e-NP232 - Overseas Fran (IMO No.IMO9213313) The contours on an ENC are normally based’on those which are depicted on the corresponding paper chart. If the selected value is not available then the next deeper contour is selected which may artificially reduce the amount of safe water shown on the chart as in the image below. Due to this constraint it is highly likely that at points within the Voyage Plan the vessel will need to navigate in waters inside (shoaler than) the highlighted safety contour. The Company should develop a policy to cover this situation. Safety contour and safety depth set to 6 metres - it displays at 10 metres as this'is the next deeper contour, 12.13 Navigating across the Safety Contour If,asin theimage above, the displayed safety contour appears torestrictsafe water toan unacceptable degree and no acceptable route is possible through safe water. there are two methods that may be employedto cross the displayed safety contour to minimise the impact on safe navigation. Company policy should define which method is to be used and detziled procedures put in place in the SMS highlighting the risks. The display of obstructions in sefe/unsafe water and behaviour of ECDIS alarms Is complex, Dealing with a situation where the safety contour must be crossed requires a thorough knowledge of ECDIS ‘operations and a Bridge Team who have extensive femiliarisation with the system in use. It would be beneficial to consult both the ECDIS user manual and publications such as NP231 to gain a thorough understanding of ECDIS configuration prior to planning or execution. 75e-NP232 - Overseas Fran (IMO No.IMO9213313) Configuring the ECDIS to cross the safety contour: Method | The first method is to leave the safety contour as displayed and make a visual assessment of the chart as to the amount of actual safe water available. To do this safely, care will be needed to ensure that suitable display settings are enabled so that all possible dangers are shown. Some systems may not show dangers in the area shallower than the safety contour in certain display modes. as explzined in NNP231, The entered safety depth wilLindicate all soundings which are the same orshallower in bold, and assist in visualising the actual safe water. It is recommended that a manual update Is appUed to indicate the safety check against a given date/ time and predicted height of tide. This should be carefully noted at the review stage and signed off in the Voyage Plan. The hazards associated with this method are: |. The user will need to be aware thet the automated route check will display a warning for crossing the safety contour but possibly no further indicationif the route is plannedinto waters shallower than the entered safety contour, 2, Similarly during monitoring of the voyage, the guard zone will activate an audible alarm when it encounters the safety contour and possibly not activate any further alarms once the vessel moves into water that is shallower than the entered safety contour. 3. Adanger could be missed during the visual inspection of the ENC with no electronic warnings or alarms to warn the user. 4. As the safety contour alarm will be activated but disregarded, a culture of “the safety contour doesn't really matter” may develop and lead te the safety contour indication during planning, or alarm during monitoring, being dismissed as not important at any tim Example procedure en 7%e-NP232 - Overseas Fran (IMO No.IMO9213313) Configuring the ECDIS to cross the safety contour: Method 2 In this method, the safety depth is calculated and entered as above, but the safety contour is set to the next shallower contour. If the ECDIS supports manual generation of contours, the Deck Officer draws a manual safety contour at theactual depth required, using the highlighted depths as guidance. The manual contour should be drawn in a similar manner to a “no go line or area” on a paper chart or RNC. To do this safely, care will be needed to ensure that suitable display settings are enabled so that all possible dangers are shown. Where possible, the manual contour should be set as a user-“alarm” line oravoidance zone, euch that during an electronic route check or monitoring it will cause a safety alarm to be activated. The exact method for doing this on the ECDIS in use may vary, as will the exact terminology used for these user-defined features. This method ayoids the need to ever cross the safety contour (relying on user defined contour for alarm generation), and should prevent the potential. complacency problems described in method | above. However it does pose other potential hazards: |. Ahazard could be missed during the visual inspection of the ENC andthe manual drawing process, with no electronic warnings or alarms to warn the user, as the safety contour is not set. Checking should confirm that the manual line has been set asan alarm feature. 2s Isolated dangers in safe water may not be hightighted if ¢ safety contour value is not set (because the configured safety contour Is artificially shallow), These will have to be manually highlighted as manual updates using the ECDIS' Display "ALL" category. Both of these methods have inherent dangers and should only be used where necessary. The potential consequences of carrying out either method incorrectly or with a poor understanding of the care needed should be made clear in the final procedure adopted. Care should also be taken to require that each individual occasion is separately authorised by the Master and is recorded in accordance with the SMS, It may also be prudent to specify that, whichever method is Used, the manual drawing is checked by another officer who is not otherwise involved in that part of planning process, to preventan error by ‘one person causing a major incident. Example procedure Procedure for crossing the safety contour: Method 2: ‘a, Caleulate Safety Depths and enter into ECDIS. b, Select viewing groups for soundings, seabed features and contours te be displayed. ¢, Construct a manual update Line to create a safety contour equivalent to the safety depth, using the highlighted safety depth as an indication of the contour — allow a safety margin where values displayed are less than the safety depth. Use existing contours to establish the likely shape of the manual contour 4. Set the manual update Une as an alarmed feature (refer to ECDIS manual and training course notes for guidance) e. Run the route check facility to confirm that the feature will alarm f. Ensure the planis clear when the safety contour should beset to theartificial value and reset once the area is clear g Save as part of the Voyage Plan in ECDIS and note the feature in the Voyage Plan notes for review and approval by the Master