Dunlap Towing Chooses PMI for Simulation Training
As part of their ongoing employee training program, Dunlap Towing recently sent its deck officers to Seattle's Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), a state-of-the-art maritime training facility, to participate in tug and barge simulation exercises and instruction on the Universal Automatic Identification Systems (UAIS).
Simulation exercises, which were conducted at PMI's waterfront facility, utilized the school's new 240 degree full-mission bridge simulator. The simulation course, specifically created for Dunlap crew members with input from Port Captain Russ Johnson, depicted realistic and relevant tug and barge handling situations in addition to Situational Awareness exercises across areas such as the Richmond Longwharf in San Francisco Bay, Elliott Bay in Washington, Astoria, Oregon, and Honolulu, Hawaii.
The development of a range of challenging scenarios; including varying current, wind, and barge-loading conditions; afforded the participants with an excellent opportunity to practice catching and docking barges, departing a berth with and without the use of assist tugs, and other important tasks. The characteristic "restart" and "replay" capabilities inherent to the simulator allowed individuals to experiment, to error, and to apply appropriate corrections ? a near-perfect learning environment for the prudent mariner. Additionally, after each exercise, the bridge team members, Dunlap Port Captain, and PMI facilitators conducted a thorough debrief. This capability allowed the mariners to evaluate the effectiveness of the maneuvering commands they utilized and develop a better understanding of how to deal with unique situations, which are vital tools that the mariners will be able to draw upon at critical times during their life as a merchant mariner at sea.
On the third day of training, the mariners gathered for a comprehensive seminar on the concepts and functionality of the UAIS system, a fairly new piece of gear to the bridge on most tugboats. The seminar, conducted by PMI's new Project Manager, Captain Scott D. Carter, presented the functional requirements, limitations, and capabilities of the AIS system. Fortunately, PMI also uses the same Furuno UAIS equipment that is on all Dunlap tugboats. This added another realistic dimension for the crews' training.
Upon completion of their courses, the Dunlap management and mariners agreed that the knowledge they gleaned from PMI will allow them to stand a confident, safe bridge watch and maintain higher situational awareness standards while underway. Dunlap Port Captain Johnson echoed their positive comments, "In the simulator environment mariners learn skills in a relatively short time that would sometimes take them years to experience in the real working world. Promising mates are allowed to handle the tug and barge more in 3 days then they would in years on a real tug. And all of this is accomplished without the threat of potential damage to the equipment. The program has been a real breakthrough in training existing mates and a tremendous resource in evaluating future Captains."
For more information regarding PMI's towing simulation capabilities or AIS training, please contact Mr. Gregg Trunnell at (206) 719-2801 or via e-mail at [email protected]. You may also visit the PMI website at http://www.mates.org.