Bureau Veritas drew on its experience of shipping and port operations to design the Code, reflecting its view that the role of ports in the safety chain is underestimated and that the increasing regulation of ports calls for a coherent approach to QHSE management. The IPSEM Code gives managers a powerful management processes, infrastructure, equipment, communications and waste disposal are all covered. International standards such as ISO14000, OHSAS 18001, APELL and ISO 9001 are incorporated into the Code. Port authorities are awarded a five year certificate following audit of the system, with annual inspections to maintain validity.

It has taken the Port of Cork two years of effort to achieve the standard. Captain Pat Farnan, the Port’s Harbour Master said, ‘Validating our safety, operations, maintenance and environmental management practices against an independent standard has been a rigorous and useful exercise for us. We are proud to be the global leader in demonstrating our high standards, and we see from our increased traffic and better results this year that detailed and constant attention to safety and the environment also pays off in increased business and efficiency and better services to our users.’

MJ Information No: 20412