IMCA Newsroom

Press Release

IMCA'S HIGHLY TOPICAL MARINE AND SAFETY SEMINAR FOLLOWS IMCA TO THE USA

2003 DIARY DATES
Title:		Deepwater:  Marine Operations & Safety
		Joint Annual IMCA Marine Division and Safety Seminar
Dates:		5-6 November 2003 
Venue:		Sheraton Suites, Galleria, Houston, Texas, USA
Organiser: 	IMCA - The International Marine Contractors Association
Tel: 		+44 (0) 20 7931 8171
Fax: 		+44 (0) 20 7931 8935
E-mail: 	events@imca-int.com
Website: 	www.imca-int.com/events

The twelfth annual IMCA - International Marine Contractors Association - seminar, with its theme "Deepwater: Marine Operations and Safety" takes place on 5th and 6th November in Houston, Texas at the Sheraton Suites near the Galleria. Like all events in the peripatetic series, it is open to members and non-members alike and this year will feature a "Safety Share Fair". In the past five years alone, the seminar has been held in the UK, Norway, The Netherlands, France and Brazil.

"Safety lies at the heart of all IMCA policy so it is fitting that various aspects of safety provide the core topics for this year's marine seminar," explains IMCA's Chief Executive, Hugh Williams. "This will be our first USA-based seminar since the formation of the IMCA Americas Deepwater Section and we are looking forward to a highly stimulating and interesting two days in Houston involving both contractors and operators to the full.

"The annual marine seminar not only highlights and discusses topical events and concerns throughout the industry but acts as a superb showcase for IMCA initiatives and the work we do on behalf of our members, and highlights areas of concern on which we should be concentrating in the future, so it is an invaluable service not only to our members but to the industry as a whole." There are over 200 IMCA member companies in 30 countries around the world; many will be represented at this year's seminar.

As has become traditional, the seminar features both plenary sessions and parallel workshops. DP Deepwater Operations Gulf of Mexico (GoM); Vessel Security; Emergency Preparedness & Response - Management and Assessment; Compliance and Enforcement Issues in the GoM; Improving Safety Performance; DP System Reliability and Safety are all the subjects of plenary sessions.

"It is always invidious to pick out certain speakers, but we are delighted that the US Coastguard is fielding speakers to address both vessel security and compliance and enforcement issues in the Gulf of Mexico; and Mike Conner of the US MMS will be looking at "enforcement And compliance of deepwater activities in the GoM" in the compliance/enforcement session," says Hugh Williams.

Interactive workshops are very much a hallmark of the IMCA annual seminar, ten are planned over the two days and will address Emergency Preparedness and Response; General Deepwater Operations; IMCA DP Incident Reports - how can we get more out of it?; Vessel Security; Safety Share Fair - sharing the message; Behavioural Based Safety; DP System Reliability and Safety; DP supply vessel operations; and Marine Safety - What clients expect from contractors?; and Future Equipment Requirements (a series of mini-presentations) with their chairmen giving feedback from each workshop at the final plenary session of each day. "Our workshops provide the ideal opportunity for the free exchange of thoughts and concerns, and in many instances their findings have lead to a new stream of work for the Association for the benefit of members and their clients," says Hugh Williams.

The full technical programme is on the IMCA website at www.imca-int.com/events or available in printed form from the IMCA offices.

Over 250 delegates gathered in Aberdeen for the eleventh annual seminar, sub-titled "Learning from Experience". Onshore and offshore management and operational staff, together with a range of specialist consultants, equipment suppliers and client and regulatory representatives, attended the seminar - "This is very much the mix we expect at this year's event in Houston," says Hugh Williams. They heard a range of presentations on topical issues, practical experiences and the latest technological developments and operational achievements. They also participated in a number of workshops and viewed a range of equipment and services on offer at the associated exhibition. The proceedings of the 2002 seminar are available from IMCA Publications.

Notes to Editors (common)

• IMCA is an international association with over 450 members in more than 50 countries, representing offshore, marine and underwater engineering companies. IMCA has four technical divisions, covering marine/specialist vessel operations, offshore diving, hydrographic survey and remote systems and ROVs, plus geographic sections for the Americas Deepwater, Asia-Pacific, Europe & Africa and Middle East & India regions, as well as a core focus on safety, the environment, competence and training. IMCA seeks to promote its members' common interests, to resolve industry-wide issues and to provide an authoritative voice for its members.
• IMCA publishes some 200 guidance notes and technical reports. These have been developed over the years and are widely distributed. They are a definition of what IMCA stands for, including widely recognised diving and ROV codes of practice, DP documentation, marine good practice guidance, the Common Marine Inspection Document, safety recommendation, outline training syllabi and the IMCA competence scheme guidance. In addition to the range of printed guidance documents, IMCA also produces safety promotional materials, circulates information notes and safety flashes.
• Judith Patten is here to help you if you want any additional information on IMCA; would like to discuss a feature article; want to organise interviews with key members of the IMCA team, etc.