Solving the Puzzle of Crew Cabin Assignments

One of the biggest tasks to be completed during a newbuild process is assigning all of the crew cabins. It is a difficult task and is very much like putting together a giant puzzle. What makes it so intricate is that different factors have to be considered in every decision. You must keep in mind different departments, ranks, functions, changes in number of personnel, crew nationalities and gender while working to integrate locations and maintain an efficient mapping system. This is all compounded by the logistics of a new ship layout.

Before starting with the cabin assignments, we need to have a final Table of Personnel, or TOP, that is to say a count of the total number of crew in each department and function on board. As you are already aware, the Eurodam is the first of a new class of vessels for Holland America Line, the Signature class. This means that although the Eurodam is still very similar in appearance to our Vista-class ships, there are significant changes in some of the internal layouts, including the crew cabins areas. Additionally, with several new venues offered, such as the Tamarind and Canaletto restaurants, there is an increase in the number of crew on board.

After receiving the final TOP from our Seattle Human Resources Department we started with the assignment project. We brought along a box full of Noordam deck plans and files to aid us in our comparison. As you can see from the picture below this project required a lot of space to spread out the deck plans while Purser Marantha Aryaguna and I worked.

Some crew cabin areas were not affected by any changes and could be allocated easily, however, there were also many crewmembers that needed relocation. The first task we concentrated on was assigning cabins for key engineers and officers. We wrote their functions in the appropriate cabins on the deck plan, while simultaneously inputting the information into an Excel table on a laptop. This system provided us with a way to doublecheck all information and ensures that the cabins assigned are correct.

In addition to this, certain functions were also upgraded or downgraded in status. Any changes in status result in crew moving from inside cabins (without windows) to outside cabins or vice versa. All such changes have to be verified with the relevant planning manager in Seattle to ensure consistency.

Once we finished with the cabin allocation of engine, navigational and hotel officers, we moved on to petty officer berthing. Petty officer berthing is complicated by the fact that some are contracted to share rooms while others are not. All petty officer cabins, both single and shared, have private bathrooms and are entitled to daily cleaning services provided by housekeeping attendants.

We carefully mapped the areas that we needed to consider, concentrating as well on the distance to their working areas. This is especially important for petty officers involved with emergency duties (i.e., firefighters, etc.). We then grouped everyone by department, function and according to nationality. Many of the petty officers supervise large numbers of crew and have to be placed close to their team for efficient coordination. An example of this is the boatswain who is in charge of sailors and boatman, another one would be the engine foreman who is in charge of the wipers and fireman greasers.

An additional challenge this time was the increase of female crew on board and the newly added staff compared to our other class ships. This makes cabin assignment more complex because a change in one section automatically affects the entire plan. With the increase of female crew, an area was needed where they could be blocked together, allowing them more privacy and comfort. Finally, after several attempts and revisions we were able to finish allocating the large number of crew cabins, keeping them close to their department with groups of other crew in the same functions and together with crew of the same nationality.

After head office approval, the final task in all of this is to insert the finalized cabin assignment table into the Crew Administration Payroll, or CAP, system. This system is connected to the Fidelio security system where all crew data is updated according to relevant cabins. This final task is the responsibility of the human resources officer who prints and activates the room key cards which also serve as crew ID cards.