DPO Safety Regulations & Compliance 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A DP vessel's Annual DP Trials must be witnessed and documented by which authority to satisfy class requirements?
- The vessel's Master
- A qualified FMEA surveyor
- A classification society surveyor (Correct answer)
- The flag state maritime authority
Correct answer: A classification society surveyor
Annual DP Trials must be conducted in the presence of a classification society surveyor to verify system performance against the FMEA prove-up document.
Question 2: Under the NOPSEMA guidelines for DP operations in Australian waters, what is required before a DP vessel commences a critical DP operation?
- Approval from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA)
- A vessel-specific Operations Manual with DP risk assessment signed by the DPO (Correct answer)
- Submission of the DP FMEA to NOPSEMA for review
- Completion of an emergency disconnect drill within the previous 7 days
Correct answer: A vessel-specific Operations Manual with DP risk assessment signed by the DPO
NOPSEMA requires that a documented DP Operations Manual and risk assessment be in place and accepted by the responsible DPO before critical operations commence.
Question 3: The 'WSOG' document used during DP operations on drilling vessels primarily defines:
- Watch schedule and overtime allocation for DP operators
- Well-specific operating guidelines including MODU disconnect criteria (Correct answer)
- Weather station observation gathering procedures
- Winch safety operating guidelines for anchor handling
Correct answer: Well-specific operating guidelines including MODU disconnect criteria
The Well-Specific Operating Guidelines (WSOG) define the operational parameters, exclusion zones, and disconnect criteria specific to each well for the MODU.
Question 4: Under IMCA's DP incident reporting guidance, a 'Loss of Position' is formally defined as uncontrolled vessel movement of more than:
- 5 meters from the approved operating radius
- 10% of the water depth
- The agreed exclusion zone or operational radius as defined in the ASOG (Correct answer)
- 50 meters from the DP reference point
Correct answer: The agreed exclusion zone or operational radius as defined in the ASOG
A Loss of Position is defined as movement beyond the exclusion zone or operational radius established in the Activity Specific Operating Guidelines (ASOG).
Question 5: When a DP vessel's gyrocompass reading diverges significantly from the backup heading reference, the DPO's first action according to best practice should be:
- Switch to manual heading control immediately
- Accept the reading most consistent with external references and investigate the discrepancy (Correct answer)
- Initiate an emergency disconnect procedure
- Alert the flag state and request a port survey
Correct answer: Accept the reading most consistent with external references and investigate the discrepancy
The DPO should cross-check all available heading references and accept the most credible value while investigating the cause of the divergence before escalating.
Question 6: ISM Code requirements mandate that DP vessel operators must include DP-specific content in their:
- Port State Control inspection checklists only
- Safety Management System (SMS) including procedures for DP operations and emergencies (Correct answer)
- MARPOL pollution response plans
- Cargo securing manuals
Correct answer: Safety Management System (SMS) including procedures for DP operations and emergencies
The ISM Code requires the SMS to encompass all critical vessel operations, which includes DP-specific procedures, checklists, and emergency responses.
Question 7: Which alarm condition would typically trigger an automatic change from DP AUTO to DP JOYSTICK mode on a Class 2 DP vessel?
- Loss of a single position reference system
- Detection of a single thruster failure
- Loss of the redundant DP computer (Correct answer)
- Power management system overload alarm
Correct answer: Loss of the redundant DP computer
Loss of the redundant DP computer (reducing the system to a single controller) typically triggers an automatic downgrade alert, often forcing joystick or manual mode depending on configuration.
DPO Safety Regulations & Compliance 3
A DP vessel's Annual DP Trials must be witnessed and documented by which authority to satisfy class requirements?