Shipping plays a pivotal role in the national economy of many countries that has a coast-line bordering them. As estimated, there are over 90% of the world’s trade is carried by sea ways along with it being cost effective too. Applying the development of digital technology, there are many ship management softwares that have been invented to enhance the safety and efficiency of maritime transport. It was the advancements in technologies that saw companies amid the pandemic. With new age softwares one can manage their vessels in a greener and safer way by using modern applications for ship operations. This blog will show you the outstanding benefits of ship management software and recommend effective ship management software.
Integrated vessel system – Regular data synchronization changes are tracked on both sides of the system; they are extracted and transported to the vessel and offshore.
Hosted office systems – One does not need to worry about running a database and application server. Office staff gets remote access to the system wherever they are. It manages the application and ensures that data from the vessels arrive without problems.
Regular system updates – Certain software companies deliver weekly updated content in order to ensure that the latest nautical information is available onboard and offshore simultaneously.
Downward compatibility – Software systems can always work with different versions in the same fleet. For larger fleets this is often the only way to work.
Agile system implementation – If more than one software system is taken, the implementation is often phased, e.g. Technical and Procurement are implemented first, followed by Quality, Health, Safety and Environment (QHSE) and Crewing. The onboard versions of the software get ship-specific data from a configuration file sent from shore or a manual data input.
It offers better trade – The cargo information about ships leaving from various ports, connecting ships’ schedules can all be communicated and improve trade. It will also help the trade activities by the ship which will be easily tracked and monitored, handled quickly in bad situations, and easily given the optimal plan for the journey, crew.
Looks out for the safety of ships – A well-connected information exchange system will keep maritime accidents at bay, and moreover allows better coordination between the ships and the staff which is offshore. The marine industry, which has historically been a tech-laggard, has gradually started adopting new technologies like Cloud computing and collaboration tools in shipping operations.
Maritime professionals can be increasingly heard discussing cloud computing, virtual assistants, machine learning, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, IoT (Internet of Things) and even block-chain and virtual reality.
Has improved warehouse management – Through integration with a warehouse management system or an enterprise resource planning software, the automation decreases time and resources put into data entry. This improves supply chain visibility, lowers freight delivery costs, and makes for better business decisions.
Has a reduced chance for human error – A proper system will be able to manage all the logistics, without having to worry about human errors. Shipping and logistics softwares eliminate such concerns by verifying each aspect of a shipment.
Better coordination – The abundant data streams arriving from all parts play a role in improving the regulation of shipping operations and optimizing commercial operations. When investing in maritime software solutions, a team of customer support representatives works in accordance with seafarers.
All in one system – The Software systems help in the smooth execution of significant business activities, including accounting, project management, risk management, and other operations. A comprehensive system also includes company performance management, including features like planning, budgeting, analysis, prediction, and company’s financial reports, use reporting packages for flexible analysis fleet-wide for each department, such as Technical Management, Procurement, QHSE, Crewing Performance (e.g. speed profiles and bunker usage). This helps integrate the staff onshore and offshore.
Data-Driven Efficiency and Enhanced Productivity- With digitalization, immense amounts of data can be gathered from across various touch points, which can be used to enhance decision making, monitoring, verification and control. With advances in technology, data from different processes and operations no longer needs to be manually collated and analyzed. Data is collected automatically and in real-time from ships and is visible on customizable dashboards. The Shipping industry can pre-schedule general workflow for each department and automate many iterative tasks operated on a daily basis. It helps staff members to spend comparatively less time on performing repetitive tasks like creating proposals, filling forms, making quotes, creating reports, and eventually in improving overall productivity.
Compliance with Environmental Regulations – Environmental regulations have become increasingly more stringent, particularly with the establishment of the IMO 2025, IMO 2030, and IMO 2050 environmental goals. By retrofitting vessels with sensors, companies can gain insights into each vessel’s fuel consumption, pollution levels, engine performance and bunkering. This can then help vessel operators take timely decisions to comply with the latest environmental regulations.
Time Saving – The shipping companies offer not only traditional shipping services, but also provide online shipping services, inbound inventory management, digital warehousing services, and warehouse fulfillment. All of these aspects include numerous intricate tasks and practices. These help run the collective process in a shipping business smoothly. From documentation to tracking of the delivery of the goods to the responsible person, everything needs to be assessed and now can be done by the click of a button.
Also today the world needs engines that can cope up with the stringent emission norms and higher demands for robust, reliable and smart engines with low operational cost. To achieve the above possibilities, a whole new generation of engine is being developed with a comprehensive use of electronics, hardware and software in large 2 stroke low speed cross head engines known as “Intelligent Engines” which can work via fossil fuels and low combustion fuels.
Therefore, choosing a maritime-friendly solution for software will minimize the time and attention required to adapt the service to an organization. In short, the ship and shore must be brought closer together to harness the power of data.
