Fatigue and Performance in Bridge and Engine Control Room Watchkeeping on a 6on / 6off Watch Regime”

Financial pressures in the shipping industry have forced ship owners to reduce their onboard manning levels and increase workloads, potentially leading to a higher risk of accidents through human error. Project HORIZON is a highly significant European funded research project that seeks to investigate the problem of seafarer reliability, and to deliver measures that will help alleviate the safety hazards caused by fatigue. For this purpose, a realistic scenario was developed, in which watch keeper cognitive performance and fatigue levels were measured, using the bridge, engine and cargo operations simulator facilities at Warsash, linked together to provide a 7 day continuous voyage. Ten simulations runs have been performed with 40 certificated seafarers of varying experience. Analysis of the results shows a significant impact of the 6 on / 6 off watch pattern on the fatigue and performance of seafarers. It is hoped these results will lead to better fatigue management systems being developed, in order to improve the safety and reliability of ship operations and the welfare of seafarers. This paper describes the HORIZON project and illustrates some of the emerging results.