Development of a Safety Management Assessment System for the International Safety Management Code

Numerous studies have identified that the vast majority of high-consequence maritime accidents are largely attributable to human and organizational factors. Some would argue that human and organizational factors play a significant role in all maritime accidents. In an industry where technological equipment and hardware solutions have typically been applied to improve and promote shipboard safety, it has become increasingly important to examine and exploit human and organizational factors as an area fruitful for overall safety improvement. This paper summarizes the development and application of an International Safety Management Code based Safety Management Assessment System (ISM-SMAS) for shipboard systems. The ISM-SMAS provides a framework and the opportunity to focus on the human and organizational factors that have a major influence on the safety of marine operations.