Departments, Ranks and Duties onboard a Cargo ship

 

On board a ship there are mainly three departments, Deck department, Engine department and Galley(cooking) department. Each department has got specific jobs and duties on safety, security, maintenance and operations of the ship. Overall command is always with the Master or the ship's Captain.

Captain is in-charge of the ship and it's crew.  Responsibility lies upon him of any type of operation or activity onboard. Also Ships safety, Crew safety, or Environmental safety responsibility are captain's job responsibilities. He is the person on board who connects the ship with the Company(Owner), Management, Cargo charter, Agents, Port authorities and others .

A ship runs 24 hours a day (day and night) in sea way. But duties of all the seafarers are not limited in the passage way only . 

The duties and job-responsibilities continue in sea-passage, as well as at anchorages, at port or even in dry docking time also.

 The Deck department consists of Captain, Chief officer(C/O), Second officer(2/O), Third officer(3/O), deck cadet, Bosun,  the three (or four) Able body seaman(AB), ordinary seaman(OS), and trainee seaman(Tr.OS). The department has got head of the department as chief mate or chief officer.

Chief officer keeps navigational watch on bridge from 4 to 8(am/pm). Loading of the cargo needs proper planning. So it has to be implemented correctly and monitored closely.  To stabilize the ship proper ballasting or de-ballasting procedure to be maintained. Chief officer has to monitor safety of the ship, crew and cargo. He can't do all the things by himself. He is assisted by the junior officers(second officer or third officer) and Bosun. Responsibility of  the ship's security lies upon the Chief officer.   That is why he is called the SSO (the ship's security officer).   He has got duty of garbage management( implement, monitor and keep record of garbage management plan),.

The other officers assists him in various navigational and cargo related jobs. On the other hand, Bosun works under him and supervises all  other deck ratings in regular deck maintenance jobs.. 

The crew onboard needs regular training or drills to maintain their grade of work and safety culture. Chief officer plans and conducts drills with all the ship stuff in a regular basis like, drills for Abandon-ship in disaster, How to survive in sea,  Medical emergencies, Fire fighting, Cargo shifting, Collision emergencies etc. 

The Second officer normally performs duty of navigational watches from 12 to 4 (am or pm). He makes the Passage panning for the ship.  He is in-charge of medical chest and hospital, assists Captain in any medical emergency. At port he monitors  cargo works, does ballasting or de-ballasting , and other jobs as is needed.  

Third officers responsibilities are navigational watch from 8 to 12 (am. or pm) and inspection and maintenance of of fire fighting appliances and life saving appliances. At port he monitors cargo works also. 

Able body seaman performs navigational watches in bridge to assist navigational officers.  AB's do look out duties and steer when it is needed like - in confined water, narrow channels, river passage, port approaches, in rough sea condition. They also do deck maintenance and other responsible jobs in  sailing time. At port they monitor cargo works, and keeps security watches (as per ISPS) at the gangway.

Cadet and deck trainee are fresh persons who have joined a ship for the first time without any sea experience. So they need a lot of training with close supervision. Normally a deck cadet learns about the ship's parts,operations and all the safety factors under chief officer. Same way a deck training semen learns all about the ship under supervision of Bosun.

In the Engine department Chief Engineer is the head of the department. He has got all the technical responsibilities of the Ship. Second engineer, Third engineer and  junior engineers do all the maintenance and operation jobs of main engine, auxiliary engines, pumps and generators.  Engine fitter, motorman and wiper assists the engineers in their jobs.

The engine crew is responsible with operating, maintaining and repairing, when required, the propulsion and support system. The engine department is also responsible with the repair and maintenance of other systems, such as: lighting, lubrication, refrigeration, air conditioning, separation, fuel oil, electrical power and so on.

According to the vessel’s hierarchy, the engine officers are as follows: Chief Engineer, Second Engineer, Third Engineer , Electrician Officer and Engine Cadet.

The first engine officer and in charge of the engine department is the Chief Engineer. He takes complete control of the engine room and must make sure that every system and equipment runs by the book and is suitable for inspection at all times. The Chief Engineer also maintains up to date inventory for spare parts, extra fuel and oil and delegates the tasks for the officers under his command. In order to become a Chief Engineer a seafarer must first be a Second Engineer with at least two years sea time experience.

After the Chief Engineer, in charge with the engine room is the Second Engineer, who also has a management level position. He assists the Chief Engineer in keeping the vessel running efficiently, is responsible for supervising the daily maintenance and operation in the engine room and prepares the engine room for arrival, departure or other operations. He reports directly to the Chief Engineer.

The Engine Watch Officer position is usually held by the Third or Forth Engineer and it is an operational level job. The Third Engineer is usually responsible with the change of boilers, fuel, the auxiliary engines, condensate and feed systems. The Fourth Engineer is the most inexperienced officer, who has duties assigned by the Second Engineer, and some of his responsibilities are: engine watch, air compressors, purifiers and other auxiliary machinery.

Another officer working in the engine room is the Electrical Engineer, in charge with overseeing and ensuring the maintenance and proper functioning of all the electrical systems and machinery. The Electrical Engineer responds directly to the Second Engineer and to the Chief Officer and has to have proper training to do this job.

Some merchant vessels also have amongst its crew members an Engine Cadet or Electrical Cadet, who receive structured training and experience on board and learn how to become an engine or electrical officer.

Apart from the officers, the engine department crew also consists of ratings, such as Motorman, Fitter, Electrician, Pumpman and Oiler/wiper.

The Motorman is the engine rating who keeps watch and assists the engine officers when performing maintenance tasks. He also participates in maintaining and repairing the main and auxiliary engines, pumps and boilers.

On board vessels, the Fitter carries out daily maintenance and engine cleaning jobs and is also specialized in fabrication, welding or repairing.

The Electrician on board a merchant vessel is the rating working on the electrical equipment and systems, wiring and high voltage panels.

Mostly on tanker vessels we may also find a Pumpman, responsible with the liquid cargo transfer system, pumps, the stripping pumps, filters valves, deck machinery involved in the liquid cargo transfer etc. His main job is to keep the liquid cargo system on a tanker running accordingly.

The Oiler or Wiper on board is the rating in charge with cleaning the engine spaces, machinery, lubricating bearings and other moving parts of the engine and assisting the engine officers in the general maintenance of the machinery in order to ensure the oil temperature is within standards and oil gauges are working properly.

Food department or galley department consists of Chief cook, Second cook and Stewards. They have got responsibilities to make food for crew onboard and maintain hygienic environment in the accommodation to live in.