Karan Khemani is a 2nd Engineer who was aboard TORM Valborg, one of TORM LR2 class of vessels, when we talked to him. Reporting to the Chief Engineer, Karan has daily responsibility for a team of five Engineers and two Sailors who keep everything mechanical on the 100,000 DWT product tanker running smoothly.
“Even if a colleague needs to do something as simple as climb a two-meter ladder, it is our job to make sure it happens according to the book.”
TORM’s safety culture means a lot to Karan and how he leads the crew’s daily tasks. “Safety is an extremely important part of maintenance and operations,” says Karan. “We have safety protocols for everything. Even if a colleague needs to do something as simple as climbing a two-meter ladder, it is our job to make sure it happens according to the book. What are the potential hazards? What can we do to mitigate risks? Should he be wearing a harness? If something does go wrong, what can we learn to improve our system so it does not happen again?”
The uncompromising focus on safety comes naturally to Karan after 10 years at TORM. “When I am on leave, I feel naked for the first few days without my helmet and earmuffs,” he laughs. “But onboard any TORM vessel, the system is the same. And when you operate as many vessels as TORM does, all of that collective focus on safety helps us to improve continually.”
In fact, one of the things that Karan likes most about TORM is its culture of continuous improvement. “TORM has been around for more than 130 years,” he explains “So, there are very robust policies and systems. The TORM culture is more geared toward finding solutions than assigning blame. Of course, everyone is accountable for what they do, but if something does not go according to plan, the first focus is on understanding why and what we can do to prevent that from happening again, not to point fingers.”
Measure what matters – including crew wellbeing
As a manager with direct reports, Karan also stresses the importance of the crew’s overall wellbeing. “TORM vessels are our workplace and our home for months at a time,” he says. “This gives officers a special responsibility to take care of not only the crew’s physical security but also their social and mental health and safety.
Our ‘Well at TORM’ initiative plays an important role here. Everyone on board is encouraged to get some exercise and socialize at the end of our shifts, and officers are incentivized to care. Making ‘Well at TORM’ a part of our culture and something that gets followed up on makes it happen consistently, and what happens consistently makes a big difference.”
“My crew’s security and their wellbeing are important parts of my performance appraisal, too.”
Officers at TORM are evaluated not only on operational and safety targets but also on how they deal with their juniors. “As a 2nd Engineer, only 20% of my appraisal is directly related to maintenance” says Karan. “The TORM culture places a lot of importance on personal leadership, safety, and how employees are doing, so my crew’s security and their wellbeing are important parts of my performance appraisal, too.”
Onshore Vessel Managers are also measured on how closely they stick to the work/life balance agreed with crews, for example, giving Vessel Managers a clear incentive to make sure shore leaves happen on time.
Karan has risen through the engineering ranks quickly and has his eyes firmly set on his next career goal: becoming a Chief Engineer. “TORM managers notice when someone has the spark. If you have the right attitude and work hard, this is recognized. And if you do that consistently, you have every opportunity to move up the career ladder.”