Lack of proper communication is one of the main reasons for accidents on board ships.

According to a study, ineffective communication has been the reason for 35% of accidents at sea.

Several people have lost their lives and cargo worth millions have been lost at sea because of deficits in communication.

Misunderstanding or a total lack of understanding among crew members because of at unavailability of a common language, signs and symbols can make the matter worse.

If you are a maritime professional working on board, it is extremely important that you follow a standard communication protocol when it comes to inter-personal , ship-to-ship or ship-to-shore communication.

Though there is a “Standard Maritime Communication Phrases” adopted by the industry, most of the ocean going professionals are not aware of the same.

Also, a lot of important shipboard operations and procedures require a set of sequential communication steps to be followed which is often missed by the professionals, eventually leading to unwanted incidents.

Considering the importance of effective communication among seafarers of various ranks on board ships and in order to avoid accidents at sea, we have created this digital guide written by a very experienced master mariner.

The main aim of this guide is to reduce the problems related to language barriers on ships and to avoid misunderstandings that can cause accidents.