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The deck department is an organisational team on board naval and
merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...
ships. The department and its manning requirements, including the responsibilities of each rank are regulated within the
STCW Convention International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) sets minimum qualification standards for masters, officers and watch personnel on seagoing merchant ships and large yachts. STCW was adopte ...
, applicable only to the merchant fleets of countries who have ratified it. The department is led by deck officers, who are licensed mariners, and they are commanded overall by the ship's
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
. Seafarers in the deck department work a variety of jobs on a ship or vessel, but primarily they will carry out the
navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation ...
of a vessel from the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...
. However, they are usually also responsible for supervising and monitoring any maritime
cargo Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including tra ...
onboard, as well as ensuring maintenance of the deck and upper
hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...
structure, monitoring the stability of the ship, including loading and discharging ballast water, carrying out mooring operations, and finally
anchoring An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek � ...
a ship.


Merchant shipping

The deck department is divided into deck officers and ratings. All ranks in the deck department are required to have undertaken training in accordance with the STCW Convention, for fleets of those countries who have ratified it. For officers this involves the passing of an exam to receive a certificate of competency, the level of understanding and certification varies according to ship size. All ranks are required to have undertaken generic maritime training, which usually involves time at sea and time in an approved college. International standards under the STCW Code set out the minimum requirements for training, however individual nations also have their own maritime training regulations. For example, in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
the
Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent marine ...
ensure that the deck department receive training and examinations in order to assume the responsibilities of their rank at sea. Under the STCW, all seafarers of the deck department are also required to have undertaken a series of short course training. This includes general security, safety and lifeboat training, as well as vessel-specific training, such as operations in the polar regions and on tankers. In general, the master or captain is in overall command of the ship, while the
chief mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the s ...
is the head of the deck department. This often involves administrative tasks such as scheduling work, quality control, coordinating with other departments, and conflict resolution. The chief mate also usually compiles supply, overtime, and cost control records, and requisitions or purchases stores and equipment. Depending on the number of officers carried, he may or may not be a
watch officer Watchkeeping or watchstanding is the assignment of sailors to specific roles on a ship to operate it continuously. These assignments, also known at sea as ''watches'', are constantly active as they are considered essential to the safe operation ...
. For example, if the ship carries a second mate and two third mates, he will be a dayworker, with an example duty day from 0800 to 1700 ship's time. If only one third mate is carried, he could stand the 4 to 8 watch in addition to handling his executive duties. The ship's other deck officers, generally a second mate and third mate, are also members of the deck department. In general, the watch officer is responsible for the unlicensed crewmen on his watch. In a four-mate ship where the chief mate is a dayworker, the second mate will usually stand the 4 to 8 watch, because sunrise and sunset often fall on that watch. In the days before satellite navigation systems, the second mate would shoot morning and evening star fixes to determine the ship's position. On many vessels, the second mate is also responsible for maintaining the ship's charts and navigational publications, the ship's gyrocompass, and all navigational gear. He also keeps the log extract for each voyage used by company management. This sheet is often called the "howgozit" sheet, and often includes information about time at sea, time under pilotage, time in port, and types and tonnages of cargoes moved. The two third mates are often called the senior third and the junior third. The senior third mate could stand the 12 to 4 watch, the junior third the 8 to 12 watch. While on duty, they are responsible for handling the ship and fixing its position by shooting sun lines, taking hourly fixes from the satellite navigation gear, and piloting the ship in coastal waters. The senior third often also prepares the noon position slip for the use of the captain and chief engineer.


Naval usage

In the military, the deck department comprises sailors who perform a variety of functions depending on ship type and size. Examples include maintenance and upkeep of the ship, handling of the ship's rigging and ground tackle, coordination of
underway replenishment Replenishment at sea (RAS) ( North Atlantic Treaty Organization/Commonwealth of Nations) or underway replenishment (UNREP) ( U.S. Navy) is a method of transferring fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another while under way. First devel ...
operations, conductance of minesweeping operations, maintenance and operation of the ship's boats, supervision of diving and salvage operations (including towing), and serving as shipboard seamanship specialists. Undesignated seamen, or those who have not selected a
rating A rating is an evaluation or assessment of something, in terms of quality, quantity, or some combination of both. Rating or ratings may also refer to: Business and economics * Credit rating, estimating the credit worthiness of an individual, ...
(e.g. job or vocation), are normally the most junior sailors on board and are usually sent to the deck department for their first assignment.


See also

*
Engine department An engine department or engineering department is an organizational unit aboard a ship that is responsible for the operation, maintenance, and repair of the propulsion systems and the support systems for crew, passengers, and cargo. These includ ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deck Department Marine occupations Nautical terminology