Witherby Publishing Group, formerly known as Witherby Seamanship, is a technical

publisher Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

of maritime, nautical and

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

training, reference and regulatory materials. The company is the resulting merger of Witherby Books and Seamanship International in January 2008. Beginning with its origins in 1740 it lays claim to being the oldest independent publisher in the English-speaking world. Witherbys publish guidance titles with numerous shipping bodies and maritime NGOs. These include the International Chamber of Shipping, the UK Chamber of Shipping, BIMCO, OCIMF, SIGTTO, North P&I, the UK P&I Club, the International Association of Classification Societies, the Merchant Navy Training Board and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), as well as acting as an official electronic distributor for the

International Maritime Organization The International Maritime Organization (IMO; ; ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating maritime transport. The IMO was established following agreement at a ...

. Witherbys are an official distributor of INTERTANKO publications. The company holds working groups, which include specialist consultants from relevant sectors, as well as in-house technical advisors, authors and editors, to produce their publications.

History

The company's tradition of publishing and bookselling was initially started by the stationer Thomas Witherby at the company's founding in 1740 in the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

. The early company developed as a stationers and as a copier and producer of legal documents, including articles of agreements, bonds and pro-forma contracts for marine insurance and carriage of goods by sea, operating in proximity to the maritime trade of the adjacent Coffeehouses. From 1749 until 1873, the company was located at Birchin Lane, adjacent to Lombard Street in London before later moving to several premises, including a building in

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell ( ) is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an Civil Parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish from the medieval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The St James's C ...

and later in Aylesbury Street,

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

. Throughout this period, the operating name of the changed from ''Witherby and Son'' to ''Witherby and Company'', including a subsidiary ''HF and G Witherby'' that specialised in

ornithology Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...

books under the auspices of Harry Forbes Witherby, a descendant of Thomas Witherby. The collections of the early Witherby company are available at the London Metropolitan Archives. In 1998, the company Seamanship International was begun by Iain Macneil providing training materials for the maritime industry from Scotland and in 2008 the company bought out and merged with Witherbys, moving the business to Scotland (the physical printing arm of the company was sold off under the name WKG Print). Since relocating to Scotland, the company has expanded to become one of the largest maritime publishers in the world, publishing over 400 titles to over 110 countries in the world. It is estimated that there are more than a million Witherby ebooks in use on over 40,000 ships. In 2017, the company was awarded a new coat of arms by the Court of the Lord Lyon which includes Scottish Blackface rams and the Birlinn, an historical West Highlands galley. In December 2020, David Balston, a former

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

Vanguard-class submarine Commander, Prime Ministerial advisor and head of Policy at the UK Chamber of Shipping joined Witherbys as Deputy Chairman and non-executive director. In March 2023, David Balston was appointed Chairman of Witherbys.

Location

The company has registered offices in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, Scotland, with the main offices and warehouse being located at Navigation House in Livingston, Scotland.

Products

Witherbys publishes on a range of maritime technical and operational subjects including

, Ballast Water Management, ECDIS,

Oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk cargo, bulk transport of petroleum, oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quant ...

operations, LNG tanker operations,

seamanship Seamanship is the skill, art, competence (human resources), competence, and knowledge of operating a ship, boat or other craft on water. The'' Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford Dictionary'' states that seamanship is "The skill, techniques, o ...

ship stability Ship stability is an area of naval architecture and ship design that deals with how a ship behaves at sea, both in still water and in waves, whether intact or damaged. Stability calculations focus on center of mass#center of gravity, centers of ...

and passage planning. Together with the UK P&I Club, Witherbys publishes the marine reference book ''Carefully to Carry'', which contains guidance on the safe carriage, loading and storage of cargo on cargo ships. In September 2021, with the UK P&I Club and CAE, Witherby published a safety publication entitled ''Maritime Team Dynamics'', a safety book comparing aviation and maritime incidents. In February 2019, in conjunction with BIMCO and International Shipcare, Witherbys released the ''Ship Lay-up Guide''. In response to IMO efforts to require cyber security to be addressed under the

International Safety Management Code The International Safety Management (ISM) Code is the International Maritime Organization (IMO) standard for the safe management and operation of ships at sea. The purpose of the ISM Code * To ensure safety at sea and prevent damage to proper ...

, in November 2019, together with BIMCO and the International Chamber of Shipping Witherbys published the ''Cyber Security Workbook for Onboard Ship Use''. A second edition was published in October 2020. On behalf of OCIMF and the International Chamber of Shipping, the company publishes the ''International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals (ISGOTT)'', which is used as a reference guide on most oil tankers and in most terminals. A sixth edition of ISGOTT was published in June 2020. With OCIMF, Witherbys also publish the ''Mooring Equipment Guidelines'', the 4th edition was published in 2018. In partnership with the International Chamber of Shipping, Witherbys publishes ''Drug Trafficking and Drug Abuse On Board Ship: Guidelines for Owners and Masters on Preparation, Prevention, Protection and Response''. In 2021, the sixth edition of the publication was released, offering guidance on how to protect the ship and crew via a range of security measures, while reducing the risk of drug trafficking occurring on board. Witherbys also publish the ICS guidance on Maritime security with a publication entitled ''Maritime Security - A comprehensive Guide for Shipowners, Seafarers and Administrations''. With Maritime Industry Australia, Witherbys publish a Passage Planning Guide for the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

and Torres Strait. Together with BIMCO, the company publishes an annual guidance title on contractual risks entitled ''Check Before Fixing''. In 2021, the company issued ''Witherby Connect'', an eBook reader software for the marine industry. Also in 2021, the company launched an

LNG carrier An LNG carrier is a tank ship designed for transporting liquefied natural gas (LNG). Overview The first oceangoing liquified natural gas tanker in the world was '' Methane Pioneer'', which entered service in 1959 with a carrying capacity of ...

mooring tool called ''SHIPMOOR'' in partnership with the research company HR Wallingford. In June 2022, with BIMCO and the Danish Pilotage Organisation DanPilot, the company published a Passage Planning Guide on the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

covering the region from

Skagen Skagen () is the northernmost town in Denmark, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in North Denmark Region, Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalbo ...

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

. In August 2022, in partnership with ICS and BIMCO, Witherbys published a guidance title for the shipping industry on biofouling entitled ''Biofouling, Biosecurity and Hull Cleaning''. In 2023, together with the International Chamber of Shipping, the company released an updated version of the industry publication ''Drug Trafficking and Drug Abuse On Board Ship''. In January 2024, the company published an updated edition of ''The Pilot Ladder Manual'' which details regulations and procedures on

maritime pilot A maritime pilot, marine pilot, harbor pilot, port pilot, ship pilot, or simply pilot, is a mariner who has specific knowledge of an often dangerous or congested waterway, such as harbors or river mouths. Maritime pilots know local details s ...

pilot ladder embarkation and disembarkation. In 2024, the company released ''ECDIS Passage Planning and Watchkeeping'', an updated title for maritime professionals using ECDIS. In 2024, Witherbys with the International Chamber of Shipping, provided guidance to ships on managing the risks associated with stowaways and with rescue of displaced persons at sea.

Awards

Awards for the publisher have included the Queens Award for Enterprise, a Lloyds List Training Award and a Green Award. In March 2017, the company won the Sea Transport Award for 'best marine training material publishing company'.

Charitable trust and scholarships

In 2020, the company funded two publishing scholarships with Edinburgh Napier University and the University of Stirling. In 2021, the company offered a scholarship for an MLitt in Publishing Studies at the Stirling University Centre for International Publishing and Communication. The company manages a charitable trust which provides funds for

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...

and

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

in Scotland. In 2010, the trust paid for sports equipment for children in

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

. In 2019, the trust lead fundraising efforts to provide a gift of a new Steinway piano to St Mary's Music School in the West End of Edinburgh. For Christmas 2020, the trust funded the ''Witherby Arts Festival'' to support emerging musicians in Scotland. In June 2021, the trust supported the summer camp of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO). In September 2021, the trust donated £4,000 to the community Cairngorm Biathlon & Nordic Ski Club. In December 2021, the trust celebrated reaching £1,000,000 of charitable giving since 2011. In March 2023, the trust donated £105,000 to provide scholarships and bursaries for students from rural backgrounds to attend the University of the Highlands and Islands. In August 2023, the trust sponsored a summer music festival to support emerging artists at the Eden Court Theatre in Inverness.

MV Astra

In 2020, Witherbys purchased '' MV Astra'', a 24 metre Finnish-Swedish ice class rescue ship (formerly operated as the lead vessel of the Swedish Sea Rescue Society). The ship undertook conversion work in 2021 and is provides research opportunities for Witherbys, including the undertaking of an expedition to complete a 22,000 nautical mile

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical object, astronomical body (e.g. a planet or natural satellite, moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first circumnaviga ...

in 2021/2022 via the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

and

Cape Horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

. The voyage began in December 2021 departing from

Lanzarote Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands, off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the islands in the archipelago. With 163,230 inhabi ...

. The ship then sailed to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

via

. By mid-February 2022, the ship had reached its halfway point of a 25,000 mile circumnavigation. On 16 May 2022, the ship completed its circumnavigation becoming the first sub-24m motor-powered vessel to circumnavigate the globe via the southern capes, setting a new world record for this class and voyage. The ship was listed for sale in 2023.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Witherby Publishing GroupWitherby Seamanship
Book publishing companies of Scotland Publishing companies of the United Kingdom Companies based in Edinburgh

Companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether natural, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specifi ...

British Merchant Navy Maritime organizations 1740 establishments in Scotland