Broad benefit from bringing the changes

So says Norman Finlay, lifetime president of the Seawork exhibiting National Workboat Association, who adds: “Now I’d match ours against any others in the world.”

Although he says British workboats used to be an “ill assortment of older vessels, often not fit for purpose”, he explains it all changed with the introduction of the Workboat Codes and the formation of the NWA in the mid-1990s.

Mr Finlay has had a lot to do with this development, acting as both secretary and treasurer and “just getting on with whatever needed doing” since its early days. The fact these duties were running alongside his own career and other roles such as president of the Society of Consulting Marine Engineers and Ship Surveyors and Director of the SCMS Workboat Certifying Authority has often left him short of time.

A chance meeting in the early 90s with Tom Allan (then head of the MCA Code Section) led to the suggestion that after finishing the commercial pleasure boat Codes the MCA should look toward the workboat sector. The MCA wanted a representative body to deal with, so calls were made to Mark Meade of Holyhead Towing, Dirk Kuyt of Maritime Craft Services, and Colin Weaver of Westminster Dredging to start the ball rolling. “With their backing we contacted other operators and, interestingly, most of them got behind the idea of the code without too much wrangling. It was then that I knew we were headed in the right direction,” he says.

“It has all had a tremendous effect. Confidence is one part of it,” adds Mr Finlay. Before the Code, workboat operators in some cases could do pretty much as they pleased but they could also be subject to varying attitudes from differing MCA surveyors. “With the Code in place, an operator knew what was expected of both him and his boat. Confidence seemed to grow within the industry and purpose built vessels started to be produced, says Mr Finlay. “Coupled to this, clients started to ask for bigger and more powerful vessels, so now the latest workboats bear no resemblance to those of the 1990s.”

There is also more collaboration these days, partly because people have got to know each other through the Association. “The first few social gatherings we had were barbecue’s at my house, and people who had only talked on the telephone finally had a chance to meet, and this has helped enormously.”

But a watchful eye is still needed with regard to the future. The NWA and the MCA have begun to address the questions regarding crew certification, bringing in a 500 tonne certificate to complement the existing 200 tonne version. Training schemes are being put in place and the new Towing Endorsements will soon be implemented.

Mr Finlay concludes: “A bad captain on a good vessel can be disastrous, whilst a good captain on a bad vessel will probably be able to get the best out of it.”