Nautical Institute: Minutes of Directors' Meeting, Tuesday 14th March 2006
Post
Nautical Institute
British Columbia Branch
Minutes of the Directors' Meeting, Tuesday, 14th March 2006
in the Training Room, Tsawwassen Terminal
Present:
Captain Z. Farid FNI Vice-Chairman (Island)
Captain R. Smith A/Treasurer
Captain J. K. Steele A/Secretary
Captain D. Snider Communications Director
Directors:
Captain B. Johnston FNI
Captain D. Smiley
Captain H. Silvester
Members: Mr. J. Roberts
Guests: Mr. Darin Bowland
Regrets: Captain Shard FNI , Lt Cdr Stanford FNI, Captains Bowles, B. Silvester, Lewis and Frappell
The Chairman having indicated his absence out of the country, Captain Farid took the Chair and called the meeting to order at 1700 hours.
Item 1: Chairman's opening remarks
In his opening remarks, the A/Chairman welcomed those present and in particular, a guest in the form of Mr. Darin Bowland MM the Director, Safety , Health and Environment at BC Ferries. Mr. Bowland is in the process of joining the Nautical Institute, having recently joined the Corporation from a career at sea as the Master of such vessels as the "Radiance of the Seas".
The A/Chairman also drew the meeting's attention to the unfortunate illness of Captain Brian Silvester FNI who is awaiting surgery in early April. The Directors expressed a wish for Captain Silvester's speedy recovery and the A/Chairman volunteered to call and pass this on to him.
Item 2: Adoption of the Agenda
It was moved by Captain Snider and seconded by Captain Silvester that the agenda be adopted as printed.
Carried
Item 3: Minutes of the Last Meeting.
The A/Secretary reported that the outstanding items had all been dealt with.
It was moved by Captain Smiley and seconded by Captain Smith that the Minutes of the last meeting be approved as published.
Carried
Item 4: Treasurer's Report
The A/Treasurer reported that currently, the Branch balance with the Credit Union account stands at $141.74 and the Interest bearing account with ING Direct at $7,978.46 for a total of $8,120.20
His main efforts recently have been directed to producing records of actual costs from last year for comparison purposes and the drafting of a 2006 budget.
Item 5: Spring Conference Report
As Chairman of the Conference Organizing Committee, Captain Smiley reported that things are on track, with titles for all speakers' presentations having been received. Missing are a few speakers biographies. What was most disappointing was the lack of interest in sponsoring that he had encountered from companies whose livelihood was closely bound up with the cruise industry.
Captain Smiley went on to emphasize the need for all Directors to actively spread the word among the membership as well as all their business contacts. Registration at the moment barely equals the number of speakers and consists largely of Board members.
The Communications Director reported that he was well along in his advertising campaign and the conference is beginning to show up in various trade magazines on the coast. He repeated his need for accurately and timely information on speakers, their topics and any changes.
Item 6: AGM 2006
The AGM will occur on the night before the Spring Conference in the same location and will roughly follow last year's schedule i.e. AGM- 1830 hours to 1930 hours, Drinks at a no-host bar 1930 hours to 2000 hours. Dinner at 2000 hours.
As part of the AGM, Mr. Philip Wake , the Chief Executive of the NI will speak on the NI Five-year Strategic Plan and is most keen to receive input from members of the Branch. There will not be an after-dinner speaker.
Secretarial Note: It must be appreciated that members who attend the AGM and who have not informed Captain Smiley or Captain Steele of their intention to do so by 13th April cannot be accommodated at the dinner as the hotel must know numbers for catering purposes.
The A/Secretary was encouraged by the Board to expedite the process of officially informing the membership of both the AGM and the Conference in the hopes that this might improve the list of registrants.
Action: Secretary
Item 7: 2006 Budget
The A/Treasurer reported that despite his best efforts and those of the Board at the last meeting, he had to table a draft budget for 2006 showing an overall deficit of $4,157. The Board discussed the matter at length and heard a proposal for reimbursement of expenses for attending the WMCC from the A/Secretary.
The Communications Director, noting that he had not yet placed advertising for the Spring Conference to the full extent of his budget, indicated his intention to stop at this point ($4711) to assist the situation.
The Board agreed to reimburse the A/Secretary for attending the WMCC for a maximum of 6 meetings at $100 per meeting.
The A/Treasurer pointed out that the Spring Conference revenue tends to offset the expenses and so that, in general terms, the Branch is funding all other expenses from the subvention. In his opinion there was a need to increase revenue, possibly via a Fall Seminar as reduction of expenses could go no further.
The issue of having a CMAC representative was discussed at some length but there was unanimous agreement that the NI served an important role at this semi-annual meeting and that Captain Farid had firmly placed the NI on the map as the only organization concerned with the good of the marine profession, representing neither labour, management or government. The A/Secretary mused that it seemed ironic that there are many NI members in Eastern Canada who could attend at far less cost but who seemed unable to form a Branch and get themselves organized. Thus, the only Canadian branch, situated just about as far it can get from Ottawa was required to carry the banner for all.
The Communications Director, while welcoming the A/Treasurer's idea of a Fall Seminar in principle, pointed out that to succeed it will need a dedicated Mainland Seminar Committee and he hoped that someone would step forward with a proposal if that is the case.
The Directors, observing that they had done considerable work to reduce expenses, and in some cases accepted personal responsibility for Branch expenses, agreed to present the draft budget, deficit and all to the membership at the AGM for ratification. It was agreed that this not only reflected accurately the current fiscal state of the Branch, but might be sufficient to galvanize some members into helping with revenue-generation, if only to preserve the existence of the Branch.
It was moved by Captain Snider and seconded by Captain Silvester that the A/Treasurer be heartily congratulated on the outstanding job he has done while in this position and the excellent quality of his reports.
Carried
Item 8: Mr. Philip Wake Program
The A/Secretary reported that Mr. Wake will be arriving on the evening of Wednesday, 19th April and would be accommodated at his house for the duration of his visit. Mr. Wake had indicated his willingness to be available for meetings, calls, discussions etc. in the period before the AGM . The Directors agreed that an informal gathering to meet him and discuss things great and small would be most desirable and suggested that the Canoe Pub at 1700 hours on Thursday 20th April would be most appropriate. All members welcome.
Item 9: Officers/ Directors for 2006
A number of Directors and Officers stated their willingness to stand for re-election but the position of Treasure remains open at this time. All members are reminded of their duty to consider serving the Branch in some capacity and are encouraged to nominate someone or to seek nomination themselves. Nomination forms are available from the A/Secretary.
Current Officers/Directors who have not made their intentions known to the A/Secretary are requested to do so at their earliest convenience in order that the proposed slate can be included in the Invitation Letter to the membership.
Item 10: Any Other Business
Mr. Bowland asked about the role of the Nautical Institute and the Branch in particular. Based on his experience as a Master of a large cruise ship working on the West Coast, he knew of a number of issues of concern to mariners that do not appear to be dealt with by a professional body or association. He cited the example of the immense complexity of to-day's bridge equipment and concerns some officers have that training standards have by no means kept up with the rapid change that is occurring. The Directors noted his input with interest and looked forward to hearing more from him at a later date. He was warmly encouraged to expedite his membership and thanked for his interest.
Captain Smiley displayed a wall clock with an association logo on it as an example of the sort of gift that can be purchased via a website. Captain Smith was well acquainted with this particular "cybershop" having used it for his Surveyors Association. The matter was discussed as a means of obtaining NI items either as gifts for speakers or for purchase by members.
Captain Johnston informed the meeting of his concern that the National Marine Industry Council, just being formed might overtake the role of CMAC in representing the marine industry to government. Some of the NMIC recommendations reach down to the safety level, where normally the matter would be dealt with by CMAC. After some discussion, it was agreed that the NMIC appeared to be more a lobby group dealing with policy at the Ministerial level, leaving work at the bureaucracy level to CMAC as has been the case in the past.
Item 11: Next Meeting
The next meeting will be Tuesday, 11th April, 2006 hopefully in the newly refitted "Spirit of Vancouver Island." Captain Smiley took the opportunity to remind the members of the Spring Conference Committee that there will be a meeting of that group sometime near the end of March to put the finishing touches on the organization for 21-22 April.
Item 12: Adjournment
The 1900 ferry for the Island having arrived, it was moved by Captain Smiley that the meeting be adjourned.
Carried
Submitted by: Approved by:
Captain J.K. Steele Captain Z. Farid FNI
A/Secretary A/Chairman
British Columbia Branch
Minutes of the Directors' Meeting, Tuesday, 14th March 2006
in the Training Room, Tsawwassen Terminal
Present:
Captain Z. Farid FNI Vice-Chairman (Island)
Captain R. Smith A/Treasurer
Captain J. K. Steele A/Secretary
Captain D. Snider Communications Director
Directors:
Captain B. Johnston FNI
Captain D. Smiley
Captain H. Silvester
Members: Mr. J. Roberts
Guests: Mr. Darin Bowland
Regrets: Captain Shard FNI , Lt Cdr Stanford FNI, Captains Bowles, B. Silvester, Lewis and Frappell
The Chairman having indicated his absence out of the country, Captain Farid took the Chair and called the meeting to order at 1700 hours.
Item 1: Chairman's opening remarks
In his opening remarks, the A/Chairman welcomed those present and in particular, a guest in the form of Mr. Darin Bowland MM the Director, Safety , Health and Environment at BC Ferries. Mr. Bowland is in the process of joining the Nautical Institute, having recently joined the Corporation from a career at sea as the Master of such vessels as the "Radiance of the Seas".
The A/Chairman also drew the meeting's attention to the unfortunate illness of Captain Brian Silvester FNI who is awaiting surgery in early April. The Directors expressed a wish for Captain Silvester's speedy recovery and the A/Chairman volunteered to call and pass this on to him.
Item 2: Adoption of the Agenda
It was moved by Captain Snider and seconded by Captain Silvester that the agenda be adopted as printed.
Carried
Item 3: Minutes of the Last Meeting.
The A/Secretary reported that the outstanding items had all been dealt with.
It was moved by Captain Smiley and seconded by Captain Smith that the Minutes of the last meeting be approved as published.
Carried
Item 4: Treasurer's Report
The A/Treasurer reported that currently, the Branch balance with the Credit Union account stands at $141.74 and the Interest bearing account with ING Direct at $7,978.46 for a total of $8,120.20
His main efforts recently have been directed to producing records of actual costs from last year for comparison purposes and the drafting of a 2006 budget.
Item 5: Spring Conference Report
As Chairman of the Conference Organizing Committee, Captain Smiley reported that things are on track, with titles for all speakers' presentations having been received. Missing are a few speakers biographies. What was most disappointing was the lack of interest in sponsoring that he had encountered from companies whose livelihood was closely bound up with the cruise industry.
Captain Smiley went on to emphasize the need for all Directors to actively spread the word among the membership as well as all their business contacts. Registration at the moment barely equals the number of speakers and consists largely of Board members.
The Communications Director reported that he was well along in his advertising campaign and the conference is beginning to show up in various trade magazines on the coast. He repeated his need for accurately and timely information on speakers, their topics and any changes.
Item 6: AGM 2006
The AGM will occur on the night before the Spring Conference in the same location and will roughly follow last year's schedule i.e. AGM- 1830 hours to 1930 hours, Drinks at a no-host bar 1930 hours to 2000 hours. Dinner at 2000 hours.
As part of the AGM, Mr. Philip Wake , the Chief Executive of the NI will speak on the NI Five-year Strategic Plan and is most keen to receive input from members of the Branch. There will not be an after-dinner speaker.
Secretarial Note: It must be appreciated that members who attend the AGM and who have not informed Captain Smiley or Captain Steele of their intention to do so by 13th April cannot be accommodated at the dinner as the hotel must know numbers for catering purposes.
The A/Secretary was encouraged by the Board to expedite the process of officially informing the membership of both the AGM and the Conference in the hopes that this might improve the list of registrants.
Action: Secretary
Item 7: 2006 Budget
The A/Treasurer reported that despite his best efforts and those of the Board at the last meeting, he had to table a draft budget for 2006 showing an overall deficit of $4,157. The Board discussed the matter at length and heard a proposal for reimbursement of expenses for attending the WMCC from the A/Secretary.
The Communications Director, noting that he had not yet placed advertising for the Spring Conference to the full extent of his budget, indicated his intention to stop at this point ($4711) to assist the situation.
The Board agreed to reimburse the A/Secretary for attending the WMCC for a maximum of 6 meetings at $100 per meeting.
The A/Treasurer pointed out that the Spring Conference revenue tends to offset the expenses and so that, in general terms, the Branch is funding all other expenses from the subvention. In his opinion there was a need to increase revenue, possibly via a Fall Seminar as reduction of expenses could go no further.
The issue of having a CMAC representative was discussed at some length but there was unanimous agreement that the NI served an important role at this semi-annual meeting and that Captain Farid had firmly placed the NI on the map as the only organization concerned with the good of the marine profession, representing neither labour, management or government. The A/Secretary mused that it seemed ironic that there are many NI members in Eastern Canada who could attend at far less cost but who seemed unable to form a Branch and get themselves organized. Thus, the only Canadian branch, situated just about as far it can get from Ottawa was required to carry the banner for all.
The Communications Director, while welcoming the A/Treasurer's idea of a Fall Seminar in principle, pointed out that to succeed it will need a dedicated Mainland Seminar Committee and he hoped that someone would step forward with a proposal if that is the case.
The Directors, observing that they had done considerable work to reduce expenses, and in some cases accepted personal responsibility for Branch expenses, agreed to present the draft budget, deficit and all to the membership at the AGM for ratification. It was agreed that this not only reflected accurately the current fiscal state of the Branch, but might be sufficient to galvanize some members into helping with revenue-generation, if only to preserve the existence of the Branch.
It was moved by Captain Snider and seconded by Captain Silvester that the A/Treasurer be heartily congratulated on the outstanding job he has done while in this position and the excellent quality of his reports.
Carried
Item 8: Mr. Philip Wake Program
The A/Secretary reported that Mr. Wake will be arriving on the evening of Wednesday, 19th April and would be accommodated at his house for the duration of his visit. Mr. Wake had indicated his willingness to be available for meetings, calls, discussions etc. in the period before the AGM . The Directors agreed that an informal gathering to meet him and discuss things great and small would be most desirable and suggested that the Canoe Pub at 1700 hours on Thursday 20th April would be most appropriate. All members welcome.
Item 9: Officers/ Directors for 2006
A number of Directors and Officers stated their willingness to stand for re-election but the position of Treasure remains open at this time. All members are reminded of their duty to consider serving the Branch in some capacity and are encouraged to nominate someone or to seek nomination themselves. Nomination forms are available from the A/Secretary.
Current Officers/Directors who have not made their intentions known to the A/Secretary are requested to do so at their earliest convenience in order that the proposed slate can be included in the Invitation Letter to the membership.
Item 10: Any Other Business
Mr. Bowland asked about the role of the Nautical Institute and the Branch in particular. Based on his experience as a Master of a large cruise ship working on the West Coast, he knew of a number of issues of concern to mariners that do not appear to be dealt with by a professional body or association. He cited the example of the immense complexity of to-day's bridge equipment and concerns some officers have that training standards have by no means kept up with the rapid change that is occurring. The Directors noted his input with interest and looked forward to hearing more from him at a later date. He was warmly encouraged to expedite his membership and thanked for his interest.
Captain Smiley displayed a wall clock with an association logo on it as an example of the sort of gift that can be purchased via a website. Captain Smith was well acquainted with this particular "cybershop" having used it for his Surveyors Association. The matter was discussed as a means of obtaining NI items either as gifts for speakers or for purchase by members.
Captain Johnston informed the meeting of his concern that the National Marine Industry Council, just being formed might overtake the role of CMAC in representing the marine industry to government. Some of the NMIC recommendations reach down to the safety level, where normally the matter would be dealt with by CMAC. After some discussion, it was agreed that the NMIC appeared to be more a lobby group dealing with policy at the Ministerial level, leaving work at the bureaucracy level to CMAC as has been the case in the past.
Item 11: Next Meeting
The next meeting will be Tuesday, 11th April, 2006 hopefully in the newly refitted "Spirit of Vancouver Island." Captain Smiley took the opportunity to remind the members of the Spring Conference Committee that there will be a meeting of that group sometime near the end of March to put the finishing touches on the organization for 21-22 April.
Item 12: Adjournment
The 1900 ferry for the Island having arrived, it was moved by Captain Smiley that the meeting be adjourned.
Carried
Submitted by: Approved by:
Captain J.K. Steele Captain Z. Farid FNI
A/Secretary A/Chairman
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