From bustling ports in India, Hamburg, Estonia, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Russia, Israel and around Australia, Nicole Magyar’s career took her all over the world before she joined the Port of Brisbane in 2022.
Nicole spends her two weeks on/off roster either onboard the Port’s flagship vessel, the TSHD Brisbane, as Master leading and managing the crew and ensuring safe and efficient operation, or at home making the most of her Tin Can Bay residence as a keen kite-surfer, camper, boatie and underwater hockey player.
An experienced Seafarer
Nicole has worked her way up from a Deck Cadet, joining her first vessel when she was just 18 – the only female and only Australian onboard. Chipping and painting in 52 degree heat in the UAE was where she started, and Nicole quickly learnt the basics on the bridge from the captain on her lunch breaks, as he relieved the Chief Mate. From there, Nicole was relieving as Second Mate and before she knew it, was working as Pipe Operator onboard, operating the dredging equipment on a 180m dredging vessel.
“I was lucky enough to join a vessel as Second Mate for a three year project off the coast of Western Australia with a ‘One Man Bridge’ set up, this was my first of many,” said Nicole.
“No Pipe Operator is required on one of these modern vessels and the Chief Mate/Second Mate at the helm operates the pipe with the help of the automation system. It’s a very complex design and important to have the correct settings inputted to ensure smooth operation.
“As a result, it is a very efficient way of dredging and once you learn the system, you know exactly what to expect and how to take advantage of it.”
Now as Master of the TSHD Brisbane, Nicole manages the Port of Brisbane crew onboard as the team works to ensure the Port’s 90km shipping channel maintains safe navigable depths for commercial shipping.
A job that comes with dynamic challenges
Nicole loves the variety and challenges that come with working up and down the East Coast of Australia.
“We’re a 24/7 operation working our way up and down the east coast of Australia – it’s rare to ever have two days the same on the Brisbane.”
As an experienced seafarer, the marine industry is certainly one Nicole’s made waves in, achieving her Bachelor of Applied Science (Nautical Science) Maritime Operations and her Master Unlimited Certificate of Competency qualification – the highest grade for a deck seafaring qualification.
For Nicole, every day is an opportunity to work with her crew to deliver quality outcomes and be the best leader she can be.
“From personal experience, I try to put in extra effort to be approachable to the crew, to motivate them and to have a balance between the responsibility of holding a senior role but still be able to have fun,” Nicole said.
Master during the Brisbane’s dry dock
Nicole’s most recent challenge as Master was supporting the Brisbane’s dry docking in Singapore with some crew from the Port.
Every five years, the Brisbane sails to a large dockyard, where it’s lifted out of the water for survey, repairs and maintenance.
“Singapore is the shipping hub of the world, so it’s a major project for the crew to prepare and then see out the maintenance works,” said Nicole.
“During the dry dock the team will ensure the hull, all dredging dump valves and main machinery are inspected, cleaned, painted and/or refurbished for compliance and renewal of her class certificates – ensuring the vessel’s reliability, safety and compliance. While docked we also have access to technical and engineering resources to perform maintenance, overhauls and upgrades on critical equipment and systems such as the dredge pumps, valves, piping and control systems.”
“Ultimately the Marine team’s role is to ensure the Port’s shipping channel maintains a safe navigable depth for commercial shipping, so ensuring the Brisbane runs reliably and efficiently is a critical component of the business.’
“It’s a massive job for the crew but the whole team has been communicating really well, it’s great to see it come together.”
In line with the Port’s ambitious sustainability goals, which includes achieving a positive net environmental benefit by 2023, Nicole and the crew also oversaw the installation of a fuel monitoring system in Singapore, which will ultimately help the team accurately determine fuel consumption, to improve efficiency whilst also reducing emissions.
Crew culture is key
Building a supportive culture onboard is a key priority for Nicole.
“It’s really important to me to help build team comradery given we spend half the year onboard together.”
“Every night, we have a game of 500 going and darts is also a favourite too – I really try to encourage a good social life on board to help build morale.
“At the end of the day, if we don’t operate as a team, the ship doesn’t operate smoothly.”
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