Starboard StrategiesRs. 65/-Volume 1: Issue 13

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Thane 01-15 June 2015 Pages 28

TME or the Junior Engineer the Knowall and

the Endall?

Volume 1 : Issue 13

Starboard Strategies The Only Indian Maritime Management Magazine

1. TME or the Junior Engineer the Knowall and the Endall - With malice towards one and all - PH Krishnan

2. Jet Engines for Marine Propulsion

- CK Radhakrishnan, - Chief Engineer

3. Main Engine Layout Familiarization - B&W Engine Room Layout - Pramod Mohapatra, Second Engineer

4. Engineer's Duties After Pilot Departure - Ramprasad Misra

5. Marine engineer jobs in engine room - VT Krishna Iyengar

6. What Is Saturday Routine On A Ship? -V K Ranade, Chief Engineer

7. Starting of an Auxiliary Diesel Engine - C. Raghavachary, Chief Engineer

8. Role Of Compressed Air In Starting a Marine Diesel Engine - G. Aravindakshan, Chief Engineer (MOT)

9. A Guide to Gland Packing - V imaladitya V arma, Chief Engineer

10. Advertise with us A great investment - Divya V enu

11. Sailor Stories

Starboard Strategies 31-15 June 2015

exaggerating or over-the-top, but the fact remains that the life We all know what on board a ship is poles apart from the life we live on land.makes a Marine For now, let's take a sneak peek at the lives of the marine Engineer. It engineers working on board. Let's start from the bottommost a l l b e g i n s level, the junior engineer, also known as the "TME or jack of w i t h a all trades" (definitely, master of none), who lives the toughest strenuous and the most interesting life of all the engineers on board a four year ship.course in Grass is Greener on the Other Sideone of the

m a r i n e engineering

institutes in India. The DMET

people still don't want to call it as MERI, which

sounds Mary when pronounced or any other course for lesser mortals. This article for all its worth is not about what they teach or forget to teach a junior engineer in any maritime training institute. This is about the life of a junior marine engineer and the various tasks he has to perform on board. This article has not been written with intent to scare people by showing a different side of the professional life on board but with a purpose to depict the true nature of work at sea.

The initial thoughts..The life of a merchant navy officer or personnel on board a A junior marine engineer after undergoing four years of ship is adventurous, exciting, and extremely rewarding. A arduous education and training supposes that the main part of marine engineer globe trots, visits beautiful places, and meets his career is now behind him and henceforth the only thing interesting people. This is true for marine engineers working that remains is work and play. But things are a bit different on any type of ship or vessel irrespective of the people he is from what he thinks. He joins a shipping company and lands working for; however it is an icing on the cake if he/she on board a ship only to realize that the real struggle has just happens to be on a cruise ship of any of the top 10 cruise lines, begun. He realizes that there is a stark difference between the not to mention the fun if one is on the biggest cruise ships or a training work he did in workshops on land and the kind of futuristic ship.work he is supposed to do on board the ship. Probably he even One might blurt out "wow," for it sounds like a script of some had a brief idea of the "to be" life on ship but instead got a bit Hollywood movie where the protagonist has the perfect job, more than expected when he came on board. There are many the perfect money, and the perfect life. But is the life of a naval incentives that come with the job of a junior marine engineer, officer as picturesque as it sounds? Do all the naval officers in but there are many more odd jobs that come along with it, too. the hierarchy level have the same kind of exciting lifestyle? Or Let's get into the shoes (safety shoes!) of a junior engineer and is there a totally different side beneath the facade that is find out what he really does on board. Kindly note that there created by the over-imagination of people or by ignorant are high chances that one might end up in a state of exhaustion word-of-mouth misconception?or fatigue.

Well, the job of a marine engineer is definitely stimulating and What Do Junior Marine Engineers Really Do?rewarding, but with the package comes many desirable and The junior marine engineer, like all other engineers on the undesirable attributes. Everything apart, it's not at all a Bed ship, is supposed to work with his own hands. When the ship is of roses, as many people seem to think. Life on board is sailing, he is supposed to keep a watch in the engine room with definitely not as glamorous as it seems or is perceived to be. It either third or second engineer. He mainly assists the engineer is tough for sure, and no one knows it better than the one who in-charge of the watch in daily routine checks and other works on board. But as they say, someone has to do the job" necessary maintenance work. After a few months of thorough and so life goes on. All this might sound a bit over-familiarization of the engine room he might be asked to keep

Starboard Strategies 41-15 June 2015

TME or the Junior Engineer the Knowall

and the EndallWith malice towards

one and all- P. H. Krishnan

an independent watch of the engine room with the assistance machinery is operated from the engine control room itself. of a motorman. If he is not working in shifts, he might be asked Thus the fifth engineer is also acquainted with, and in fact the to do day work, which is like a normal eight-to-five job, not to master of, starting procedures and the working of the control mention the emergency hours and extra time that come along room console and other engine control room electronics and with it. electrical systems.A junior engineer is always on his toes or for that matter However, this is not all, but a minuscule portion of duties he forced to be, assisting second, third, and even fourth performs on board. In the coming issues we will learn about a engineers apart from the regular watch keeping. This means few more additional jobs that a junior engineer is expected to that there are no definite rest hours and the working hours are do, without denying of course.