In Depth: Towards the Connected Ship
As we all know, the Netherlands has a large maritime industry, as well as being home to the largest port in Europe it also boasts a large fleet of seagoing and inland ships. The maritime sector, however, is always under price pressure. The shared opinion in general is that the the Netherlands constantly innovating in regards to shipbuilding which is essential for survival.
Competition on cost-price is simply not sustainable. For shipbuilders and equipment manufacturers, it means the acceptance and use of new innovative concepts, which further decrease the operating costs whilst increasing availability of the assets.
When I look at my personal situation, I see that technology developments within IT have opened up immense possibilities. Mobile phones communicate seamlessly with the world around them. Using their wealth of build-in sensors, data can be extracted that supports many applications. I can stream music, using Spotify, to many devices. My car calls the emergency services by itself should a collision take place, telling them the collision forces and location.
So when are we in the maritime domain embracing this? The industrial internet concept, connecting machines and using automated data analytics along with domain expertise to optimise operations and maintenance, has already created significant value in many industries like power generation and commercial aviation. When will it become a reality for our industry? When can we expect ‘the connected ship’?
The basic concept of the industrial internet is connecting machines with each other and with people to get more out of assets, to help people be more productive, to make supply chains more efficient, to enhance customer experience and to drive innovation. In my experience, we are still treating ships as operational units, focusing more on (building) costs and operational costs. Data is collected, but stays on board and is not analysed. We should treat the ship as a business unit, and focus on added value and availability. Using operational data is crucial in achieving this goal.
The industrial internet creates exciting opportunities for the maritime industry. The potential for value creation is immense. Using the possibilities of the industrial internet, using clever techniques that support crew in making decisions, or offer support from the shore. You can think of applications
as condition-based maintenance, crew support, logistics support, paperless sailing, and many more. My personal call to the industry: Let’s start designing ships, which have future remote services in mind today!
I invite each party to think about their role in the connected ship. Think about which data you would need for efficient operations during design of your new ship, discuss with suppliers about data supply - and sharing - from their equipment, and which (preferably open) protocols to use. A clear strategy will allow remote services to grow and allow us to stay ahead in our business.
Dan Veen
Senior Business Developer TNO Maritime & Offshore
