PILOT
Pilot Rotation Desks
The pilot rotation desk is where a convoy first finds its rhythm. We build a boarding sequence that names a specific pilot for every leg, fixes a realistic transfer hour and checks that no pilot appears in two places on the same tide. The desk keeps a live roster of availability, so when a vessel arrives early or a transfer runs long, the rotation is redrawn on the same day rather than left to a rushed radio call at the gangway.
Each rotation is issued as a simple sheet pinned to the plot rail: leg number, vessel, pilot name, boarding point, release point and the slack hour that cushions the plan. We also prepare a substitution line for every leg, because a rotation with no fallback is only a wish. Clients receive the rotas a week ahead of the first movement and a revised sheet whenever the roster changes.
MOOR
Mooring Plan Drafts
A mooring plan is drawn before the hull is alongside. Our drafts map every line run, name the bollards in order and set the safe sequence for taking a head line, a spring and a stern line on a berth that may never have been designed for a convoy of the size in question. We look at the wind exposure, the swell window and the length of the quay, then draw two arrangements: the plan we expect to use and the fallback if conditions shift.
The draft is not a single drawing. It includes a line list, the expected load on each bollard, the order in which lines should be taken and the hour at which a second mooring boat should be called if the first approach does not settle. The delivered plan is printed large enough to pin in the wheelhouse and summarised in a short note that the master can read in the two minutes before the approach.
BERTH
Berth Window Planning
A berth window is the narrow slice of time when a vessel may actually sit at a quay without blocking its neighbours. The berth desk plans those slices against the working hours of the terminal, the availability of cranes, the movement of adjacent traffic and the tide at both ends of the turn. We turn a vague request to come alongside into a booked window with a start, an end and a stated risk if the start slips.
The output is a booking sheet that the vessel, the terminal and the escort group can all read from. Where two convoys compete for the same hour, the desk proposes a staggered order and shows the cost of each option in delay rather than in jargon. If a window must move, the desk names the earliest safe alternative before the original hour has passed, so the convoy is never simply turned away at the gate.
TIDE
Tide Table Reviews
Tide is the quiet arithmetic behind every safe arrival, and the review desk reads it closely. We take the tables for the exact stretch of water in use, mark the slack windows, note the shallow edges and list the hours when a deeper draft vessel must wait. The review is short and plain, written for the person on the bridge rather than for an archive, and every figure is checked against the local station that governs the berth.
A completed review carries the source of the tide data, the correction applied for the berth and the margin we recommend for each movement. Where the plan depends on a single window, the desk flags it in red on the slate so no one mistakes a comfortable reading for a safe one. Reviews are refreshed whenever a convoy timetable shifts by more than a tide, so the numbers on the rail are always the numbers in use.
CREW
Crew Change Schedules
Changing a crew mid convoy is a logistics puzzle of vans, flights, gangways and handover notes. Our schedule desk moves people in orderly waves, so a vessel receives its relief in the right order and the outgoing crew has time to leave a clean handover before the new team takes the watch. We build the schedule around the berth window and the tide, then work backwards to the van departure and the flight arrival.
Every schedule includes a printed sequence for the day, a named contact at the quay and a fallback for the late van or the delayed flight. We keep a light buffer in each wave so a single slip does not become a missed tide, and we note the cut off hour after which the change is simply deferred to the next window. The result is a day that the crew can follow without a dozen phone calls.
DRILL
Safety Drill Calendars
Drills are planned like any other part of the plot. The calendar desk chooses dates that do not collide with a busy berth window or a crew change, publishes the quarter ahead and reviews the calendar monthly as the convoy shape shifts. We treat the drill as a working commitment rather than paperwork, so the calendar is visible on the plot rail beside every other desk.
Each calendar carries the drill type, the lead person, the vessel and the expected duration, with a note on what the drill should prove. When a drill is deferred, the reason is recorded and a new date is set before the old one is allowed to pass. The desk also prepares a short summary of completed drills each quarter, so the record is ready whenever it is asked for rather than assembled in a hurry.