam of the

Sonangol Gi-rassol.

Sonangol Shipping News

Wanderlei Bombeiro passed the Officer of the Watch exams in February 2010 at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.

Simao Kupessala passed the Officer of the Watch exams in March 2010 at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.

Jose Ngunza passed the Officer of the Watch exams in March 2010 at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.

The steel cutting ceremony for Sonangol Sambizanga was held May 3, 2010 at the DSME shipyard in Okpo, South Korea. 

The Sonangol Shipping Bi-Annual Meeting was held in the Algarve, Portugal May 27 & 28, 2010.

Helio Baptista passed the Second Engineer exams in May 2010 at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.

Arlindo Cassoma passed the Chief Mate exams in May 2010 at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.

Aderito Pereira passed the Chief Mate exams in May 2010 at Glas-gow College of Nautical Studies.

The contract for the 2.2 kilometer road from the coastal hwy south of Sumbe to the Angolan Maritime Training Center was awarded to Mota-Engil. Road construction began June 14, 2010.

The contract for supervision of construction management services for the next two Suezmax’s (Sonangol Rangel and Sonangol Kalandula) was awarded to SeaQuest Marine. Many of you will recall SeaQuest provided similar services for the construction of the Sonangol Namibe.

The technical management of the Sonangol Namibe will move from Wallem Shipmanagement Hong Kong to International Tanker Management (ITM) Dubai in August 2010. The ship will be oper-ated from ITM’s Houston office and the crew will remain, for the most part, Indian and Angolan officers with Filipino ratings.

Post Dry Dock Singapore, February 14, 2010

SONANGOL KASSANJE

Shipping Staff Movements

Congratulations and Best of Luck to the following Sonangol employees in their new positions, promotions and/or loca-tions!

Joao Goncalves was promoted to Third En-gineer June 10, 2010 while onboard the Sonangol Luanda.

Paulino Baiona is moving from the Houston Shipping office to Sonangol Shipping An-gola (Luanda) in the fall of 2010.

As always, your feedback, comments and suggestions are welcomed and encour-aged. Please forward them to G.Singh at singh.sandhu@sonangolshipping.com and/or Mrs. America Salinas at amer-ica.salinas@sonangolshipping.com.

Thank you!