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Seafarers International Research Centre
http://www.sirc.cf.ac.uk/index.html

Academic research into safety and working conditions at sea

The SIRC is a part of Cardiff University School of Social Sciences and conducts research of an academic nature into several aspects of commercial shipping including safety and crew welfare. The centre is led by Tony Lane, previously a merchant seafarer and writer of several books about maritime life.

Some research projects currently underway include a study into bulk carrier safety compared with other types of vessels in terms of number of casualties and an analysis of the causes of poor safety records, a study of the working and social relations of women seafarers employed on cruise ships, and an analysis of patterns of fatigue and ill health among rigworkers and seafarers in the north sea.

The range of resources available on the web is quite impressive, including abstracts of many of the publications and Acrobat (pdf) summaries of the research projects and yearly meetings. The centre aims to distribute the results of its studies as widely as possible to raise awareness of the conditions in which seafarers work and to improve their welfare.