Two weeks ago it was HGIM, now it is HOS's turn to announce big IMR newbuilds

[QUOTE=“Flyer69;112465”]

Could you please cite a source? Interested to know because I took DP Induction in December 2010, and have just gained employment aboard a vessel that will let me start logging days.[/QUOTE]

You have to count actual days on DP (being on DP for at least an hour that day). Before 2012 a 28 day hitch was 28 DP days. If your boat gets 2 DP days per week it will take some time to acquire 210 days.

I’ve never worked on an OSV but I would just think you could get more than 2 days in a hitch on avg. Oh well

I have been poring over this and don’t see why it would take years to get an unlimited DPO certificate?

  1. Induction Course
  2. 30 days familiarization
  3. Simulator Course
  4. 180 days DP sea time

Depends on the op tempo of your vessel. If you are on a drillship they are pretty much on DP every day. On OSVs I have gone a 28 day hitch with 23 days on DP and a 28 day hitch with 0 days on DP. I have been averaging 1/2 the hitch on DP. So with a even time schedule that it will take me over two years to get the time for the NI cert including familiarization time.

Dang.
I guess I have til December 2015 to get this done…

[QUOTE=“kfj;112472”]I’ve never worked on an OSV but I would just think you could get more than 2 days in a hitch on avg. Oh well[/QUOTE]

“Could”, yes. You could get 28/28 days per hitch on DP. But you likely won’t because most boats don’t DP that much. My boat routinely did 1-2 days per week for a few months.

If your DP System is also your Autopilot, the Nautical Institute is also accepting that time. In short, you set up your DP System on Autopilot at the sea buoy on the way out, and go back on manual when you return. I would recommend logging a DP setup in the ships DP Logbook for future reference if needed. Stay up an extra hour or get up an hour early when it will give you another day. Keep track of all your days carefully. I would even consider making photocopies of the boats logbooks. All you need is ONE hour a day on either DP or Autopilot for it to count. It`s a giant PIA for sure, but it is what it is. Even those of us who have had our DPO certs for years are now going to have to renew them every five years at the Nautical Institute. I need to go back to the beginning of 2012 and figure out how many actual days on DP so I will be able to renew at the end of next year. I know guys who didn’t even bother to keep a logbook, so I guess I’m not in too bad of shape. It seems to me that the Nautical Institute is geared towards Drillships, or pipe laying vessels, and not OSV’s. Maybe they don’t really want to deal with us - who knows. Seems like there should be an Organization near the GOM, that would be better at certifying DPO;s for the oil patch. I guess the bottom, line is- yes, it takes quite a bit of time to get the DP days, and document everything for your own good! My DPO Trainee’s only got 4 days out of 28 last hitch!

Double post

All of the above are the reasons OMSA is developing thier own program, plus the fact that you can no longer get a DP license with just a 100 ton has a bunch of companies pissed off.

You can still get a cert with a 100 ton. From the section of the NI DP guide talking about minimum licensing qualifications to get the NI cert:

Alternative appropriate Marine Vocational Qualifications will be considered on a case by case basis.

Marine Vocational qualification: is a non-STCW Certificate of Competency issued by a white list Maritime Administration for use in the administration’s local waters only.

I think I read somewhere that the above restriction would be printed on the DP cert.

Not defending the NI system as it stands because I think it is garbage. Just pointing out it is possible.

[QUOTE=“dredgeboater;112563”]You can still get a cert with a 100 ton. From the section of the NI DP guide talking about minimum licensing qualifications to get the NI cert:

Alternative appropriate Marine Vocational Qualifications will be considered on a case by case basis.

Marine Vocational qualification: is a non-STCW Certificate of Competency issued by a white list Maritime Administration for use in the administration’s local waters only.

I think I read somewhere that the above restriction would be printed on the DP cert.

Not defending the NI system as it stands because I think it is garbage. Just pointing out it is possible.[/QUOTE]

It is also possible to get a STCW II/3 with a 100 ton license…

If it were easy everyone would do it…Also if it were easy our pay would be a tenth of what it is. Dont complain about it being difficult because that is what is keeping our pay up.