Bertus says he always started by talking to the captain and the chief engineer. “That gives you a first impression of the culture on board. NINA requires open communication and that subject often came up during the NINA tour. We spoke about cultural differences. Knowledge of each other’s background helps people to understand each other. And that makes communication easier.”

Logic
There was also a lot of focus on the Rules. “I demonstrated the logic behind the system, namely that we have to tackle all activities in a uniform manner. Although in some cases this meant a slightly different way of working, everybody soon got the hang of it. The will was there. For instance, during one session, a backhoe suffered a major breakdown in the excavator that had to be resolved immediately. ‘Now we have a chance to fill in that TRA with you’, was the skipper’s response.”