Readiness note. This is a private training programme. It builds knowledge and readiness. It does not grant any official certificate, licence, or government recognition, and it does not create any affiliation with a regulator or an agency. On passing, learners receive a Record of Completion.
What this course is not. This is a knowledge course. It is not ISPS Code training, not a port facility security officer course and not STCW training. Only training approved by your country's maritime authority counts for port duty.
This module builds on module S1 (Leading a Shift) and on the units of the course Guard — Water (W1 to W16).
Mission briefing
It is 05:30 at Sagar Point port. You take over the shift at 06:00. Two ships are at the quay. A third ship is due at 09:00. Rain is forecast for the afternoon. Twelve guards will stand in front of you in twenty minutes. Each one will ask the same silent question: "What is different today?"
On land, a site looks much the same every day. A port does not. The ships, the cargo, the tide and the weather all change. Your shift plan must change with them.
Focus: before every shift, find out five things: the ships, the security level, the cargo work, the weather, and your people. Then brief, post and keep in touch.
Learning objectives
By the end of this module, you will be able to:
- Say what is different about leading a shift at a port.
- Collect the five kinds of information you need before a port shift.
- Give a short port briefing from a briefing card.
- Post guards at gates, gangways, yards and the waterside, and plan their relief.
- Change the plan safely when a ship, the weather or an order changes.
- Work with the port facility security officer, ships, customs, police and the coast guard through the right channel.
- Keep a port shift log and hand over.
Module S1 (Leading a Shift) taught the chain of command, the briefing and the handover. This module adds what a port adds.
1. What is different at a port
Four things are different at a port.
- You work under a plan you have not read in full. Every port facility under the world security code has a port facility security plan. The plan is protected. You are given the parts for your posts. You do not ask for more, and you do not guess the rest.
- One named officer is in charge of that plan. This is the port facility security officer (PFSO). The PFSO must have training that the country's maritime authority accepts. That training is the regulator's business. This course does not give it.
- Your posts follow the ships. A post at a ship's side exists only while the ship is there. A gate that is quiet at noon may be full of trucks at midnight.
- Safety and security sit side by side. Deep water, moving machines and dangerous goods are near every post (unit W6, Cargo Yards, Sheds and Dangerous Goods Awareness; and unit W8, Working Safely Near Water).
The guards report to you or to the control room. You report to the PFSO, or to the duty officer the PFSO has named. Your agency manager runs the contract. If an order from your agency and an order from the PFSO do not agree, keep people safe, follow the port's security order, and tell both at once.
2. Five things to find out before the shift
Come in twenty minutes early. You need five kinds of information.
- The ships. Which ships are at which berths? Which are due to arrive or sail in your shift, and when? What kind is each one: container, bulk, tanker, passenger, ro-ro? Has the PFSO given a special instruction for any ship?
- The security level. What is the level now (unit W3, Security Levels 1, 2 and 3)? Has it changed since your last shift? Is any ship at a different level from the port facility (module WS2, Security Level Changes and Working with Ships)?
- The cargo work. Which yards, sheds and berths are working? Is there work with dangerous goods or fuel? Which roads or walkways are closed?
- The weather and the tide. Rain, wind, heat, lightning, fog. Any warning from port control. The times of high and low tide, if your site has pontoons, ladders or low jetties.
- Your people. Who is on duty, absent or new to this port? Has each guard had the port's safety induction and the training the PFSO requires for the post? Does each guard hold a valid port pass for the area of the post? Is anyone unfit for duty today (unit 2B, Fit for Duty and Working Alone; and module S5, Coaching, Discipline and the Troubled Guard)?
Where the information comes from: the handover, the control room, the port's daily list of ships, and the PFSO's written instructions. Do not collect it from drivers or seafarers.
Need to know. Tell each guard what the post needs. A gate guard needs to know that a passenger ship is due at 14:00, not why the PFSO has asked for extra checks.
3. The port briefing card
Module S1 (Leading a Shift) gave a briefing order. At a port, add the port lines. Write the card before the briefing, on one page.
Port briefing card (write your own for each shift)
| Line | What you say |
|---|---|
| 1. Attendance and fitness | Names, turn-out, port passes worn and still valid |
| 2. Security level | "We are at level 1." Any change, and from what time |
| 3. Ships | Berth by berth: ship type, arriving or sailing, gangway post open or closed |
| 4. Cargo work | Which yards and berths are working; roads and walkways closed; dangerous goods work, in general words |
| 5. Weather and tide | Forecast, warnings, what changes on the posts |
| 6. Posts and relief | Who is where; who relieves whom and at what time |
| 7. Watch for | Any person, vehicle or boat the control room has asked you to look out for |
| 8. Safety | Bright vest, helmet, lifejacket where the site rules ask for it; the port emergency number |
| 9. Radio check | Call signs and a test call with the control room |
| 10. Questions back | Ask two or three guards a question about today |
Brief in the language your guards know best. If the guard room has a port map, point at the berths as you speak.
Ask real questions. "Asha, the Blue Heron sails at 16:00. What happens to your gangway post then?" The answer shows you whether the guard understood.
Do not read out protected details. The briefing gives each guard the task, not the plan. Keep the card with you, and hand it in or destroy it as your site rules say.
4. Posting your guards
A port has four kinds of post.
| Post | What it asks of the guard | What you check before posting |
|---|---|---|
| Gates (people and trucks) | Steady pace under pressure, good reading of passes and papers | Pass valid for the gate; knows the procedure for a truck that must wait (unit W5, Gate Duty: Trucks, Containers and Seals) |
| Gangway or ship's side | Calm manner with seafarers and officers, clear radio speech | Knows who the ship's contact is; lifejacket if the site rules ask for it (unit W7, The Ship–Shore Interface and Gangway Duty) |
| Yard and shed patrol | Road sense among machines, knows the routes | Has the yard safety induction; knows the rule on container stacks (unit W6, Cargo Yards, Sheds and Dangerous Goods Awareness) |
| Waterside patrol | Careful near the edge, patient watcher | Lifejacket, torch, radio; knows the check-call times (module WS5, Supervising Safety Near Water) |
Rules for posting at a port:
- Induction before post. A guard without the port's safety induction does not go to a yard, a quay or a waterside post. Put that guard at a gate beside an experienced guard, and tell your manager.
- Pass before post. Each guard needs a port pass that is valid for the area of the post. You cannot lend a pass or "vouch" for a guard who has no pass.
- Rotate the tiring posts. A busy truck gate and a long gangway watch tire people. Plan a change during the shift where your numbers allow it.
- Plan the posts that open and close. A gangway post opens and closes when the control room says so. Decide before the shift who will take it and where that guard comes from.
- Do not empty one post to fill another. The posts and their numbers come from the port's plan. If you do not have enough guards, tell the control room and your manager. Do not decide alone to leave a post in the plan empty.
Keep the posting sheet with the shift log. It shows who stood where and when. After an incident, the PFSO will ask for it.
5. When the plan changes
At a port the plan changes in almost every shift. A ship arrives early or moves berth. A crane breaks down and trucks queue at one gate. Use the same four steps each time.
- Confirm. Take the change from the control room, the PFSO or the duty officer. If it comes from anyone else, check it with the control room before you act.
- Re-plan. Which posts open, close or need more people? Which guard moves, and who fills the post that guard leaves?
- Re-brief. Tell each guard who is affected, by radio or in person. Ask one question back.
- Record. Write the time, who gave the instruction, and what you changed.
A long queue at a gate is not a reason to shorten a check. The world code asks ports to keep delay small. It does not ask anyone to skip a measure. If the queue becomes unsafe, tell the control room. The port decides whether to open another lane.
6. Weather, relief and welfare
A quay has little shade or shelter. A cold, wet or overheated guard stops seeing what is in front of them.
- Heat. Give water and shade. Shorten the time at open posts. Watch for the signs of heat illness (unit 7C, Natural Hazards and Site Emergencies).
- Heavy rain and poor light. The edge, wet steel and mooring lines become more dangerous. Keep a waterside patrol on the marked walkway, back from the edge.
- High wind and lightning. Ask the control room what the port has ordered. If work on the open quay stops, your guards should not be the only people left standing there.
- Storm or cyclone warning. The port's emergency plan takes over (unit W13, Port Emergencies: Fire, Spills, Weather and Person in the Water; and module WS4, Port Incidents, Drills and Inspections).
Who may close or move a post? The PFSO, the duty officer or the control room. Your part is to say early what you see and what you recommend, and to record the answer. One exception: if a guard is in danger right now, move the guard to safety first and report at once.
Relief. Plan meal and toilet relief before the shift (module S4, Rosters, Fatigue and Welfare). At a port, add walking time. A post is filled when the reliever arrives, not when the reliever sets out.
7. Working with others: one channel
Many bodies work in a port (unit W1, Why Ports and Ships Need Security). Each has its own work, and you reach each through the agreed channel.
| Who | How you work with them | What you never do |
|---|---|---|
| PFSO or duty officer | Report, ask, recommend. Take security instructions | Never go to the terminal manager or to an authority without going through the PFSO |
| Control room | Your link for every post, all shift | Never run an incident on private phones while the control room hears nothing |
| Ship: master and ship security officer | Through the PFSO or the contact the PFSO names (module WS2, Security Level Changes and Working with Ships) | Never make your own security agreement with a ship |
| Ship's agent | Lists of visitors, crew changes and stores, as your site rules say | Never accept the agent's word in place of a pass or a list |
| Customs and immigration | Let the officers do their work. Check identity as your orders say. Tell the control room | Never ask the officers about their case, and never decide a customs matter yourself |
| Police and coast guard | Give facts, guide them in, hand over (module S7, First Inquiry, Evidence and Police Handover) | Never keep information from them, and never give the press your view |
When an officer of an authority arrives at a post, your guard checks the identity card as the orders say, lets the officer work, and calls the control room. You make sure the PFSO knows.
Keep a contact sheet for the shift: the PFSO or duty officer, the control room, the port emergency number and your agency duty manager. Check it at the start of each shift.
8. The shift log and the handover
Module S1 (Leading a Shift) and module S6 (Registers, Reports and Incident Data) taught the shift log. At a port, each handover adds these lines.
Port handover list
- Security level now, and the time of the last change.
- Ships at each berth, and ships due to arrive or sail in the next shift.
- Posts open now, with names. Posts due to open or close.
- Any special instruction from the PFSO that is still in force.
- Open matters: a truck that is waiting for a decision, a visitor without an escort, a report sent and not yet answered.
- Equipment faults and what temporary measure is in place (unit W15, Reporting, Drills, Equipment Checks and Staying Alert).
- Safety matters: a missing lifebuoy, a broken ladder, a closed walkway.
- Passes, keys and radios, counted with the other supervisor.
- Weather and tide for the next shift.
Go through the list face to face. Both supervisors sign. If the next supervisor is late, you stay.
What you do / What you never do
| You do | You never do |
|---|---|
| Find out ships, level, cargo work, weather and people before the shift | Never brief from yesterday's card |
| Take security instructions from the PFSO, the duty officer or the control room | Never act on a change that only a driver or a seafarer has told you about |
| Post only inducted guards with valid passes at yards, quays and the waterside | Never lend a pass, and never "vouch" for a guard who has none |
| Say early what you see and what you recommend | Never leave a post in the plan empty on your own decision |
| Reach each authority through the agreed channel | Never ask customs or police officers about their case |
| Record every change with the time and the name | Never tell a guard to shorten a check because the queue is long |
Worked example
The people, ships and places in this example are invented.
Meena is the day supervisor at Sagar Point. At 05:40 she reads the night log and calls the control room. Level 1. The Lima Star is at berth 2 and sails at 11:00. The Asha is at berth 4. A passenger ferry is due at berth 6 at 14:00. Rain from 13:00.
She writes her card. Ravi takes the Lima Star gangway until the ship sails, then moves to berth 6 for the ferry. Imran joined yesterday and has no yard induction yet. Meena puts him at gate 1 beside an experienced guard, and asks her manager to book the induction.
At 10:20 the control room calls. The ferry will now arrive at 12:30. Meena moves Ravi's meal relief forward and tells the guard at the passenger gate. She asks him, "What time do you open the lane now?" He answers, "Twelve o'clock." She logs the change with the time and the operator's name.
At 13:10 the rain is heavy. The waterside guard cannot see the far end of berth 5. Meena tells the control room and recommends that the patrol keeps to the marked walkway. The duty officer agrees. Meena logs it.
Meena did not decide alone to change the patrol. She gave the facts, made a recommendation and recorded the answer.
Activity — write today's card
Use your own port, or use this invented one.
Coral Point Terminal. Level 1. A container ship is at berth 1 and sails at 15:00. A tanker is due at berth 3 at 10:00. The container yard is working all day. Wind is rising, with a warning from port control for the evening. You have nine guards. One is new and has had no safety induction. One guard's port pass ends today.
- Write lines 2 to 6 of the briefing card.
- Where does the new guard go? What do you do about the pass that ends today?
- The tanker arrives at 08:30, not 10:00. List your four steps.
- Write three questions to ask guards at the end of the briefing.
There is no single right answer. Check that every post is filled by an inducted guard with a valid pass, and that each change is confirmed and recorded.
Key points
- A port shift follows the ships, the cargo work, the level and the weather.
- You work under the port facility security plan and the PFSO. You are told your part.
- Before the shift, find out five things: ships, level, cargo work, weather, people.
- Brief from a one-page card. Give tasks, not protected details. Ask questions back.
- Induction before post. Pass before post.
- The posts in the plan belong to the plan. If you do not have enough guards, say so.
- When the plan changes: confirm, re-plan, re-brief, record.
- A long queue is never a reason to shorten a check.
- Reach each authority through the agreed channel.
- Hand over face to face with the port handover list.
Where to go next
- Module S1 (Leading a Shift), module S4 (Rosters, Fatigue and Welfare) and module S6 (Registers, Reports and Incident Data): the base for this module.
- Unit W1 (Why Ports and Ships Need Security) and unit W3 (Security Levels 1, 2 and 3): who does what, and the three levels.
- Unit W7 (The Ship–Shore Interface and Gangway Duty): the guard's work at the ship's side.
- Module WS2 (Security Level Changes and Working with Ships): leading your team through a level change.
- Module WS5 (Supervising Safety Near Water): lifejackets, check calls and weather rules.
Conclusion
You have completed this module. You can now collect what you need before a port shift, brief from a card, post your guards, change the plan safely and work with the port's officers and authorities through the right channel.
The next module is WS2 (Security Level Changes and Working with Ships).
Complete the Learning Check for this module before you move on.