IMCA to hold competence workshop in Kuala Lumpur

Published on 15 April 2013

A competent workforce is a productive one, and operates with fewer risks, meaning shorter downtimes and fewer injuries. Effective competence schemes established by companies of all sizes ensure confidence in the offshore industry, and that all people appointed to safety-critical positions can carry out their jobs in an effective manner.

The International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) has established a highly effective competence assurance and assessment framework, and as part of its Asia-Pacific Section meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday 27 June will run a competence workshop, which is open to members and non-members alike. Chief Executive Chris Charman, Technical Director Jane Bugler, and Technical Adviser Neil Evans will be at the meeting and workshop.

“Asset protection is core to all businesses, but what greater asset is there than the people working within an organisation?” asks Chris Charman.”IMCA member companies’ demonstration of competence in safety-critical positions is absolutely vital. It’s all about managing risk to protect brand and reputation.

“The IMCA competence assurance and assessment framework enables contractors to develop in-house schemes to demonstrate the competence of their safety-critical personnel; these schemes are designed to improve operational practice throughout the industry, whilst encouraging both upward and lateral career progression.

“We are seeing a growing interest in competence assessment schemes around the globe. Earlier this year we held a successful competence workshop in Aberdeen, now we are bringing the workshop to Kuala Lumpur, before holding it in the early autumn in Houston. The focus of these seminars is to deliver a programme to ensure core messages are consistent around the world. We link the internal processes by which a company delivers its competence programmes to the training cycle; and we will be covering issues such as personnel shortages and the promotion of IMCA’s freelance materials.”

The IMCA competence framework was first developed in 1999. Since then acceptance and understanding of competence assessment has grown globally and the framework (which remains that, not a set of rules and standards) has played an important role. It is supported by a wide range of documentation ranging from competence documents for a wide range of positions throughout the marine contracting sector, to a DVD available in English, Portuguese, French, Indonesian, Italian, Spanish, Malay, Russian and Tagalog.

The one day workshop is free to attend, and those interested in taking part should register at [email protected] order to receive the programme and full details on timing and venue. The workshop also provides non-members with an opportunity to hear about the work of IMCA on behalf of its 900+ member companies in over 60 countries, and to network with those at the meeting.