Maritime Knowledge Base
Browse questions and answers across marine machinery, merchant navy careers, shipboard operations and maritime glossary terms.
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Marine Machinery
Troubleshooting guides for pumps, boilers, purifiers, compressors and auxiliary systems.
Merchant Navy Careers
Questions about joining the merchant navy, exams, cadetships, ranks and sea-time.
Maritime Glossary
Plain-English definitions of shipping, engine-room, navigation and regulatory terms.
Shipboard Operations
Practical Q&A for watchkeeping, safety, maintenance routines and onboard documentation.
Results for "Flag state"
How do I prepare for a Port State Control inspection?
How to be ready for Port State Control — certificates, drills, maintenance evidence and housekeeping — so a routine inspection does not become a detention.
Maritime GlossaryWhat is SOLAS?
SOLAS explained — the IMO's most important safety convention and the areas of ship safety it governs.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat is a Certificate of Competency (CoC) and how do I get one?
What a CoC is, the STCW rank levels it comes in, and the sea time, courses and exams needed to earn and raise one.
Merchant Navy CareersHow do you become a marine engineer on ships?
Becoming a marine engineer means entering the engine department through a cadetship or engineering degree and progressing by sea time and Certificates of Competency.
Marine MachineryWhy does the oily water separator 15 ppm bilge alarm keep activating?
The 15 ppm alarm on the oily water separator stops overboard discharge when the oil content is too high — the causes lie in the separator, the monitor or the feed.
Merchant Navy CareersHow long does it take to become a ship captain in the merchant navy?
Becoming a Master typically takes somewhere around eight to twelve years from cadet, depending on the individual, the flag and how quickly sea time and certificate examinations are completed.
Merchant Navy CareersCan women join the merchant navy and what roles can they hold?
Yes — women can and do serve in every department and rank of the merchant navy, from cadet to Master and chief engineer, and the industry is actively working to recruit more.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat shore-based jobs can experienced seafarers move into?
Experienced seafarers are in demand ashore for a wide range of maritime roles — surveying, pilotage, ship management, training, insurance and port work — where their sea experience is essential.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat is a seafarer employment agreement (SEA)?
A seafarer employment agreement is the written contract, required under the Maritime Labour Convention, that sets out the terms of a seafarer's employment aboard ship.
Merchant Navy CareersHow do you become an electro-technical officer (ETO)?
Becoming an ETO means entering the engine department through an electrical or electronic background, completing approved training and sea service, and gaining the STCW electro-technical officer certificate.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat qualifications and requirements are needed to join the merchant navy?
Joining the merchant navy generally requires a good secondary education with science and maths for officer routes, medical and eyesight fitness, meeting age limits, and completing STCW training.
Maritime GlossaryWhat does STCW mean?
STCW explained — the international convention that sets minimum training, certification and watchkeeping standards for seafarers worldwide.
Shipboard OperationsWhat is a Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP)?
SOPEP is the Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan, a MARPOL-required plan that tells the crew how to report and respond to an oil spill from the ship.
Merchant Navy CareersHow do you become a chief engineer on a ship?
The chief engineer heads the engine department — reaching the rank requires management-level certification and years of sea time as a watchkeeping and second engineer.
Shipboard OperationsWhat are the SOLAS lifeboat and abandon ship drill requirements?
SOLAS requires regular abandon-ship and fire drills, with musters, equipment checks and the lowering and manoeuvring of lifeboats at defined intervals.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat medical and eyesight standards are required to join the merchant navy?
Seafarers must pass a seafarer medical examination covering general fitness, eyesight and colour vision, and hearing — the standards protect safety at sea.
Shipboard OperationsHow is a navigation (bridge) watch properly handed over?
A bridge watch handover requires the relieving officer to be fully oriented — position, traffic, course and dangers — before accepting the watch, and never mid-manoeuvre.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat is sea time and why is it required for certificates of competency?
Sea time is the period of approved service at sea a seafarer must complete to qualify for each certificate of competency — proof of real experience, recorded and verified.
Merchant Navy CareersWhat is the difference between the merchant navy and the (military) navy?
The merchant navy is the commercial fleet that carries cargo and passengers for trade, crewed by civilian seafarers, while the navy is a country's military maritime force.
Shipboard OperationsHow is ballast water managed and treated on board a ship?
Under the Ballast Water Management Convention, ships manage ballast water either by mid-ocean exchange or, increasingly, by treating it through an approved system before discharge.
Shipboard OperationsWhat is a Safety Management System (SMS) on a ship?
A Safety Management System is the documented set of policies and procedures, required by the ISM Code, by which a company manages the safe operation of its ships and prevention of pollution.
