Digitalizing Safety Management
“They gave me a time frame of 12 months to implement SERTICA as part of our Safety Management System and we succeeded. I am won over – I love the system”- Steven Hale, Condor Ferries.
Condor Ferries is a leading ferry service operator, providing passenger and freight transportation services. Established in 1964, the company has grown to become a vital link between the Channel Islands, the United Kingdom, and France. Condor Ferries operates a fleet of high-speed catamarans and conventional ferries, offering routes that connect Jersey, Guernsey, St Malo, and Poole, among other destinations.
First, Condor Ferries implemented SERTICA Maintenance and then moved on to SERTICA HSQE in phase two. Today, they enjoy enhanced visibility and seamless integration of maintenance and safety activities.
Alfie Currey, Chief Engineer from Condor Ferries shares, “We have transformed our planned maintenance system into a ship management system, centralizing all information and workflows. We can link tasks across maintenance and safety to enhance our ability to analyze and address root causes effectively. With SERTICA, every action is documented, which provides clear evidence for all operations.”
A response log provides visibility
Condor Ferries are especially keen on the response log in SERTICA, which replaces traditional phone calls and email trails while providing clear visibility and accountability.
Alfie Currey shares, “Every morning onboard Liberation, my routine includes logging into SERTICA to review the day’s planned maintenance, check the response log for pressing issues, and manage the action board for any overdue tasks. I also handle defect creation and sign-offs, along with monitoring our annual hours counters. The response log is crucial—it effectively tracks all ongoing dialogues between our ship managers and the crew onboard, ensuring nothing is missed thanks to its helpful pop-up reminders.”
Diane Annear Head of Compliance at Condor Ferries is also a fan of the response log and adds, “The response log is truly amazing. You can see what is blocked, why, and the consequences of inaction, fostering greater ownership and responsibility within the team. This visibility highlights areas where tasks are incomplete, which I find both motivating and beneficial for maintaining accountability.”
Diane Annear highlights the system’s versatility as she says, “This tool is particularly valuable for those managing multiple audits and inspections. The filter function is a big thing for me—it saves time and helps me manage external and internal audits more effectively by filtering by unit or type of audit.”
SERTICA’s integrated approach not only simplifies the audit process but also empowers teams to operate more cohesively and responsively, turning the challenge of audits into an opportunity for continuous improvement.
Facing the first DOC audit with SERTICA
Condor Ferries used to manage audits with Word templates, Excel and emails but this was inefficient and unsatisfactory for both Condor Ferries and the auditors. As an example, it was impossible to get a clear overview of overdue jobs. Condor Ferries have therefore implemented SERTICA HSQE to simplify the processes by consolidating audit and survey processes in one place.
SERTICA facilitates enhanced tracking and management of audit-related activities. “Before SERTICA, we relied heavily on printouts and emails, but our most recent DOC required no physical folders or email exchanges,” Diane Annear explains. “I use SERTICA daily to promptly address everything requiring my approval. SERTICA helps me track events to closure, including accidents and near misses, ensuring nothing is outstanding for the DOC.”
Steven Hale, Ship Manager at Condor Ferries adds, “SERTICA helps us implement a new safety culture and we received no remarks at our latest DOC because now we work with very precise data. The auditors really love the response log, because we cannot change or delete information.”
SERTICA’s functionality allows for effective sorting and searching, which is crucial during audits. Users can link audit findings directly to job cards, ensuring all issues are promptly addressed and verified. “Our findings are efficiently tracked and closed, and preventative measures are reviewed to ensure their effectiveness,” Diane Annear tells.
Verification of preventive measures
Condor Ferries have taken verification a step further by using sub-events in SERTICA to follow up on closed events. This way they ensure that they understand the effect of implementing preventive measures.
Steven Hale explains, “We use this verification process with sub-events for all completed non-conformities, incidents, accidents, and near-misses (level 2 and 3) if the preventive measures are accepted. This allows us to follow up and investigate the root cause, which auditors love because we are not only fixing the problem but also preventing it from recurring.”
Typically, follow-up sub-events are created a year after the initial event closure. For example, if there is a slip on the stairs, anti-slip paint is applied, and the situation is monitored. If inconsistencies are found during inspections, a new event is created to address these issues, ensuring comprehensive safety measures.
Reporting and dashboards
Condor Ferries use dashboards daily across various departments for audits, management reporting, and in-depth trend analysis.
“We have seen an improvement in managing overdue jobs and high-level accidents through our dashboards,” and the ability to access and monitor overdue tasks has notably enhanced accountability and efficiency,” notes Steven Hale.
These dashboards not only display statistics on accidents, findings, and non-conformities but also analyze trends across vessels, providing crucial insights into safety performance. “Previously, compiling safety statistics was a manual process; now, we generate monthly safety stats that help us understand each vessel’s performance. It is not about competition but about identifying areas for improvement,” Diane Annear explains.
She continues, “The process of reporting is the same no matter which platform you use, but by leveraging digital tools, we not only future-proof our operations but also foster a culture of proactive safety management and continuous improvement.”
10 tips from Condor Ferries
- Spend time with the system, the more you use it, the more confident you become
- Get people to report correctly
- Focus on qualitative data and keep it simple
- Expect resistance from the crew and work strategically on implementing a digital mindset
- If possible, include crew with SERTICA experience to ensure alignment with internal processes
- Get the crew on shore to do training before launch
- Keep a record of who has received training
- Implement training materials in native languages with documentation and video guides
- Plan regular contact with the crew after implementation and never stop training them
- Fit the internal language of the company to SERTICA to make sure the crew understand the definitions in SERTICA
