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Michael Grey* It was years ago that an old friend, who was a shipbroker, told me proudly that using his new mobile telephone, then something the size of a house-brick, he had fixed a cargo for one of his clients from the vegetable aisle of his local supermarket, while his embarrassed wife, pretending that he […]

Michael Grey* Are you suffering from “technostress?” It is an interesting term, which perfectly encapsulates the mentality of modern mankind, with manifold anxieties which were unknown to our predecessors. I thought of this worrying state of mind after reading a report provided by ISWAN and the Shipowners’ Club on The impact of maritime decarbonisation on

By Michael Grey* The design of a ship was once a delicate balance in which an endless series of compromises were necessary to end up with a half-decent vessel. You wanted something box-shaped, to carry all the revenue-earning cargo, but had to modify your desires to accommodate something more streamlined under water. You wanted speed,

Michael Grey* P&I club Gard came up with some disturbing figures the other day, in a thought provoking note on mooring operations. Using statistics garnered from the International Group of P&I clubs, they report that between 2016 and 2021, there were 858 injuries and 31 fatalities which were attributable to mooring operations going badly wrong.

Michael Grey* A modern ship is a complex creature, packed with different systems, machinery and equipment and at any one time it is inconceivable that they will all be operating without any fault. You might argue that ships have always been like that and the essence of seamanship and good marine engineering is to have

Michael Grey* One of the advantages (or perhaps disadvantages) of age is an ability to look back and see how custom and practice, behaviour and attitudes, have evolved over the years, mainly, it has to be said, to suit economic criteria. Risk taking has been part and parcel of seafaring since the dawn of time

By Michael Grey* He intended to pass. Probably, he won’t make that mistake again We all hope for the best, but it is slightly concerning to consider, in the event of the Houthi attacks on shipping continuing into the southern winter, all these containerships diverting around the Cape of Storms, with their huge, high, deck

by Michael Grey* We are terribly worried about our supply chains these days, now that we realise they stretch rather further than the delivery van. It is a concern that was illuminated in the past year, with the spectacular interruption to the westbound voyage of the Ever Given, followed by the revelation that the excitingly expanded

By Michael Grey* There probably will not be that many people around who can recall the summer of 1984, when there was an important conference in Geneva to consider the problems of flags of convenience (FOC), or open registers, as we are now enjoined to call them. The meeting, held in the lofty halls of

By Michael Grey* Strategies that contribute to the saving of the planet ought to be cheered to the rafters, but I confess that when I read about the pedestrian pace on passage of some modern ships, it was with rather mixed emotions. According to those knowledgeable folk in BIMCO, the speed of containerships and bulk