I started working for DBM SA in April 1994, my first ship was the Atlantic, she was being converted to a mining vessel. After almost a year in Cape Town I was placed on the Louis G Murry, the first crawler vessel. I then moved back and front between the DBM SA vessels from 1997, Spenser Bay, Douglas Bay, Grand Banks, Pacific and the Coral Sea.
I also spend time on the Voyager, now Gariep, and Zealous, a survey vessel. In 2002 I was transferred to DBM Namibia and spend some time on the Pacific, Banks and Atlantic. In 2010 I joined the Peace in Africa later renamed the Mafuta when DBMN bought the vessel from DBM SA. Presently the Mafuta is the longest time l spent continuously on a vessel.
To conclude, safety has improved a lot since l started, from working with no lock-Out and having Castle Lager Bears during tea time, replacing cylinders on a drill tower with no fall-arrest etc. All I can say to the new generation of Marine Engineers is to trust your training and gut feeling and remember that YOU keep yourself and others safe, not the safety paper work.