ABS Releases Industry-Leading Study Of USD 246M In Injury Claims
ABS, the American Club, and Lamar University (Lamar) are urging the industry to move forward for safety at sea with better reporting needs for injury and near miss reporting.
This call comes after the industry wide project which analysed over 12,000 injury records that costed $246m and after that 100,000 near-miss reports from the ABS and Lamar Mariner Safety Research Initiative (MSRI) and nearly a decade of data from the American Club.
The study provides a very new insight about the type of accidents at sea however the inconsistency of data and proper in for has led to the American Club, ABS, and Lamar to urge the industry to take up new comprehensive standards for reporting about the maritime injury.
“Nothing is more important to ABS than the safety of the men and women working at sea. This project offers a deeper insight into how and where seafarers are being injured and also highlights what industry can do to take our understanding of safety to the next level,” said Christopher J. Wiernicki, ABS Chairman, President and CEO.
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According to the research, the incident of tripping/falling happen frequently at sea and injuries that are sustained during lifting or in slips. Over 1,300 such incidents are present in the data of the study. The American Club data shows that over $85m is the cost of these incidents for a period of six-year that was studied. The average cost per incident is more than $65,000 in which lifting incidents averaged $48,000, falls and trips averaged $88,000, slips averaged $56,000. As per the costs and anatomical locations, the two body parts that costed the most were the head and neck which came to an average of more than $100,000 per incident that was followed by the back and torso at $66,000.
Joseph Hughes, the Shipowners Claims Bureau’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, “Shipping is currently navigating through a digital era in which asset owners are increasingly able to use the power of operational data to predict potential failures. As those capabilities grow, the industry would be well counselled to also get ‘smarter’ about how it compiles and uses its safety data.”
“This industry, academic, and class partnership provided valuable insight into the financial impact of injuries across the maritime industry. This is another tool to help provide better solutions to help prevent the occurrence and reoccurrence of maritime injuries. We all believe that this partnership will help improve the welfare of the maritime industry’s most valuable asset: its seafarers,” said Dr. Brian Craig, Lamar University, Dean of Engineering and Co-Director of the Mariner Safety Research Initiative.
Reference: eagle
