The fourth industrial revolution is already a fact. It is manifested in the emerging automation of many processes in shipping, which until recently have been highly dependent on the competence of the people who manage them. The analysis of navigational accidents invariably touches the human factor and involves it in the reasons for their occurrence. The statistics are discouraging and the lack of competence of seafarers is always present in the reports of the investigating authorities. The idea of creating and implementing autonomous ships is cited as a lifeline to overcome the shortcomings that disturb the industry due to the human factor. A few authors in their publications point out many unresolved issues, one of which is related to the education and competence of service personnel. The existing International Convention for Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping of Seafarers does not cover unmanned ships. The mandatory and recommended competencies in it are addressed to the people on board. Some maritime educational institutions have introduced the concept of “autonomous ship” in their curricula, such as Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy, Varna and Faculty of Maritime Study, Split. There are probably others who think ahead, but this approach is not enough because unmanned ships are already a fact in the maritime industry. This article aims at exploring the possibilities for supplementing the curricula of maritime training institutions with appropriate subjects for the new realities in shipping.

This article presents the results of the authors’ work on a project of the European program Erasmus+ “Diversification of seafarers’ employability paths through collaborative development of competences and certification” – DivSea. In this project, the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy is actively involved in partnerships with related maritime education institutions from Romania, Cyprus and the Netherlands. The aim of the project is introducing qualifications required by the marine labour market into the European education and training institutes to ensure transparency and recognition of skills and qualifications to facilitate learning, employability and labour mobility. Transferring the aim to the shipping, we propose to use modern ship communication equipment and computer technology to enable seafarers to access up-to-date training and qualifications at any point in the World. The created and developed training programs by the participants in the project fill the gap created by the rapid development of shipping over the last twenty years and the changes in maritime legislation in this regard. The opportunities for ship Internet delivery at every point of the world ocean are used. These communication technologies enable the training of marine professionals to become an ongoing process.

The use of electronic compasses and satellite systems has led to the magnetic compass becoming a secondary means of navigation. Yet this means of navigating is not only not obsolete, it is a necessary backup device: the construction simplicity of the magnetic compass, without electrical windings, rotating elements, and control units, remains resistant to power losses, hardware malfunction, and thus is reliable under the harshest conditions. This durability, however, comes at some cost; the magnetic compass is influenced by ships’ permanent and transient magnetism, cargo gears. For the proper use of a magnetic compass, it is necessary to perform an adjustment to determine the residual deviation at regular intervals. The paper analyses selected methods to manage this, and to identify the main features of classical methods. The research was supplemented by a study carried out during the practical compensations of the magnetic compass at sea and by a survey among navigation officers on its basic requirements for proper use. The results indicate insufficient inspection of the magnetic compass. Further, an investigation into the causes of deviation delivers information regarding the causes under varying conditions including type of ship and latitudinal circumstances. This paper presents findings and recommendations to improve the compensation and use of the ships magnetic compasses.

The promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment is one of the main goals of the United Nations. The aim of this study is to analyze the gradual change of conservative perceptions about the role of women in shipping. Maritime education and training institutions are fully involved in the process. The Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy and the Split University’s Faculty of Maritime Studies are a part of this process of general change in human attitude towards the acceptance of women on merchant ships. Data on female admittance and graduation are collected by both academies. In the period examined, i.e. 2012 – 2018, 129 women were enrolled at and 60 graduated from the NVNA. 281 women were enrolled at and 68 graduated from the Faculty of Maritime Studies. The attitudes of female candidates at the academy Nikola Vaptsarov were studied by means of a questionnaire. The growing number of female candidates at Nikola Vaptsarov’s Navigation, Ship Engineering and Electrician studies proves that a competitive environment was created on a completely new basis, namely the ability of women to work at an equal footing with men in a purely male-dominated profession. This paper opens the door to future research of the recruitment market required to establish the reasons behind skepticism about women on board and the ways to overcome this conservative line of thinking.

The Blue Economy is a multi-layered economy in its content, although it only reflects the relation between the sea and business. Shipping plays an essential role in this economy, as it holds the largest market share. Sustainable shipping, however, requires the sustainability of a number of the components that make it up. One of the most important components is the training of marine personnel, and particularly the ship’s crew. Over the past two decades, the Lifelong Learning strategy has been firmly established in shipping, manifested through a variety of practices. In order to ensure the continuous and sustainable training of ship’s crews, the companies have introduced annual seminars, which aim to familiarize the officers with current business topics. This article analyzes the delivery methods and quality of training in six seminars conducted by four different shipping companies carried out in three different countries. The scientific method “interview” was used for gathering the necessary information for analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of this type of training, and the way it was conducted. A significant number of deck officers and engineers, participants in all seminars, were surveyed to create a clear picture of the quality of such education and training. Collected data were used for the analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) associated with the surveyed fleet officer’s seminars. A comparative analysis of this type of postgraduate training was made, while taking in mind higher marine education and training. The article summarizes the authors’ experience of their sea service as Officers of the Watch and Masters on board of merchant vessels, as well as participants in postgraduate education and training. Conclusions for close cooperation between shipping companies and maritime educational institutions are made.

With the continuous increase of international oil prices, more and more shipping companies look for new solutions to the ever present question: How to reduce operational fuel consumption and decrease air pollution. Ship route planning is an indispensable part of the ship navigation process. In the modern world, the passage planning aspect of navigation is shifting. No longer do we see mariners drawing course lines on a paper chart. No longer do they calculate distances with compasses. Elaborate algorithms on various digital devices perform all these tasks. Algorithms plot the optimum tracks on digital charts and algorithms can decide how to avoid collision situations. Nowadays charter companies do not rely solely on the experienced navigators on board their vessels to decide the best route. Instead, this task is outsourced ashore to routing and weather-routing enterprises. The algorithms used by those enterprises are continuously evolving and getting better and better. They are coming popular because of another reason – more and more the shipping society support the newly idea for using crewless ships. However, are they up to the task to eliminate the human element in passage planning? In this article, we are going to review some of the weak points of the algorithms in use.