Definition:

The word boatage describes the opérations of mooring or of leaving the perch of ships as soon as they arrive, leave or manoeuvre inside the port. The boatsman is the specialized seaman who operate these tasks.

A short history:

As soon as ships have become quite large, specialised hands have been required to operate operations. In Genoa, Italy a corporation of seamen set in 1340 has been found whose activity was mooring and helping ship within its port. This information allows us to state that this job is one of the oldest.

Today:

On top of the mooring operations themselves on all kind of ships, the specialsed boating services participate in the port security (ships and installation), in the fight against water pollution, and offer such services to ships as providing material, an extra crew or a chief-manoeuvre, connecting tank-ship for loading or unloading, carrying material staff on boat ship in the Harbour, putting their water equipement at ship's disposal for expertise, underwater work.

Equipment used:

Mainly water equipment launches, boat, pontoons, cranes, barges, line-heaving lorries, light vehicules, radio and compucteur port information.

Working of the services:

The boatage services are working on a 24-hour schedule, all year long. The other services equally.

Publics service mission:

Although boatage services are not public service, boatage services must put their means- men or equipment- at the disposal of the port authorities in charges, in case of a accident, fire, collision, wreck, pollution,... and doing so they carry out of public service mission.

 Boatage Professional Association of French Ports

 
 

An order of the local authorities describe for each port the conditions of working of boatage and subsidary opérations.

An agreement is delived by the port authorities to boatage services.It sets up notably the total number of boatmen, the conditions of working os the service, the equipment required to cover the needes of the port.

Status of a boatsmen:

Boatsmen are specialised seamen of the Merchant Navy and have the required diplomas to work on boat water equiment or on a deck. Newly employed seamen must follow a time of work experience inside the service before applying for being a boatsman.

Conditions of work of Boatage services:

Boatage services are done according to the following conditions:

The boatage compagny only provides the material needed for the boating opérations. Boatsmen are put at the disposal of the captain of the ship involved and are his only representative during boatage operations. The captain must direct and control all operations, the boatsmen are considered as being under his supervision.

General conditions of work of boatage:

Employing boatage services is not compulsory. Nevertheless the port authorities can require the use of the boatage services bu the ship if they think the scew is not able to operate mooring in a satisfaction and safe both for the ship and the port installations.

Following the terms of the agreement, the crew of the ship must be numerous enough to provides simulaneously enough staff on board and on land so as to operate safely both for the ship and the port installations. Behind the cew, only boatsmen belonging to a service agreed by the port authorities can participate in the boatage operations of ship inside the port.

Charges of boatage operations

Although prices are not fixed, boatage services have asked a board gathering ship-owner, port authorities and reprensatives of boatage societies or their agent to discuss prices every year.
Boating charges are mostly fixed according to the size of the ship.
Boating charges cover up the working expenses of the operation, the public services mission linked notably with the fight against pollution and naval security which is not state-subsidized.

APLPF
This "lois de 1901" assocation was sert in Paris in november 1965. Its role is to defend the interest of the job and it gathers all French boating services.

EBA
This association was set in Paris in april 1977.
Its role is to defend interest of the job Europe-wide. It gathers all national boating associations of the European Community member states.

Subsidiary association of French boatage compagnies:
Member of CCAF
Member of UMPL
Member of local water and technical commissions.

Developpement of activities
Trainning of specialist to fight water pollution and tuition of trainers in that field.
Participation in gathering and stocking the waste of ship or waste produced by naval activities uper the European policy for the protection of sea environnement (The ECOPORT project).

 Boatage Professional Association of French Ports

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