Four fundamental digitalization principles

In our experience, there is a very clear pattern among vessel owners and operators in how they approach digitalization of their vessels. While vessel digitalization has the potential to change the way we operate and provide immense benefits, navigating through the pitfalls can be tricky. There is a big gap between what most vessel owners and operators “should want” and what they often “think they want”. Heavily influenced by glossy stories of advanced algorithms and artificial intelligence, it is easy to fall into the trap of starting out in the advanced end without first solving the basics.

Getting the basics right is paramount for any vessel owner or operator, regardless of whether vessels already have some form of digital capability or if the digital initiative represents something completely new.

Based on the experience we have from working with various types of owners and needs, we believe these four principles should be on top of your vessel digitalization agenda:

1 – Data ownership: You as a vessel owner/operator own the data generated from your vessel. You should be able to access this data and use it in any way you see fit.

2 – Flexibility throughout the digital journey: You need to ensure flexibility and scalability in any solution to solve your unique challenges today and tomorrow. Your needs will develop over time and you need to ensure that you have a flexible setup that can handle changes and constantly be adapted. Avoid proprietary silos. An open infrastructure ensure that you can go in many directions, providing scalability and flexibility.

3 – Lock in vs. freedom: Don’t get locked in and get “everything” from one supplier. No single supplier will be best at everything. You should have the freedom to work with best of breed suppliers on any specialist topic in order to realize your digital use cases in the best possible way. No one knows the winners of the future – but you should be able to continuously select whom to work with.

4 – Silver bullet: There is no such thing. If anyone say vessel digitalization is easy, stay away. It takes focus, dedication and experience. The good news is that the rewards outweigh the efforts.

When embarking on vessel digitalization, ensure to get the basics rights, everything else will follow consequentially.

Learn more about how we approach vessel digitalization – reach out to us, we are happy to talk.  - Contact us