Costly port accidents avoidable using procedures, training: TT Club
LONDON's TT Club, a transport and logistics insurer, has concluded that the most port accidents are avoidable based on its analysis of 9,500 claims valued at US$400 million over the past seven years.
Sixty-eight per cent of port accidents were due to poor operations and processes and another 14 per cent resulted from poor maintenance, said Phillip Emmanuel, the leader of the club's operations in Asia-Pacific based in Hong Kong.
"Only 18 per cent were caused by weather related issues, seemingly out of the control of the operator, but an amount of these could have been avoided through more adequate preparation," he said.
"Effective procedures, training and safety technology will reduce risk and bring other commercial benefits such as lower insurance premiums and higher customer satisfaction."
Two-thirds of the operational claims by value arise from the operation quay cranes, lift trucks, rubber-tyred gantry cranes and straddle carriers, Mr Emmanuel said.
There have been 236 quay crane boom-to-ship collisions in the past seven years costing US$15 million and representing 31 per cent of quay crane claims. TT Club says that these accidents could be greatly reduced by fitting boom anti-collision sensors.
Stack collisions are also common and costly, accounting for 19 per cent ($10 million) of quay crane and 82 per cent ($23 million) of yard crane claims. The TT Club says these incidents can also be minimised often through the use of a stack profiling system.
LONDON's TT Club, a transport and logistics insurer, has concluded that the most port accidents are avoidable based on its analysis of 9,500 claims valued at US$400 million over the past seven years.
Sixty-eight per cent of port accidents were due to poor operations and processes and another 14 per cent resulted from poor maintenance, said Phillip Emmanuel, the leader of the club's operations in Asia-Pacific based in Hong Kong.
"Only 18 per cent were caused by weather related issues, seemingly out of the control of the operator, but an amount of these could have been avoided through more adequate preparation," he said.
"Effective procedures, training and safety technology will reduce risk and bring other commercial benefits such as lower insurance premiums and higher customer satisfaction."
Two-thirds of the operational claims by value arise from the operation quay cranes, lift trucks, rubber-tyred gantry cranes and straddle carriers, Mr Emmanuel said.
There have been 236 quay crane boom-to-ship collisions in the past seven years costing US$15 million and representing 31 per cent of quay crane claims. TT Club says that these accidents could be greatly reduced by fitting boom anti-collision sensors.
Stack collisions are also common and costly, accounting for 19 per cent ($10 million) of quay crane and 82 per cent ($23 million) of yard crane claims. The TT Club says these incidents can also be minimised often through the use of a stack profiling system.