Abbreviation | MNTB |
---|---|
Founded at | United Kingdom |
Type | United Kingdom non-profit organization |
Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
Area served | United Kingdom |
Field | Merchant Navy Training Standards |
Website | https://mntb.org.uk/ |
The Merchant Navy Training Board (abbreviated to MNTB) is a voluntary body responsible for maritime training in the United Kingdom and for the training of the British Merchant Navy. [1] The MNTB are based at the UK Chamber of Shipping office in London and publications are provided by the Witherby Publishing Group. [2] [3]
The Head of the MNTB is Secretary Kathryn Neilson who leads the MNTB board responsible for setting the policies and standards of the organisation. [4]
The MNTB promote seafarer training in the UK and are responsible for the official UK government training syllabuses for Merchant Navy Officers. [5] Officers are issued with an MNTB training portfolio which must be completed. [5]
Together with OPITO (the international skills organisation for the energy industry), the MNTB provide a training programme for transitioning between the oil and gas industry into shipping. [6] [7] [8]
In 2020, the MNTB launched a Careers at Sea initiative to highlight maritime careers. [9] Additionally, in 2020, in partnership with the Merchant Navy Welfare Board and several maritime charities, the MNTB launched a Mental Health Awareness and Wellbeing Training Standard. [10]
Maritime transport or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used throughout recorded history. The advent of aviation has diminished the importance of sea travel for passengers, though it is still popular for short trips and pleasure cruises. Transport by water is cheaper than transport by air or ground, but significantly slower for longer distances. Maritime transport accounts for roughly 80% of international trade, according to UNCTAD in 2020.
The United States Merchant Marine is an organization composed of United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, and engage in commerce or transportation of goods and services in and out of the navigable waters of the United States. The Merchant Marine primarily transports domestic and international cargo and passengers during peacetime, and operate and maintain deep-sea merchant ships, tugboats, towboats, ferries, dredges, excursion vessels, charter boats and other waterborne craft on the oceans, the Great Lakes, rivers, canals, harbors, and other waterways. In times of war, the Merchant Marine can be an auxiliary to the United States Navy, and can be called upon to deliver military personnel and materiel for the military.
The British Merchant Navy is the collective name given to British civilian ships and their associated crews, including officers and ratings. In the UK, it is simply referred to as the Merchant Navy or MN. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and the ships and crew are regulated by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), a specialist agency of the UK Department of Transport. British merchant ships are registered under the UK or Red Ensign group ship registries. British Merchant Navy deck officers and ratings are certificated and trained according to STCW Convention and the syllabus of the Merchant Navy Training Board in maritime colleges and other training institutes around the UK.
The Mission to Seafarers is a Christian welfare charity serving merchant crews around the world. It operates through a global Mission 'family' network of chaplains, staff and volunteers and provides practical, emotional and spiritual support through ship visits, drop-in seafarers centres and a range of welfare and emergency support services.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that is responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent marine pollution. It is a subsidiary executive agency of the UK Department for Transport and responsible through the Secretary of State for Transport to Parliament. It is also responsible for land based search and rescue helicopter operations since 2015. Its motto is "Safer Lives, Safer Ships, Cleaner Seas". The organisation is currently led by Virginia McVea.
Seafaring is a tradition that encompasses a variety of professions and ranks. Each of these roles carries unique responsibilities that are integral to the successful operation of a seafaring vessel. A ship's crew can generally be divided into four main categories: the deck department, the engineering department, the steward's department, and other. The reasoning behind this is that a ship's bridge, filled with sophisticated navigational equipment, requires skills differing from those used on deck operations – such as berthing, cargo and/or military devices – which in turn requires skills different from those used in a ship's engine room and propulsion, and so on.
The National Maritime College of Ireland is a public maritime college located in Ringaskiddy, County Cork, Ireland. It is a constituent college of the Munster Technological University. Founded in 2004, it is situated on former Department of Defence land aside the Haulbowline naval base, the headquarters of the Irish Naval Service. It is the first dedicated maritime college of its kind in the State, and was built under the Irish Government's Public-Private Partnership scheme, involving the Munster Technological University, the Naval Service and a number of other partners.
A merchant navy or merchant marine is the fleet of merchant vessels that are registered in a specific country. On merchant vessels, seafarers of various ranks and sometimes members of maritime trade unions are required by the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) to carry Merchant Mariner's Documents.
The Seafarers' Charity is the leading grant-making charity that has been helping people in the maritime community for over 105 years, by providing vital funding to support seafarers in need and their families. The charity supports organisations and projects that make a real difference to people's lives across the Merchant Navy, Fishing Fleets, Royal Navy and Royal Marines.
Witherby Publishing Group, formerly known as Witherby Seamanship, is a technical publisher of maritime, nautical and navigation training, reference and regulatory materials. The company is the resulting merger of Witherby Books and Seamanship International in January 2008. Beginning with its origins in 1740 it lays claim to being the oldest independent publisher in the English-speaking world.
The International Chamber of Shipping is one of the world's principal shipping organisations, representing around 80% of the world's merchant tonnage through membership by national shipowners' associations. It is concerned with maritime regulatory, operational and legal issues. Its membership includes over 40 national shipowner organisations.
A master mariner is a licensed mariner who holds the highest grade of seafarer qualification; namely, an unlimited master's license. Such a license is labelled unlimited because it has no limits on the tonnage, power, or geographic location of the vessel that the holder of the license is allowed to serve upon. A master mariner would therefore be allowed to serve as the master of a merchant ship of any size, of any type, operating anywhere in the world, and it reflects the highest level of professional qualification amongst mariners and deck officers.
The Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) is an International Labour Organization (ILO) convention, number 186, established in 2006 as the fourth pillar of international maritime law and embodies "all up-to-date standards of existing international maritime labour Conventions and Recommendations, as well as the fundamental principles to be found in other international labour Conventions". The other pillars are the SOLAS, STCW and MARPOL. The treaties applies to all ships entering the harbours of parties to the treaty (port states), as well as to all ships flying the flag of state party (flag states, as of 2021: over 91 per cent).
The Tuvalu Maritime Training Institute (TMTI) is on Amatuku motu, on Funafuti atoll in Tuvalu. TMTI provides training to approximately 120 marine cadets each year, to provide them with the basic skills necessary for employment as seafarers on merchant shipping. TMTI operates under the Tuvalu Maritime Training Institute Act 2000.
The Merchant Navy Welfare Board is a registered charity located in Southampton, England, that acts as the welfare umbrella for the United Kingdom Merchant Navy and fishing fleet charity sector. Its mission statement is "Supporting the provision of quality welfare services for seafarers and their dependants."
The International Seafarers' Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) is an international NGO and UK registered charity that aims to assist seafarers and their families. ISWAN is the result of a merger between two organisations: the International Committee on Seafarers' Welfare (ICSW) and the International Seafarers' Assistance Network (ISAN). ICSW was formed in 1973 and ISAN was established in the late 1990s. The two welfare bodies merged in April 2013 to form ISWAN. ISWAN's headquarters are in Croydon, Greater London.
The UK Chamber of Shipping is the trade association and voice of the UK shipping industry, representing around 200 member companies. They work with Government, parliament, international organisations and others to champion and protect the industry on behalf of their members.
Crew management for ships, otherwise known as crewing, are the services rendered by specialised shipping companies. Crew management services are an essential part of maritime and ship management that includes the management of all the various activities handled by crew on-board vessels, as well as related shore-based administration. Major locations where crew management activities are carried out from include Limassol (Cyprus), Singapore, Hong Kong and Malta.
Radhika Menon is an Indian female Merchant Navy officer currently serving as the captain of the Indian Merchant Navy. She is also the first female captain of the Indian Merchant Navy who also led the oil products tanker Suvarna Swarajya. In 2016, Radhika also became the first woman to receive the IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea. She is well known for her rescue operation which she conducted successfully in June 2015 saving seven fishermen who were trapped for a week in a boat.
The North American Maritime Ministry Association (NAMMA) is an ecumenical Christian seafarers’ welfare organization and professional association for seafarers’ welfare workers.