Amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) to strengthen the fire protection arrangements on cabin balconies on passenger ships entered into force on 1 July 2008, along with other SOLAS amendments relating to the prevention of accidents involving lifeboats and protective coatings on ships.

Fortune Technologies has kept up with the latest Microsoft technologies and our work and innovative maritime solution is recognized globally. As the result on July 10, 2008 Fortune Technologies receive the "Microsoft Dynamics Nav Partner of the Year" award distinguish between more than 2000 entries were submitted by technologies partner in various categories.

Joint ventures in Qatar in which Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) participates will start up projects over the next two years that will bring more liquefied natural gas to market than any other international oil company, Rex Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer, said today.

The Week at a Glance
China’s double face
Everyone is happy that China drags the global growth and keeping her own growth close to 10% per annum. Though many Chinese officials claim that they want to restrain the growth in order not to overheat the economy, it seems that global economy is burning; what happens when supply for goods is relatively inelastic and demand curve makes a huge jump?

Transas presented its new generation of onboard equipment: a new 4000 series of Navi-Sailor ECDIS (Multifunction Display), Chart-Radar and Navi-Conning. Another development from the company is a new version of Transas VDR/S-VDR 3200.

To tackle the worldwide ballast water problem, DynaBallast, a full daughter company of eL-Tec bv from Hattem in the Netherlands, has developed a practical new solution which can also be applied to existing ships. The essence of the ballast water problem is sediment in the ballast tanks and the transportation of organisms in ballast water from one port to the ecosystem of another port.

State-of-the-art preservation of historic buildings and monuments: The Volkerschlachtdenkmal (‘Monument to the Battle of the Nations’) in Leipzig is considered to be Europe’s largest memorial.
Its construction required a total of 120,000 m³ of tamped concrete and 12,500 m³ porphyroid granite.

Bodies were found floating inside a capsized ferry in the Philippines Tuesday as rescuers dove into turbulent seas in a desperate search for hundreds of missing in one of the country’s worst maritime accidents. “Most of the bodies were floating inside,” Navy spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Edgard Arevalo said. “They were trapped when the ship suddenly tilted and capsized.”

Tanker Will Be the First in the U.S. with Advanced EPA Tier II Compliant Engines.
Aker Philadelphia Shipyard, a leading U.S. commercial shipyard, launched Hull 009, the fifth in a series of 12 product tankers to be completed by the yard in 2011 and sold to American Shipping Company, formerly Aker American Shipping.

Following a Texas court ruling in 2006 which held that the United States had no authority under the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) to criminally prosecute ship owners or crew members for failing to maintain an accurate Oil Record Book in the case of false entries which were made while the vessel was operating outside US jurisdictional waters, this decision has now been reversed on appeal.

A JAPANESE-owned bulk carrier has become the latest merchant vessel to be captured by Somali pirates, according to reports emanating in the region. Andrew Mwangura, director of the Mombasa-based Seafarers Assistance Programme, said that Stella Maris (52,454 dwt, built 2007) had been seized on Sunday morning near Calula, a port in Somalia’s breakaway northern region of Puntland.
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