Different Shipping Sectors

[laura]

Just out of pure curiosity I'm wondering why people have chosen the sector they work in, what they like about it and what they don't like about it? Are most people in the same type of ship as when they started out or have they moved around a bit?

[Martyboy]

I applied to Maersk before I really knew what they did to be honest, I just wanted to work at sea and sent applications to all the companies and Maersk were the first to say yes

[Clanky]

I have worked on cruise ships, dredgers, ro-ro's, cruise ships again and now offshore since I qualified. With the exception of the first time on cruise ships which was a positive decision the rest have just been what has been available at the time.

Was sailing as chief on a cruise ship when the staff captain and I got made redundant (read sacked for pointing out that the superintendant was a useless tosser), the staff captain had a friend who worked for my present employers so he got a job here and recommended me. To be honest for engineers there is not a huge ammount of difference between the sectors apart from getting ionvolved in cargo work and towing / anchor handling offshore which is interesting.

[chris]

I had a bit of a mixture in my cadetship, cruise ships and smaller ships (lighthouse vessels and fisheries research). Im not under any contract so Ive had the freedom to choose any sector that is recruiting. Ive picked LNG tankers as there is a lot to learn about hazardous area electrics and LNG monitoring which I think will continue to be a growth sector with the clean air regulations and I think it could lead to offshore work or rigs in the future when Im looking for 1:1 leave rather than 3:2 or 3:3.

Some of the large cruise companies were actively recruiting my class as we qualified but I wasnt that interested to be honest. Cruise ships lost their appeal to me as a dayworker when I found out how rarely I could go ashore. Moneywise, there is about a 3k pay difference for entry level ETO roles between cruise and tankers, so not a lot but the gap widens dramatically when you make 2nd.

[antijanner]

I've worked Bulk reefer, ferry, Cruise ship, offshore & now on Containers. I'm glad I moved around a bit & got a load of experience, but it's just finding the cap that fits. Just took me 10 years almost.

[YoungMariner]

I started on multipurpose (Heavylift/Project/General Cargo) ships before moving to cruise ships and then super yachts, and have done a trip offshore as chief officer on a standby vessel between jobs. I won't say why I chose yachting, otherwise there might be a surge in applicants...
Anyway to be honest, a ship is a ship and I've enjoyed them all. The basic job is the same on all of them, and the paperwork is pretty much the same. I can never understand someone who would say "I wouldn't do this ship type or that", it just seems very small minded. All ships have their pros and cons but I think it would be boring to stick to one type. I think there are often misconceptions about what different ship types are like which are often miles from the truth.

I'd like to go offshore again after I finish with my present outfit, I enjoyed working in offshore oil field projects when I was on Heavylift ships and found it interesting. Also wouldn't mind trying some of the research ships and other more interesting types.

[laura]

Love my job... but offshore projects are a politically ridden money minefield, very heavy going at times even at junior officer level.. sometimes I wish I just worked on an anchor handler! Much better atmosphere when only the marine crew are onboard and the HSE side is ridiculous, we've got 5 HSE guys at the moment onboard, not one of them has ever been at sea before.... oof! Fun playing with winches though and the actual project stuff is very cool... just not the politics!

[Technical_Monkey]

Love my job... but offshore projects are a politically ridden money minefield, very heavy going at times even at junior officer level.. sometimes I wish I just worked on an anchor handler! Much better atmosphere when only the marine crew are onboard and the HSE side is ridiculous, we've got 5 HSE guys at the moment onboard, not one of them has ever been at sea before.... oof! Fun playing with winches though and the actual project stuff is very cool... just not the politics!

There is politics and empire building in all parts of this industry. Best just to stay out of it entirely....

[laura]

Hard to avoid when the charterer is sleeping in the cabin next to yours.... I do my best to stay out of the politics but it's not always easy.

Anyway they let me sail the boat now and again, so as long as the good stuff outweighs the bad I'm happy to keep coming back! Plus I have a brilliant Captain and crew!