eSeaM A R I T I M E / O I L & G A S / W I N D / C R A N E · N O . 2 5 / 2 0 1 6

EM AGA ZINE FROM M A ERSK TR A INING

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Total Reality Is Here >Searching For Tomorrow’s World Today > And now for something completely different... >

The Show Must Go On >Down to Earth Ladies > Under the Earth Ladies >It’s All In The Bag >

Reality Is Virtually Here >

The Show Must Go OnOn December 1, in one 24 hour period, Chennai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu had 300mm of rain – the wettest day in one hundred years. >

Something different...Careers are a journey – for some the destination and route are determined from day one – for others circumstance, fate and opportunity are sign posts that lead to unusual and unpredictable experiences. >

Change is what Kjell is all about. He heads a team of six seasoned experts, most with experience in the industry within oil majors. >

Total Reality Is HereAnyone looking in through the window of what used to be a garage and storeroom could be forgiven in thinking that Maersk Training in Svendborg had invested in a new gas or oil-fired central heating system. >

Reality Is Virtually HereIn 1998 guests and participants stared in awe at what

was the solution to a major training problem.. >

content

Under the Earth LadiesThe role of women in the Middle East is an emerging and changing one. When put in an oil industry setting it is a particularly challenging one. >

It’s All In The BagIt weighs about 15 kgs and looks like a squared-up hiking backpack, but for someone working in the remoteness of an offshore wind turbine, it could mean the difference between life and death. >

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Down to Earth LadiesIt is probably the most sophisticated simulator on the planet. It prepares a select group of people to zoom round the earth at 27,600 kph. >

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Cover photograph: The Power and the Glory – sunset in a Brazilian oil field by Rodrigo Dias

Searching For Tomorrow’s World Today

3

The first 15 years of the new millennium have

whizzed by – perhaps because they have

been so eventful. On the world stage new

abbreviations immediately create horrific

imagery, 9/11, IS... in the Oil & Gas industry

mention Macondo or a barrel at $147 and

people shudder... in life we said hello to

Wikipedia (2001), You Tube (2005) and the

iPhone (2007) and goodbye to the Pyrenean

Ibex and Concorde (both 2000). Osama bin

Laden and the Space Shuttle (both 2011) and

most recently David Bowie. In politics the US

elected their first Afro-American and Germany

their first woman Presidents.

Looking to the near future, like within four

years, it is expected we’ll have a universal flu

vaccine, a drug to prevent obesity and polio

eradicated. Spying drones will literally be

the size of insects, we have 3D printers in our

homes and the City Circle Line will open in

Copenhagen. Europe gets a missile defensive

shield whilst Africa gets a central bank and

currency. Further down the line Uganda

becomes an oil-producing nation and Nigeria

loses its last piece of rainforest. If that’s not

enough, they expect to do the first head

transplant, fairly soon.

Busy and exciting on a global level, so we

decided to look a little to the future as to

where training and the basic set-up of our

industries might sit in the next 15 years. A

forward-thinking operations manager looks

round the corner to predict how a classroom

will operate and we talk to someone whose job

it is to look into the future.

We also look back a little for the past is the

foundation of the future, no matter what

Henry Ford said. Frank and Sue have shared

20 career moves between them and they are

still a long long way from retirement. One

of the more terrifying global predictions is

that California will have an earthquake of

enormous power, true nature and nothing

to do with man tampering with our precious

environment. India is no stranger to adverse

weather conditions and we see how one

training centre carried on operating for the

last month of 2015 despite the heaviest rain,

and flooding, for a century.

Richard Lightbodyrli039@maersktraining.com

yesterday today tomorrow

Hamburgefintsiv 4

There is an image which we

share here. A phone handset

held aloft by a piece of rope which

is tied to a pipe in the ceiling. It

still hangs in an un-used room

in the cellar of Maersk Training

in Svendborg. Around it, in an

area too clean to gather dust, two

chairs face aftward in what is

tech-equipped as a mini bridge.

In 1998 guests and participants

stared in awe at what was the

solution to a major training

Reality Is Virtually Here

The old phrase, ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ needs the rider, ‘and the grandmother of innovation’ when it comes to the on-going technological challenge of training for the oil & gas, maritime and wind industries.

4

Hamburgefintsiv 5

problem. Up until then there was

no platform for winch operators

and navigators to do what they

did in real life, cooperate in

anchor-handling situations. The

real life result was that accidents

and damage were all too frequent

on board supply vessels.

WHAT’S IN THE BLACK BOOK?Simulation had been about for

years in terms of relatively simple

manoeuvring, but there was no

way of representing wire-scoping

over the stern and the external

forces it created and how it

affected performance and safety.

The instructors opened a ‘black

book’ into which they logged all

accidents and mishaps in terms

of their dollar significance – by

2006 it ran to many hundreds of

millions.

Dynamic Positioning was added

in 2003, but it was already

becoming clear that technology,

An engine without oil, a pen for

a spanner, an engineer probes

for improved performance.

5

Hamburgefintsiv 6

Looking aft on the 360 degree

bridge. Bridge A can be

interconnected with all the

simulators in MOSAIC for a

multi-dimensional ‘real life’

learning experience.

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in terms of screen resolution and

graphics, were racing ahead of

what the cellar-based simulator

could offer.

The decision was taken to

create a new focus in training,

a purpose-built complex with

four bridges simulators, the main

one being a full 360˚experience;

all supplied with the most

current bridge-issue equipment.

Somewhere along the road the

building became known as the

Maersk Offshore Simulation And

Innovation Centre, MOSAIC.

‘We had the offshore support

vessels, but we needed the

“things” they needed to support

to actively interact, so we got a

jack-up rig to tow around and a

semi-sub rig to run anchors from.

We started doing jacking training,

tow mastering and dynamic

positioning in an offshore

environment including deepwater

drilling’ says Operations

Manager, Tonny Møller.

GOING GLOBALTonny Møller has been deeply

involved for almost two decades

in the project which has grown

from a solution in a converted

storeroom to entire purpose-built

complexes in Aberdeen, Houston,

Dubai, Rio de Janeiro and where

it all started, Svendborg in

Denmark.

The project which started in

a cellar chasing technology

was now employing it as its

servant. A second MOSAIC was

commissioned in order to add to

the realism of the scenarios.

‘MOSAIC 2 was actually just

meant to be a drilling simulator

connected to Bridge A in the

original MOSAIC, and it could

easily have been just that.

But then we added the engine

room and the crane because

dynamic positioning is worth

nothing without the engine room

support. Now we are going into

dive support, subsea support

where the crane is putting down

‘Christmas trees’ – here the

cooperation between the crane

driver and the DP operator is

crucial,’ says Tonny.

AND TOMORROW... So where, or what, next? Looking

into the future Tonny sees

technology placing training on

new levels. ‘Virtual reality will be

the big thing,’ says Tonny. ‘BOP for

example, one client had 18 days of

downtime because the BOP failed

and the spare BOP wasn’t in order.

With a virtual reality room they

could go in and rehearse changing

that gasket to totally understand

what was needed, the time saved

from downtime would have paid

for the investment.’

In the meantime the investment

that Maersk Training has

made through invention and

innovation, virtually worldwide,

is becoming reality. ●

"Virtual reality will be the big thing" Hanging on the phone; the old

phone in the old simulator hangs

in the semi darkness, silent. All

the chatter is happening In the

new MOSAIC.

7

Anyone looking in through the window of what used to be a garage and storeroom could be forgiven in thinking that Maersk Training in Svendborg had invested in a new gas or oil-fired central heating system. What they are looking at does have an oil and gas connection, but it’s for warming brain cells, not water.

Partially built from

components scrapped from

platforms on the North Sea, the

Primary Process Separator is a

simulator as far removed from

the electronic technology of

the nearby MOSAIC complex as

Donald Trump is from the dole

queue. It’s all metal tanks, metres

of piping and numerous pressure

valves and replicates 90% of what

is to be found on the platforms.

‘The ideal situation would be

to train it on board, on the

platforms,’ explains instructor

Per Larsen, ‘but because of the

risks and costs involved it is not

possible. So we wanted to create

something that was as close as

possible to reality so they can get

the sense of hands on experience.’

The electricians, blacksmiths,

anyone who gets their hands dirty

in the maintenance programme

will now have their awareness

raised through thorough risk

assessment and the planning

process to carry out the identified

task. As with a growing number

of courses, there is also a

human factors element with a

specialist People Skills instructor

monitoring how the participants

work with each other.

The venture is a cooperation

between Maersk Training and

Maersk Oil, who saw the need

for such training and for the

right equipment to do it on. The

simulator is an open facility for all

those in the offshore industry. ●

Total Reality Is Here

8

Procedural Training for Oil

Production

Hamburgefintsiv 9

Miles away from oil, but close

to reality, the Primary Process

Separator is the latest addition

to Maersk Training’s fleet of

simulators

9

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness...” Charles Dickens – A Tale of Two Cities.

Written 157 years ago it’s

a quote used by Kjell

Evensgaard to describe his

current work situation, well

the first twelve words at least.

Anyone involved in the oil

industry today, from operators to

contractors will recognize that

there have been better days.

Dickens wrote those words in

1859, the same year that Samuel

Downer Jr patented a lamp

oil calling it kerosene and on

August 27, William Smith struck

something black and rather

wonderful, Smith is generally

recognized as the first person

to successfully drill for oil. After

boring just 21 meters into the

earth at Titusville, Pennsylvania,

he changed the world.

Change is what Kjell is all about.

He heads a team of six seasoned

experts, most with around 30

years’ experience in the industry

within oil majors. Their job at

Maersk Drilling is to look to the

Searching For Tomorrow’s World Today Maersk Drilling ‘s team with the job

of looking into the future

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Hamburgefintsiv 11

Searching For Tomorrow’s World Today Maersk Drilling ‘s team with the job

of looking into the future

"Typically all companies that do well understand what their client wants and they cater to that need – but our industry is really bad at it"

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future – their project is called

Game Change.

FLAWED RULES‘We work in a very conservative

industry,’ says Kjell, ‘since the

days of John D. Rockefeller and

his mates things haven’t really

changed beyond the arrival of

sophisticated downhole tools

and the bigger equipment that

allows you to go somewhere else.

Everything else is basically the

same.’

It’s an industry which has

turned common practice into

fundamental rules, even where

the practice is flawed. For decades

the price of a barrel was enough

to sustain pursuing it relatively

inefficiently. For the oil majors

those days, the best of times, as

we know from today’s petrol

pumps, have gone; maybe not

forever, but for long enough to

create an environment where

change is not seen as a threat, but

as a necessity.

What Kjell and his team have to

search for is not technological

innovation. That may form part

of a solution, but the grail they

are seeking is a whole new way

of looking at how the industry

rewards itself. There are three

parties in the traditional set-

up. The E&P (Exploration and

Production) Company who own

the well licence, the contractors

who provide the hardware and

manpower for rigs and the service

providers.

As a contractor Maersk Drilling

is not unlike a London black taxi

owner/driver. They have invested

in the cab and The Knowledge, the

training process which takes each

cabbie on average 34 months to

pass. The cab is hired by someone,

the E&P company, and then it is

up to multiple factors as to how

much it will cost for the journey –

weather, traffic, route, diversions,

they all play parts in affecting the

end price; the slower the journey

the higher the numbers on the

taximeter.

PAYING PRICE OF EFFICIENCYWith drilling a well, different

circumstances have a similar

contributory factor, dictating

the financial result, the price on

the contractor’s clock. What this

does is to reward misfortune and

seemingly punish efficiency. In the

last eSea we talked about the 62

days the Maersk Discoverer took-

off a well plan and the subsequent

millions saved in the process. In

the short term Maersk Drilling

paid the price for the team’s

ability; in the long term they

might expect reward in terms

of their enhanced reputation

securing more contracts. The

word ‘might’ is the weakness in

this financial equation.

So what Kjell and his team seek

is to de-construct the business

model itself in order to rebuild

it afresh. ‘We are looking for

something that’s linked to value

creation, we have the inside/

out view of our industry because

everyone is typically making

money. You focus on your own

"We work in a very conservative industry"

"We are looking for something that’s linked to value creation"

13

little box, but what we need is

an outside/in view on it, what

is value for the client. Typically

all companies that do well

understand what their client

wants and they cater to that need

– but our industry is really bad at

it,’ says Kjell.

Once they have taken the

business model apart and

considered what value there is for

the client then they can formulate

a new approach to rig hire – they

have two years to do it. You can

look at another industry which

totally rebooted its financial DNA,

the airlines. The travelling public

have swallowed the bitter pill

of reduced pampering in favour

of reduced fares. What comes

out of Game Change is presently

unknown, but it is highly unlikely

that it will resemble a sort of Easy

Drill.

IN THE YEAR 2030 What Kjell does know is that

the solution won’t be for all

companies. ‘There’s a limited

amount of clients out there that

will want this, there are a limited

amount of projects that fit this.

You need a different type of client

who is willing to pursue the

dialogue, you need a client with

a project that is most likely to

remain repetitive so you can focus

on the long-term value creation,’

he says without giving too much

away.

The key word that keeps

appearing is value. Technology is

only a plus when it adds value and

is not simply there in the name of

innovation. Looking into a crystal

ball he says, ‘My hope for 2030 is

that we will have a big piece of

our fleet, a growing fleet, working

under the new set-up, we have a

proven track record and the E&P

companies really see us as the

enabler of unique value.’

Back to 1859 – it was a very

productive year. The day after

Smith struck oil, the most

powerful geomagnetic solar

storm ever witnessed lit up

the earth, day and night. They

thought it was the end of the

world. Apparently it wasn’t and

on quieter days the first paper

bags were manufactured and

digging the Suez Canal started.

In Odense a pharmacist, Theodor

Schiøtz did more than dispense

pills. He dispensed pilsner by

opening the Albani Brewery.

Danes have priorities. ●

"What we need is an outside/in view on it, what is value for the client"

"The E&P companies really see us as the enabler of unique value"

Computer programmer to pop star – Elvis Costello.Dishwasher to poet – Allen Ginsberg.Lion cage cleaner to actor/producer – Sylvester Stallone.

Careers are a journey – for

some the destination and

route are determined from day

one – for others circumstance,

fate and opportunity are sign-

posts that lead to unusual and

unpredictable experiences. Some

people freeze at the very concept

of uncertainty; others thrive on

not knowing what is round the

corner. Here we meet two people

who would never have dreamed

where they would end up, or have

they finished dreaming?

Sue Matthews for instance, today

a Business Support Admini stra-

tor, many yesterday’s ago an RAF

driver, prison warder, sail ship

watch-keeper.

And Frank Lamberg Nielsen,

who recently at 54 qualified as

a psychologist, 35 years after

thinking he’d like to be a marine

biologist. His personal career

navigation reflects considerable

change, but is he unique in today’s

world?

His story reflects today’s need for

change and adaptation. We will

have to work longer, but not, as

with our grandparents, with a

gold watch to mark the end of 40

years of dedication, loyalty and...

and maybe, monotony. Jobs are

no longer for life; careers are not

even for life.

And now for

something completely different...

Is work today more interesting or uncertain because most are not locked into a specific job?

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If you are on a course with

Maersk Training in Newcastle

there’s every chance that your

name and career background,

travel and lodging, course

material and certification will

have passed under the gaze of Sue

Matthews. Sue reflects how her

latest role as Business Support

Administrator brings together

so many of the skills acquired

in diverse three decades. What

is particularly diverse with Sue

is that each career change was

triggered by a different set of

circumstances.

‘I’m an outdoor doing things kind

of person,’ she says. Her first

ambition as a school leaver was

to join the Royal Air Force, her

father and grandfather had both

served. As the personal driver to

the commandant, rather like Sam

in the TV drama Foyle’s War, she

ferried him all around London

and southern England. At that

time the RAF didn’t have married

female personnel – so a change in

personal status meant goodbye to

the job she loved, but not farewell

to driving.

From staff car to lorry – Sue

drove a HGV truck delivering

the UK’s favourite tissues and

toilet paper. Then the next in a

number of unconnected career

jumps, ‘because I thought I should

get myself a proper job.’ Sue

became a medical underwriter

for an insurance group assessing

people’s viability for policies and

based on their health records

what their lifespan was likely to

be. She was part of the merger

team when the company joined

another major insurance group in

Sue’s Story

Sue in number one uniform the

Royal Air Force Reserve

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Hamburgefintsiv

1996, but didn’t want to relocate

from Bristol so took voluntary

redundancy.

SUE GOES TO JAILCareer change number four did

eventually mean relocation.

Joining the prison service,

initially in the control room

with the day-to-day running of

the prison and then as a fully-

fledged prison officer. ‘I loved this

job, strangely it was easier to

be in a men’s prison rather than

in a women’s,’ she recalls, ‘the

men have nothing to prove and

actually gave you some respect.’

She says this with considerable

and unfortunate personal

evidence.

One day Sue found herself isolated

and alone trying to quell a fight

and she ended up, broken boned

and bleeding. ‘It wasn’t aimed at

me but when you are in the middle

of a room with 42 female inmates

the chances are you are not going

to come off too well. I was so

badly battered and concussed I

was listed as injured on duty and

medically retired,’ she says.

What next? Sue decided she

needed to sharpen her computer

skills. So off to college – only she

ended up working there.

TALL TALESAnd now for something

completely different. A newspaper

ad hinted at adventure. Sue had

done some sailing when in the

forces so she signed on Pelican

of London, a Class A Tall Ship,

and headed to the Caribbean.

‘Perhaps due to my age, I was

made a watch-leader,’ she says.

Sue was keeping watch off the

"I was listed as injured on duty and medically retired"

And a few years on, dressed

down, but ready for climbing the

master on the tall ship Pelican

Canary Islands when she spotted

a boatload of refugees in trouble.

‘I know it is topical today, but this

was back in 2007. We were at the

centre of the rescue operation,

exciting times.’

Home to the UK and another

change; planning the logistics

for a coach company. It ceased

to trade. Then, helping out a

friend who wanted her to teach

computer skills, she somehow

ended at a party in Newcastle

where romance caused her to

stay even after the Government

sponsored courses where hit by

cutbacks.

Working as a temp at reception

with Maersk Training developed

into career number 10, Business

Support Administrator. ‘What is

great is that my new role draws

things from every chapter of my

past, nothing has been a waste of

time.’

Her journey so far through

travel and logistics, roaming the

world and keeping people in one

secure place, are all part of Sue’s

extensive learning curve and

perhaps unwittingly valuable

tools in her latest vital position. ●

Sue’s Career• RAF – driver

• HGV – driver

• Insurance Group – medical

underwriter

• Prison Officer

• IT – college

• College – IT consultant

• Tall Ship Pelican – watch-leader

• Coach Company – logistics

officer

• Maersk Training – temp in

reception

• Maersk Training – Business

Support Administrator

The career path of Frank Lam-

berg Nielsen has twisted and

turned, with most of the turns

triggered by Frank himself as

he interpreted changes in the

employment marketplace; usually

just before the circumstances

happened. In his time he has

been an unable-bodied sailor,

a navigating officer, skipper

of a Viking-style ship full of

juvenile delinquents and on

shore controlled the shipping at

Øresund as they built the bridge

between Denmark and Sweden.

Today he’s a qualified

psychologist helping and

assessing tomorrow’s officers as

they move up the career ladder.

Increasingly his past experience

is recognised as a valuable part of

his new qualification making him

a fairly unique asset to have when

crews are in crisis.

As an 18 year-old he wanted to

be a marine biologist. Following

school he travelled and then

found himself in the military as

a reserve officer for two years.

After that he failed to get on to

the course stream he wanted and

ended on a type of course that was

very loose and unstructured. It

wasn’t for him and he left after

two semesters.

‘I thought I needed to do

something with water,’ Frank

recalls and instead of looking into

the sea for a career he decided

to float on it. He went to the

seafarers’ school in Sønderborg

and then onto training ship

Danmark as a Maersk cadet and

eventually to navigation school.

OUT OF THE BLUEWhen ready to go to sea as a

navigator in a big pale blue ship,

Frank had one of his last-minute

path changes, said no to the

posting and found himself in a

ship-full of juvenile delinquents

– they sailed on a voyage of hope

Frank’s Story

"We were at the centre of the rescue operation"

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Hamburgefintsiv 18

Frank’s early life in pictures

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looking for ever-lasting change.

It was potential change that

Frank described as ‘uncertain at

best’ and back home the paying

public agreed and put an end to

the practice; but not until Frank

had been on two other boats,

one, a Viking-like craft, which he

skippered.

More small coastal ships followed

and then a stint on shore monito-

ring maritime traffic as it passed

the Øresund Bridge as it was

being built. The bridge was to play

another part in changing Frank’s

career.

He was back at sea on a ferry in

the Baltic when the opportunity

came up for a new exciting type

of Ro-Ro, so large it was like

a floating bridge. For it Frank

needed a pilot’s licence, a German

speaking post. He got a tutor

in Sweden, learnt little and to

this day does not know how he

passed the test. This is where the

bridge comes back into Frank’s

career path, the CEO of the ferry

company jumped from it and the

giant Ro-Ro was cancelled.

WRONG PROMOTIONSA keen observer of people Frank

noticed how many people

felt uncomfortable with his

company’s policy on promotion.

‘What it did was to take people

who liked doing one job, say a

chief mate, and putting them in

a role which they didn’t want or

enjoy,’ says Frank. ‘There was a

career structure up through the

ranks and I didn’t think it was

very good – if you feel comfortable

as a mate why should you be

pressurised into promotion to

do paperwork. It also meant

that those who wanted career

advancement were frustrated

because the post they wanted

was filled by someone purely on

seniority.’

By now in his forties, Frank

was facing the most trying

time of his professional life. The

financial downturn of 2007-2008

had led to cutbacks. He feared

his new role as an instructor

would be threatened by reduced

investment in training so he went

back to sea on supply vessels.

However technically much had

changed so he needed to step

down several levels ‘I just couldn’t

do it, I wasn’t the Frank of old.

On an anchor handling vessel in

the North Sea we had so much

downtime I thought I could use it.’

He decided to study philosophy

whilst working offshore and with

a library of books and podcasts it

was possible, turning up when on

home leave for lectures. However,

as Frank pointed out, ‘not many

companies need a philosopher.’

He opted for psychology. ‘I was

the only person in the class about

to celebrate a 50th – I could have

been a father to most of them. It

was strange to sit in group work,

you could feel the enormous gap

in experience.’

Today Frank is back at Maersk

Training in Svendborg, as part of

the People Skills department he

takes courses and uses his new

qualifications on occasions to

assess the career development

and hopes of others. ●

Frank’s Career• Military – 1st Lieutenant

• Seafarer cadet

• Government Programme

– Crew and skipper on boats for

juvenile delinquents

• Knud I. Larsen shipping

– 1st Mate and Chief Officer

• Vessel Traffic Service, Dragør

– operations

• Ro-Ro ferries Baltic – Chief Mate

• Maersk Training

– maritime instructor

• Maersk Supply Service

– 1st Mate

• University of Southern

Denmark – Master in Science of

Psychology

• Maersk Training

– People Skills, Safety, Security

Instructor – Psychologist

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Hamburgefintsiv 20

Hamburgefintsiv 21

AQUA PLANESThe runways at the international

airport were 1,250mm under

water; roads were canals and

rivers, lakes. The participants’

hotels were running low on food

and had rationed guests to one

meal a day, rice or lentils.

‘Sometimes the networks would

work and we could sneak in an

occasional call reminding the

course participants not to move

out of their hotel location,’ says

Satya.

‘On the second day, in the

afternoon the water stopped

rising, we moved out and we took

a high SUV – sports utility vehicle

– our business development

manager has a very high SUV and

went to see the participants and

told them we’d run the course

from the next day.’ This they did

in the hotels and then ferrying the

participants to the training centre

for simulator sessions.

PROUD TO BE INDIANIndia from a Governmental

administrative point of view can

sometimes be accused of failing

to respond to the challenges

of nature, but Satya was full of

praise and admiration for his

fellow Indians, ‘I have never seen

anything like this weather before,

never seen so much destruction,

but at the same time I haven’t

witnessed so much physical

work, compassion, social work,

volunteering in my life. There

were people there cooking

for others, going door-to-door

collecting clothes, delivering

clothes and helping in rescuing

people. I was very happy that a

whole community could look after

themselves.’

And his team looked after the

participants on the Well Control

and Danish Maritime Law/§16

courses. On completion they got

them home via a 350km journey

to Bangalore from where they

could catch a plane to Bangkok

and other parts of India. ●

21

It is probably the most sophisticated simulator on the planet, yet its whole role is to give you an out-of-this-world experience. It prepares a select group of people to live up in the sky for prolonged periods, zooming round the earth at 27,600 kph – that’s Copenhagen to New York in thirteen and a half minutes.

The International Space

Station – ISS – isn’t built for

speed, it is built for study. Those

on board are part of programmes

aimed at better understanding

the earth below, the sky beyond

and how best to get there and

back.

The normal crew of six are an

ever-changing international

blend of scientists, technicians

and within minutes of blast off,

astronauts. Back on mother

earth they leave thousands of

support staff behind that until

last November included Evelyn

Baldwin and Michele Marie

Blanton.

Their role took them into

that very special simulator

at Johnson Space Center in

Houston where, surrounded by

space age technology in a mock-

up of the ISS, they got to the

hub of all effective teamwork,

good communication. The size

of ISS is considerable, up there,

passing over us fifteen times a

day, is something like twelve 40’

containers.

TREADING SOFTLY SOFTLYIt’s a very different world to life

on a drillship or rig, or is it? A

common bond in technology,

isolation and metal in an

environment that is alien. Evelyn

and Michele see many similarities

and many similar challenges. Soft

skills are an easy target for people

who either don’t understand or

value them; Evelyn and Michele’s

task is to create a respect so that

a hard-nosed driller or astronaut,

and their teams, can benefit from

20/20 communication.

Looking at her new role, Evelyn

says, ‘These people are highly

experienced, they’ve been

Down to Earth LadiesEvelyn and Michele find common ground in training drill crews and astronauts

22

Hamburgefintsiv 23

Down to Earth Ladies

Michele and Evelyn, together on

planet human skills

23

Hamburgefintsiv 24

"When dealing with international crews it is important to learn the differences between cultures and realize one way isn’t necessarily

better than another"

24

out drilling for 15, 30 years

sometimes, so who am I to come

in and tell them communication

is important, people already

seem to listen to them, so those

same struggles exist. But it’s the

same as NASA, the more you

can get them into the simulator

with smartly scripted cases

and scenarios, showing them

that the communications and

the teamwork and situation

awareness are important, the

more they start to get the buy

in, start to listen on how to be

stronger on those skills.’

‘When dealing with international

crews it is important to learn

the differences between cultures

and realize one way isn’t

necessarily better than another,’

says Michele. ‘If a person learns

what the characteristics of a

culture are it will help them to

better manage communication,

teamwork and lead their people.

For example, if a society is used

to being told or ordered what

to do and not to disagree, those

people in the workforce will just

follow direction whether they

agree or not. They may or may not

know how to perform the task

they were told to do, but they will

either try or pretend to do it.’

DREAM TICKETThe ISS crew of six is

international; Americans

and Russians are usually

accompanied by some Europeans,

so soft skills need to include

different cultures and how

they respond to instruction

and communication. Michele

in her first few months has

noted a difference,’ It’s kinda

difficult coming to the oil and gas

industry, they don’t use the same

terminology or the protocol’s,

it’s been a culture shock. The

maritime industry uses a lot more

because they have adopted the

military protocols, largely from

the navy.

It’ll be a slow process to improve

upon, especially with the

different nationalities, different

vocabulary, accents and stuff that

people have.’

She sees coming up with

a universal oil and gas

communications protocol as

the right direction to go in the

drive to cut down on errors

and misunderstandings – but

she doesn’t see it happening

overnight, ’there’s a long way to

go.’

Working in NASA may seem

like the dream ticket, even if

you don’t get to fly, but Michele

explained she was looking for

something new to do and thought

the opportunities in oil and gas

for human skills had potential.

However she soon found out that

few outside of Maersk Training

recognised this. Her last job at

NASA was on the Orion project,

the bid to get man further into

space than ever before. Exciting,

but the project was still in the

build phase with consequently a

reduced demand for training.

When they said they didn’t get to

fly, they did the next best thing.

Evelyn explained, ‘I got to fly it

several times, if you are good at

video games you can probably fly

the Space Shuttle, but I’m no good

at games and I actually got to land

it upside down and then you hear

the ambulance alarms going off . . ‘

PROFILEEvelyn and Michele were

Communication and Tracking

Instructors, teaching technical

communication equipment

and Space Flight Resource

Management, the human factors

items – taught lessons, evaluated

flight controllers, astronauts on

human factors skills. Processes

and skills they are today

transferring to the oil and gas

industry.

SPOT THE ISSIf the sky’s clear you can log on

and look up.

http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/ ●

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Hamburgefintsiv 26

The role of women in the

Middle East is an emerging

and changing one. When put

in an oil industry setting it is a

particularly challenging one.

Neela Pratap from ENSCO Dubai

recognised that and looked

around her at a growing number

of female colleagues. A chat with

Robert Thomas, Sales Manager

at Maersk Training in Dubai

opened a door and Neela and nine

colleagues walked through it.

Maersk Training has long held

Introduction To Drilling courses,

where people whose only contact

with the oil industry had been

Under the Earth LadiesDubai women opening the door to a whole new world

There are an awful lot of people who don’t really understand what the company they are working for is aiming to achieve or what the industry the company is in, is about. Understanding the playing surface is a major part in fitting in and contributing to the full, but it is a knowledge level that in certain parts of the world is aggravated by culture.

26

Hamburgefintsiv 27

at the petrol pump, learnt the

various and complex roles of

those on rigs and platforms and

were shown the types of difficulty

they had to overcome. It’s a short

sharp lesson, but one which helps

tremendously in building up a

respect between off and on shore.

It is a respect that globally

is hampered by traditional

viewpoints with regard to gender.

Pretty well everywhere, oil is

a man’s game, in the Middle

Eastern business, oil is men’s

work. Recognizing this, Neela,

as a Middle East Representative

for Enspire, Ensco’s Women’s

Network, had an initiative to get

female staff more involved in the

industry.

Maersk Training ran an

introductory course, but Robert

sees it as a key course, one that

opens minds and doors. ‘We’d

like other companies to pick

up on ENSCO’s initiative, but in

truth regardless of gender or

cultural background, knowledge

of the industry you are in is vital

to enhance performance,’ he

commented. ●

Under the Earth Ladies

27

It’s something the offshore technicians are expected to take with them into the turbines, but something they hope they will never need.

It weighs about 15 kgs and

looks like a squared-up hiking

backpack, but for someone

working in the remoteness of an

offshore wind turbine, it could

mean the difference between life

and death – but only if your work

buddy knows what is inside and

how to use it.

The packs are the idea of Maersk

Training in Newcastle and in the

bespoke bags technicians will

find an advanced First Aid kit

which includes an AED heart-

starter, splints, collar supports

and gases like oxygen and nitrous

oxide, most commonly known as

‘laughing gas.’

Maersk Training’s Sales Manager

in Newcastle, Paul Parry

explained that the nitrous oxide

was a major difference between

the pack they had created than

the few already on the market.

The inclusion of something to take

the pain away is not universal,

largely because of fears of

something like morphine being

open to mis-use.

‘I hope they are never used’

The packs were designed

exclusively for MHI Vestas and

in January instructors began

conducting three-day courses

in Belgium, Holland and the UK,

introducing technicians to what’s

in the bag and how to use them.

The instruction is carried out at

onshore locations close to the

wind farms and will continue

until all technicians know how to

use what is inside.

‘It's funny to say this but I hope

these packs are never used, but

if they are and they save even

one life then it has been

worthwhile and we will have

made a significant contribution

to our industry,’ says Paul.

The inspiration for the bags came

from those used in soccer games

where the trainer rushes on with

everything needed for immediate

First Aid. ‘We noticed that they

were red and blue and for the sake

of uniformity we kept ours the

same,’ said Paul.

Colour was an easy decision, but

the bags took a while to design,

with weight, size and carrying

power being factors which had

to compete against each other. In

the end the bag was tested by two

technicians, one much bigger than

the other.

The bags are now part of the

essential kit the teams carry on

each job, winching them up and

down to their workplace. ●

It’s All In The BagWhat happens if you are 60 metres up in an isolated offshore wind turbine and you have an accident or take ill?

28

Hamburgefintsiv 29

It could mean the difference between life and death

As the first responder, how do

you think you’d cope with a

situation like this?

29

Hamburgefintsiv 30

What do you think is

the most solitary of

positions on board a passenger

ship – the person with the most

responsibility resting just on

their shoulders? I know because

I stumbled across him the other

day when visiting a vessel and

it wasn’t the purser, the chief

engineer or even the captain; he

was a guy who works alone deep

in the bowels of the ship and upon

whom just about everyone on

board unthinkingly relies every

day. He was the ship’s baker.

Somewhere on Deck 3 in an area

no larger than an average house’s

dining room, he pours kilo upon

kilo of flour into something the

size of a cement mixer, presses

the on and then off button and

then lifts it out by hand, to form

into rolls, sticks, loaves and

pastries. Each day starts the

same, whilst 95% of those on

board are in mid-sleep, he goes

through a routine that gives them

their daily bread, ending with his

most tiresome task, 1,000 Danish

pastries.

He is just about the only person on

board who can’t delegate down,

or refer up – if he gets it wrong, it

stays wrong. He is also the only

person on board who dictates

the end of his working

day – once baked,

its back to bed.

Well there’s not

much more you

can do on the

Copenhagen to

Oslo run.

Full of

admiration, I was

thinking about this

when this huge bird

landed in the orchard outside

my office window. I picked up my

camera, put a long lens on and

focused, on nothing. The bird had

flown.

BYE BYE BIG BIRDBy way of compensation for

taking the camera out, I did get

a blackbird. Somehow I don’t

think the BBC’s fabulous wildlife

department will come knocking

at my door. But it was those guys I

was thinking about; the men who

spend huge chunks of their lives

in thermal underwear,

left hand on the

tripod, right hand

on the camera

release button.

The opposite

end to the

baker’s work

schedule and

expectations,

they too hold sole

responsibility, but

unlike the baker they

have an easy get out. Since nature

doesn’t perform to a script they

can go back to the office after six

months in a hide, with a longer

beard and fatter bank balance and

simply say, ‘sorry guv, Mrs. Panda

had another headache. We’ll try

again next year.’

I remain however full of

admiration for the remarkable

shots they capture and how they

develop them into a story. There is

no other aspect of the media that

makes so much out of so little, so

beautifully. Like the baker they

are master craftsmen.

When you come to think about it

there is a huge spectrum in jobs

and subsequent responsibility.

There’s also an equally huge

spectrum of satisfaction and a

third spectrum of permanence.

If you form them into a triangle

and put a point along a line

depending on how close or far

you are from each of the corners

of personal responsibility,

personal satisfaction and project

permanence, you end up with a

second triangle which is your job

profile. Try it.

The baker, the blackbird and the buzzard30

31

WHAT IS YOUR PROFILE?An architect for instance,

becau se he usually goes through

com mit tees, would be high to

mode rate on sole responsibility,

high on job satisfaction and, one

would hope, high on permanen ce.

A drill er would be high on respon-

sibility, variable on satisfaction

and low on permanence. A teacher

looks back of decades of nurturing

with pride, whilst a clergyman,

if he believes what he preaches,

would be low on responsibility,

satisfaction would depend on his

congregation and with regard to

permanence, well he’s the only one

who gets to meet the boss for an

appraisal after he finally signs off.

Back in the orchard was the bird

of prey. He’s a bit like the baker,

each day starting afresh; in his

case, stomach, not oven, empty.

This time I managed to get a shot

of him, beak to camera, looking

at me. He then flew off leaving

me with some blurred images of

wing tips and feathers. However

the first image was enough to

establish him as a member of

the Accipitridae family, which is

not a widespread name around

Svendborg. Hawks and eagles are

Accipitridaen and this boy turned

out to be a Common Buzzard.

It’s funny how the naming of

something colours it forever.

There’s something majestic about

the golden eagle, but his cousin

the common buzzard, who looks

as different to me as a Toyota

to a Nissan, seems somewhat

downmarket. I suspect I ruffled a

few feathers by suggesting that

the baker is the most singularly

responsible person on board a

cruise ferry, the person you would

most want to have in your lifeboat.

It’s an observation supported by

history; when the Titanic went

down, so too did the captain – the

baker survived, but then he had

been at the cooking brandy. ●

The baker, the blackbird and the buzzard31

Hamburgefintsiv 32

ContactEditorial issues and suggestions:Richard Lightbody - esea@maersktraining.com

Names and emails of those able and eager to help with specific enquiries arising out of this issue

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