The maritime industry must look beyond revised training content and additional onboard checks if it is serious about preventing enclosed space deaths at sea, according to maritime training provider MarinePALS.

The warning follows the IMO's revised MSC circular on enclosed space entry, which introduces further requirements intended to strengthen safe working practices on board. MarinePALS has updated its enclosed space training programme — including its six-part learning series and computer-based training (CBT) module — to reflect the new guidance.

However, the revisions come against the backdrop of a long-running industry challenge. Enclosed space incidents have persisted despite decades of regulation, awareness campaigns, permits, drills, and mandatory instruction. The IMO has revised its enclosed space guidance multiple times over the years, most recently through recommendations developed by the Sub-Committee on Ship Systems and Equipment, yet the casualty rate has remained stubbornly resistant to procedural reform. This persistence raises questions about whether additional administrative controls alone can address one of shipping's most enduring causes of avoidable fatalities.

Capt. Pradeep Chawla, CEO of MarinePALS, said: "The revised circular is a positive and necessary development, and we have updated our content accordingly. But enclosed space fatalities are still happening despite years of regulation, awareness and training. People already know enclosed spaces are dangerous, so we must ask whether further procedural improvement alone can solve the problem."

He added: "The industry has spent years improving the process around entry, yet deaths continue to happen. If safety depends on people carrying out the same checks perfectly every time, mistakes will inevitably occur, and the consequences can be fatal. Training will always be part of the solution, but it should not be treated as the whole solution."

"If we want to stop enclosed space deaths, we need to look more seriously at barriers, access controls, interlocks and other engineering controls that prevent unsafe entry before a person is put at risk. We must see if the risk can be eliminated by finding ways to reduce the need to enter enclosed spaces. Fixed gas detection systems are available on tankers. It is time to explore the same solution for enclosed spaces on all ship types."

Chawla's argument aligns with the well-established hierarchy of controls used across safety-critical industries, which ranks engineering controls — physical barriers, interlocks, and automated detection — above administrative controls such as procedures, training, and permits in terms of reliability. Under that framework, the most effective interventions eliminate or reduce the need for human exposure altogether, rather than relying on consistent human performance.

Source: MarinePALS