History & Achievements
Senior management from AODC member companies operating in the Middle East met in December 1992 and agreed that a Middle East Section should be established to provide guidance and instigate safety standards for diving-related industry and operations in the region.
In April 1995, AODC merged with DPVOA (the Dynamic Positioning Vessel Owners Association) to form IMCA and the section became the IMCA Middle East Section. IMCA, as a larger unified body, put members in a much stronger position to influence matters affecting safety and technical issues.
The Middle East Section immediately took the initiative to promote IMCA's guidance to clients in the region in order to achieve the primary objective of creating a level playing field of offshore diving operations conducted to safe working standards.
A particular achievement for the section came in September 1999, when the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) issued its HSE Management Guidance Document on Diving Safety to provide a standard and uniform approach for ADNOC and its affiliate operating companies in the evaluation of their own HSE protection management systems and those of the diving contractor companies they employ. The guidance document draws heavily on the IMCA International Code of Practice for Offshore Diving and associated guidance documents.
Into the Future
Prompted by Middle East Section members' drive to help increase the influence of IMCA guidance and expand the geographical take-up by clients; and with other local members also keen to see similar successes, in December 2000 the Overall Management Committee approved an expansion of the section's geographical borders to encompass India. The enlarged Middle East & India Section continues to strive to enhance safe operations across the region.
Well-attended promotional seminars have been held in Abu Dhabi (UAE), Egypt and India, with all major operating companies invited. At these events, members have had the opportunity to introduce those unfamiliar with IMCA and its guidance to the benefits its use can bring, both in terms of enhancing safety and the resulting higher efficiency and better results for contractors and operators alike.
The section holds quarterly meetings for members, reviewing proposed regulations, IMCA guidance and other matters affecting the local industry to ensure compatability with the needs of local members and requirements of local law. As well as contributing to the international focus of IMCA's world-wide work, local appendices and initiatives are also developed and publicised to members locally and internationally.
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