News Story

Working Group Updates

MarCom Working Group 49 Update

The MarCom Working Group 49, "Horizontal and Vertical Dimensions of Fairways," purpose is to update the PIANC WG30 1997 report on Approach Channels that includes discussions on vertical and horizontal channel design and general aspects of fairway design such as aids to navigation, operational procedures, tug assistance, etc. The WG49 is planning publication of their report in 2011. They held two meetings during 2010 with a third meeting scheduled for 4-5 November in Brussels, Belgium. The WG49 consists of 18 members from 12 countries including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom, and the United States. Dr. Briggs is the U.S. Principal representative and leads the eight-member vertical dimensions subgroup that is responsible for sections of the report dealing with water levels and tide predictions, underkeel clearance, vessel squat, wind- and wave-induced motions, navigable depth and muddy bottoms, air draft clearance, and probabilistic design. POC: Dr. Michael Briggs, 601-634-2005, Michael.J.Briggs@usace.army.mil).

MarCom Working Group 54 Update

PIANC Working Group (WG) 54, "Use of Hydro/Meteo Information for Port Access and Operations", will be holding its eight meeting from the 8th through 10th of November 2010 at Flanders Hydraulics Research Institute in Antwerp, Belgium. US representative Majid Yavary will be attending. Members from Germany, Spain, England, Australia, Holland, Belgium, Japan, South Africa, and the US participate in this WG. The development of the report, which consists of seven chapters, is ongoing. The report will address measurement, prediction, and application of the hydrodynamic and metrological data in the design and operation of port facilities, with special emphasis on access channels, and will complement the work being carried out by WG 52 (Criteria for the (un)loading of containerships) and WG 49 (Horizontal and Vertical Dimensions of Fairways). The US representative is the lead author of the now completed chapter on Measurement of Hydro/Meteo parameters, with contributions from representatives from Japan and Holland. It is expected that a draft copy of this report will be presented to the MarCom for comments in mid-2011. POC: Majid Yavary, ph. +1.212.465.5448, yavary@casg.co or yavary@pbworld.com.

MarCom Working Group 55 Update

MarCom Working Group 55, "The Safety Aspects Affecting the Berthing Operations of Tankers to Oil and Gas Terminals", held its 10th meeting September 28-29, 2010, in Hamburg, Germany.  The group consists of members representing Norway, Germany, UK, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, and the US.  Report compilation nears completion and covers Safety Management & Risk Assessment, Environmental Conditions, Approach from the Open Sea, Mooring & Monitoring Systems, Spacing for Safe Berthing, Calculation of Current, Wind, and Wave Forces, Acceptable MetOcean Conditions for Berthing, Operational Safety, etc. The report covers both tankers and gas carriers including transiting in port from the sea buoy to terminals, maneuvering, berthing and mooring guidelines. The report is scheduled for completion in 2011.  US Rep: Larry Cunningham, 212-608-3990, cunninghamlk@halcrow.com.

MarCom Working Group 56 Update

MarCom Working Group 56, " Application of Geotextiles in Waterfront Protection", completed final edits to the draft report this summer. The group consists of members representing Germany, UK, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, France, and the US. Presentations on the forthcoming report were made this year by Mr. Heibaum (Germany) at the 9th International Geosynthetics Conference in Brazil, and by Mr. Gaffney (US) at Ports 2010 in Jacksonville, FL. The report should be available later this year. POC: Doug Gaffney, 856-248-1200, doga@cowi.com.

InCom Working Group 125 Update

InCom Working Group 125 River Information Services is dedicated to enabling safe and smooth navigation on the inland waterways through the introduction and advancement of information sharing enabling better, more informed decisions faster.

WG125 River Information Services has participating members from Austria, Belgium, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Russian Federation and the US.

Previous meeting was held 25 - 27 May in Gent, Belgium. At that meeting each member reported the status of RIS implementation in their country and the group reviewed the following documents:

• Minutes of Meeting #2 in Pittsburgh, PA USA
• Draft Definitions Related to RIS
• Guidelines and Recommendations for River Information Services (Revision 3)
• Technical Report on the Implementation Status of RIS (version 1)

The group also attended the opening of the newest RIS Center and Lock facility in Flanders and the RIS Center in Netherland.

Next meeting is 19 - 21 October in Prague, Czech Republic. Agenda items include review of the latest revision of the following documents:

• Technical Report on the Implementation Status of RIS
• Guidelines and Recommendations for River Information Services
• Terms and Definitions Related to RIS
• Proposal for an e-Navigation Task Force/Working Group

The group will also attend working meetings on the waterways of the Czech Republic and implementation of River information Services.

USA IMPLEMENTATION REPORT
Since the last meeting USACE and USCG have made strides in implementing RIS. A meeting was held by the national Commanders of both organizations and an agreement to move forward with RIS was achieved.

USACE is moving forward with a public/private partnership that will establish a Joint RIS Operations Center in Pittsburgh, PA. The Center will feature navigation safety and operational information available to all users of the system.

Concurrently the USACE IMTS (Inland Marine Transportation System) Board of Directors has established an e-Navigation initiative that will be the umbrella organization for PIANC WG 125, RIS, Loma, FILS and FINDE activities.

USA POC: Richard C. Lockwood, Chief Operations Division Pittsburgh District, 412-395-7140, RICHARD.C.LOCKWOOD@USACE.ARMY.MIL

MarCom Working Group 135 Update

MarCom Working Group 135, "Design principles for small and medium sized marine container terminals", held its 4th meeting in Oslo, Norway on 6-7 September. Group members coming from 7 countries including the UK, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Iceland and the US convened in the Oslo Port Authority offices to review the first draft report that was compiled. We went through the report chapter by chapter and discussed and re-arranged the contents and sections. The new structure will be included in a new draft that will be distributed amongst the active workgroup members. At the same time the workgroup members enjoyed a guided visit to the container terminals of the Port of Oslo. The next meeting is tentatively to be held in Paris/ Le Havre, France, on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th of May 2011. POC: George Steele (chairman), george-steele@scottwilson.com; Dimitris Pachakis (US representative), dpachakis@moffattnichol.com

InCom Working Group 138 Update

InCom Working Group 138, "Mechanical and Electrical Lessons Learned from Navigation Structures", held its 3rd meeting October 6-8, 2010, in Dublin, Ireland. The group consists of members representing Germany, the UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, and the US. Areas of investigation include hydraulically operated machinery, electro mechanical operating machinery, and maintenance and general issues. The meeting concentrated on maintenance issues as well as an update on the hydraulically operated machinery section. The group also visited Spencer Lock and Buckingham Lock as well as the Samuel Beckett Swing Bridge and the East Link Bascule Lift Bridge. The group has divided responsibilities for the development of various sections among working group members. The US representative has responsibility for compiling the section covering electro mechanical operating machinery. The report is scheduled for completion in 2012. POC: Brenden McKinley, 304-399-5593, brenden.f.mckinley@usace.army.mil.

MarCom Working Group 139 Update

MarCom Working Group 139, "Values of Inland Waterways", held its 3rd meeting 23-24 September in Maastricht, Netherlands. The group consists of members representing Germany, UK, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Argentina, Egypt and the US. Report compilation continues with components addressing not only commercial cargo use of inland waterways but also restoration of canals, environmental benefits, landside redevelopment, tourism, cultural and historic components, and other elements adding to the economic and social values of waterways that are not often quantified or even recognized. Presentations included the restoration of the Gota Canal in Sweden and Rideau Canal in Canada. Chapters will be broken out by various topical areas with the US team member responsible for coordination of materials and text on commercial freight use. The report is scheduled for completion in 2011. POC: David Grier, 703-428-6438, david.v.grier@usace.army.mil.

MarCom Working Group 144 Update

MarCom Working Group 144, "Classification of Soils and Rocks for the Maritime Dredging Process", held its second meeting 21-22 September 2010 at the offices of VNF in Paris, France. The meeting was attended by the US co-representative, Mr. Gregory Sraders. Members from Belgium, Norway, Holland, France, Germany, Spain and the US participate in this WG. The development of the report, which consists of ten chapters, is ongoing. The main objectives of this WG are two folds, namely: to analyze the existing PIANC soil and rock classifications and to develop guidelines on physical, chemical, and mechanical properties of dredged materials with respect to excavation, transport, reclamation, and disposal processes. The work of this WG is expected to culminate in the preparation of a revised and updated version of existing PIANC publication titled "Classification of Soils and Rocks to be Dredged", which was published in 1984. US representatives are the lead authors of chapters 2 and 5. It is expected that the draft copy of the report will be presented to MarCom for comments in 2011. POC: Majid Yavary, Ph. +1.212.465.5448, yavary@casg.co or yavary@pbworld.com or Gregory Sraders, ph. +1.630.574.2969, GASraders@gldd.com.

MarCom Working Group 52 Update

MarCom Working Group 52, "Criteria for the (Un-)Loading of Container Ships ," held its last meeting in Delft, The Netherlands on June 23 and 24 to finalize the remaining chapters and reach consensus on the report conclusions. Final chapter drafts were submitted and the draft report was presented by the Chairman, Mr. Harry Mohns of Germany to the Maritime Commission at its meeting on September 23rd in Oostende, Belgium. MarCom accepted the results and the final document is to be submitted for publication by the end of December, 2010.

revised 1 November 2010