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velopment programs and others. One notable training initiative which embodies the philosophy of SailSafe is the SEA program - standing for ?Stan- dardized Education and Assessment?. The SEA program is an intensive blend- ed (online and in-person) approach to job-, vessel-, and route-speciÞ c training which replaces the previous job-shadow-ing approach to vessel/terminal familiar- ization. It is supported by a new learning management system called MarineLMS (the company I work for), which was built in conjunction with BC Ferries and is speciÞ cally designed to support train- ing in the maritime context. The SEA program is structured and sustainable, and produces consistent and reliable training outcomes - unlike job shadow-ing. Like other SailSafe initiatives, the SEA program involves all employees in its creation and maintenance. SailSafe Outcomes?We do SailSafe because we know it is the right thing to do,? said Mike Corri-gan, President and CEO, BC Ferries. ?If it saves us from one injury, it has been worth it.? But the results of SailSafe, as measured by BC Ferries since 2007 indi-cate multiple beneÞ ts - some expected, many more surprising. Of value for the industry as a whole is that the results are now quantiÞ ed and documented - prov- ing that attention to the safety culture and training work. Safety PerformanceThe goal of SailSafe was to improve safety. It has done a remarkable job at doing so. Since 2007, the number of time loss injuries experienced at BC Ferries each year has dropped from approxi-mately 360 to just over 150. Over the same period, the number of serious inju-ries has been reduced from roughly 100 to just over 40 and the days lost due to injury has declined from over 12,000 to under 7,500. These results are illustrated in Chart 1.Cost SavingsIt turns out that transforming the safety culture in a maritime organization is also good for the bottom line. When BC Fer- ries analyzed its insurance claims costs in the period leading up to 2012, they found that these costs had declined from roughly $3.5m to just over $800K, as shown in Chart 2. On-time PerformanceAs part of improving safety at BC Fer- ries, one of the initiatives of SailSafe was to remove on-time performance from the employee assessment criteria for all but top level management. The intent of this was to ensure that an operational em-ployee never compromised safety in the name of ensuring that the ferry arrived at its destination on time. Safety has to be paramount and this rule change sent that message loud and clear. The concern of such a change was that although worthwhile it in the name of safety, this change would cause on-time performance to suffer. However, when BC Ferries looked over its on-time per- formance leading up to 2012, it found a remarkable thing. On-time performance had actually improved signiÞ cantly, ris- ing from approximately 85% to 92% (See Chart 3). While dif Þ cult to say why this happened, it is clear that factors such as reduced accidents, employee engage-ment, and a broadly improved working culture at BC Ferries all played signiÞ -cant roles. SailSafe has been a successful initia-tive, but it is far from over. ?Experts tell us [safety culture transformation] is a seven to 10 year process and we?re only [six] years into it,? said Captain Jamie Marshall, VP of Fleet Operations, BC Ferries. There is more to come - further training enhancements, further cultural transformation, and an ongoing process of continuing improvement. As such, we are observing the results of a transfor- mation which is still underway. In some ways, it will never be over. www.marinelink.com 33(Continued from page 31) SailSafe: BC Ferries? Safety InitiativeMR #6 (26-33).indd 33MR #6 (26-33).indd 335/30/2013 12:55:01 PM5/30/2013 12:55:01 PM
