Resolutions Adopted by the 104th Session of the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 104) (Part 3): Amendments to The Performance Standards for Shipborne Simplified Voyage Data Recorders (S-VDRs) (Resolution MSC.163(78), as Amended)
Resolution MSC.493(104) was the third resolution adopted by the Maritime Safety Committee (“MSC”) at its 104th session, and was made known to the Malaysian shipping industry via Malaysian Shipping Notice MSN 1/2022, on 12 January 2022. The resolution was aimed at adopting performance standards for radio and navigational equipment. This latest update targeted improvements to simplified voyage data recorders which was first adopted by Resolution MSC.163(78) as amended by Resolution MSC.214(81). It entered into force on 1 July 2022.
This Resolution is important especially for the performance standards of float-free emergency position-indicating radio beacons (“EPIRBs”) operating on 406 MHz (adopted by MSC.471(101), see Paragraph 3.2). It is applicable specifically to float-free EPIRBs operating in the frequency band 406.0-406.1 MHz which form part of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), installed on or after 1 July 2022. In making its decision to adopt the resolution, the MSC at its 104th Session, acted on the recommendation made by the Sub-Committee on Navigation, Communications and Search and Rescue, at its 8th session. Note, the GMDSS is an automated maritime emergency distress and location system developed by IMO under the provisions of the SOLAS 1974 convention.
The third resolution MSC.493(104) is short and succinct. It introduces a new Paragraph 5.1.3.3 which provides that the new float-free type protective capsule should have the following features:
[1] be fitted with means to facilitate grappling and recovery;
[2] be so constructed as to comply with the requirements specified in resolution MSC.471(101) and to minimize risk of damage during recovery operations; and
[3] the device should be capable of transmitting an initial satellite distress alerting signal and further locating and homing signals over a period of not less than seven days/168 hours.
Now for an explanation of the second feature mentioned above, which contains a reference to MSC.471(101), i.e. Resolution 471 by the MSC at its earlier 101st Session. EPIRBs are subject to a long list of minimum performance standards, listed in Paragraph 2.3 (Note that Paragraph 2.0 is titled simply ‘General’):
[1] A mechanism to prevent unintended activation;[i]
[2] Electrical parts that are watertight at a depth of 10 meters for at least 5 minutes;
[3] Be activated after floating free;
[4] Have the option of manual activation and deactivation;
[5] A mechanism to show that the signal is being sent;
[6] Able to float upright in calm water, in addition to having positive stability and sufficient buoyancy in all sea conditions;
[7] Can survive without damage when dropped from a height of 20 meters;
[8] Can be tested as working within operational parameters without usage of a satellite system;
[9] Be made out of retroreflecting material and be highly visible (e.g. yellow or orange);
[10] Can be tethered with a buoyant lanyard and not be stuck when floating free;
[11] Visible to the naked eye and night vision equipment via a low duty cycle light (0.75 cd). Note ‘cd’ is the duty cycle measured for a closed feedback loop control circuit for voltage output regulations, see https://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/ucc28951-q1.pdf?ts=1665026287787&ref_url=https%253A%252F%252Fwww.google.com%252F (accessed on 6 October 2022);
[12] Not unduly affected by seawater, oil or both;
[13] Resistant to damage from prolonged exposure to sunlight;
[14] Fitted with a 121.5 MHz homing beacon for aircraft;
[15] Have an indicator whether GNSS (Note: Global Navigation Satellite System is a generic description for a system using a constellation of satellites for determining locations) for position fixes is satisfactory; (see Global Positioning System at https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj9h4q2jbz6AhXkplYBHVX2BqIQFnoECAcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gps.gov%2Fsystems%2Fgnss%2F&usg=AOvVaw00jIj_Hmm8l7KsKuLkQkAK accessed on 30 September 2022); and
[16] Fitted with an Automatic Identification System (AIS) (Recommendation ITU-R M.1371). (Note, for those interested in the technical specs, see the International Telecommunications Union Technical characteristics for an automatic identification system using time division multiple access in the VHF maritime mobile frequency band at https://www.itu.int/rec/R-REC-M.1371 accessed on 30 September 2022).
The 16 basic requirements above are supplemented with an additional list of other requirements such as:
[1] Have battery capacity of at least 48 hours (see Paragraph 2.4);
[2] Able to withstand operational ambient temperatures of -20°C to +55°C, icing, relative wind-speeds of up to 100 knots, and stowage of between -30°C and +70°C (see Paragraph 2.5);
[3] Have local or remote activation, withstand shock or vibration, and normal above deck shipboard conditions, as well as being able to release itself and float free before reaching a depth of 4 meters at a list or trim of any angle (see Paragraph 2.6).
[4] Able to perform its clearly labelled distress function (see Paragraph 3);
[5] Give position fixes at maximum 5 minute intervals, and positional accuracy within 30 meters, assuming a draft rate of 3 knots (see Paragraph 4); and
[6] Proper labelling with graphics and symbols that are easily understood with brief operating instructions, expiry dates for the batteries in use, and programmed identity codes (see Paragraph 5).
If you are interested in the operational technical specification of the radio frequency signals, have a look at Part B. As to how this interacts with the Cospas-Sarsat System, refer to Part C for the technical specifications. Note that the latter is a humanitarian non-profit satellite based search and rescue system, see https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/cospas-sarsat#cospas-sarsat-international-satellite-system-for-search-and-rescue-services (accessed on 30 September 2022). In 2020 alone, of the 951 people rescued using this system, 40% were from the maritime sector (see Cospas-Sarsat System Data No.46, December 2020 https://cospas-sarsat.int/images/stories/SystemDocs/Current/SD46-DEC20--EN-.pdf accessed on 30 September 2022).
Thank you for reading IMSML Website Article 6/2022.
Stay tuned for the next IMSML Website Article 7/2022:
Resolutions Adopted by the 104th Session of the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 104) (Part 4): Amendments to The Performance Standards for Shipborne Voyage Data Recorders (VDRs) (Resolution MSC.333(90))
Signing-off for today,
Dr Irwin Ooi Ui Joo, LL.B(Hons.); LL.M (Cardiff); Ph.D (Cardiff); CMILT
Professor of Maritime and Transport Law
Head of the Centre for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution
Faculty of Law
Universiti Teknologi MARA Shah Alam
Selangor, Malaysia
Friday, 7 October 2022
Note that I am the corresponding author for the IMSML Website Articles. My official email address is: uijoo310@uitm.edu.my
[i] Note: A study by Larry Yarbrough, USCG District 7 (dpi), Newton Anderson, USCG Auxiliary (2010) shows that a large proportion of distress signals in this bandwidth are false alerts (Unfortunately, this study is only available in a PowerPoint presentation, see https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiwvfft3bv6AhUDGYgKHWLiCogQFnoECAcQAQ&url=httResolution MSC.493(104) was the third resolution adopted by the Maritime Safety Committee (“MSC”) at its 104th session, and was made known to the Malaysian shipping industry via Malaysian Shipping Notice MSN 1/2022, on 12 January 2022. The resolution was aimed at adopting performance standards for radio and navigational equipment. This latest update targeted improvements to simplified voyage data recorders which was first adopted by Resolution MSC.163(78) as amended by Resolution MSC.214(81). It entered into force on 1 July 2022.
Edited by Trishelea Ann Sandosam, Vice President, IMSML