The British Tugowners Association (BTA) has introduced a new Firefighting Emergency Action Card to support tug crews when called upon to assist in shipboard fire emergencies. This quick-reference card sets out essential steps and questions for crews before, during, and after an incident, ensuring interventions are carried out with safety Read more
The British Tugowners Association (BTA), UK Maritime Pilots’ Association (UKMPA) and the Workboat Association (WA) have jointly published “Gog Ropes: Industry Advice”, a new guidance document aimed at improving safety in conventional towage operations. This resource provides practical recommendations for the safe and effective use of gog ropes on conventional tugs, incorporating lessons Read more
The 2025 BTA Annual Safety Seminar was held on Thursday 6 November, at the Leonardo Royal Hotel in Southampton, kindly sponsored by Sanmar, Boluda Towage and Damen. The event welcomed over 90 attendees including tug masters, pilots, marine superintendents, P&I clubs, members of the MCA MAIB, lawyers, workboat crew, harbour Read more
The 2024 BTA Annual Safety Seminar was held on Thursday, 14 November, at The Leith Cruise Terminal in Edinburgh, kindly hosted by Forth Ports. The event welcomed over 100 attendees, including representatives from towage operators, pilots, port and harbour authorities, insurers, accident investigators, regulators, and manufacturers. The report of proceedings Read more
The 2023 BTA Annual Safety Seminar took place at The Insurance Hall in London on Thursday 16 November with a record attendance of over 100 registered attendees spanning across towage operators, pilots, port & harbour authorities, insurers, accident investigators and manufacturers. The report of proceedings goes through the event in Read more
The British Tugowners Association are pleased to release to industry is latest guidance release, Recovery of Persons in Water (PIW) Guide to Good Practice for Small Vessels. The Guide to Good Practice is available as a free pdf for use across the industry. The BTA Chairman, Scott Baker from Svitzer, when Read more
Buy Tickets on Eventbrite Register here The BTA is holding its Annual Safety Seminar on Thursday 10 November at the Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB) premises in Edinburgh. The full-day seminar is a practical operational session and this year is focussed on the recovery of persons in the water (PIW), in Read more
The BTA is delighted to share that it has been shortlisted wiht the UK MPA for the Safety Award 2022 at the International Tug & Salvage Awards in Istanbul on 28-30 September for the Second Edition of the BTA’s Pilots’ Pocket Guide & Checklist, produced in conjunction with the UK Read more
The British Tugowners Association (BTA) in collaboration with the UK Chamber of Shipping has launched its new Pilots’ Pocket Guide and Checklist. Harbour towage is a potentially hazardous business and should not be undertaken unless there has been a proper assessment of the risks involved. Good communication by all parties, Read more
The British Tugowners Association jointly co-hosted with the Workboat Association a open safety forum as part of Seawork Connect, to discuss recovery of persons from the water. The panel discussion, which took place on 6 October, is available to rewatch on Youtube. Available Here The panel provided learnings from some of the industry’s Read more