Engine Room Resource Management (ERM)

Engine-room resource management (ERM) is the STCW competence covering teamwork, communication, workload and resource allocation, situation awareness, and decision-making among the engine watch, the counterpart to bridge resource management. The 2010 Manila amendments to STCW made ERM a required competence for officers in charge of an engineering watch and for chief and second engineers. It addresses clear order-and-response, prioritization during alarms and emergencies, effective use of automation and external resources, and challenge-and-response to catch errors. The aim is to reduce machinery incidents that stem from coordination and human-factors failures rather than equipment defects.