EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: Tides of change

WHILE the topics of technology, remote operations, automation, AI and the transition to new operational methods continue to be highly relevant in the global transport sector today, they remain contentious and emotional topics in the maritime industry. The contention, emotion and often opposing viewpoints are perhaps exacerbated by the fact that discussions often focus on the advantages and disadvantages of current methods versus contemporary solutions, where they could instead focus on the core issues and underlying drivers or considerations for change.

To develop solutions to old and new problems, we should hold back from diving straight into an evaluation of current methods or proposed solutions and instead look at the root issue, challenge or core requirements for a task. By doing so with ‘fresh eyes’, we can better understand and delve deeper into the challenges at hand and from here, open ourselves to new thinking and ideas.

It is at this stage that we can begin to work towards solutions that are free from biases, legacy constraints and preconceived notions about feasibility.

The ideas covered above here are not new and in fact, they represent a significant part of the framework for contemporary business case development. In simple terms, the business case framework involves defining a problem for the business, outlining possible solutions (including the option of doing nothing), detailing the benefits of each option, evaluating associated risks and ultimately conducting a financial analysis for each option. All of this combines to effectively present a suite of options graded using identical assessment criteria together with a risk profile, detailed capital and operating costings and an ROI on which to base an investment decision.

When we examine problem definitions in business cases, many focus heavily on the drivers for change. Proposals for technological advancements often consider various factors, including safety, environmental concerns, industry trends, legislative and regulatory changes, economic factors, advancements in technology, workforce and labour issues, social trends, quality and process improvement, strategic changes, efficiency, productivity and cost reduction, among others. All of these are highly relevant to the maritime industry.

Importantly, these factors are assessed in the context of decisions impacting the business now and also decisions made now but which will have significant future implications. This enables businesses to position themselves effectively in response to each factor and importantly, to build suitable solutions – for now and the future.

Contrary to the perception that technology is pursued and adopted blindly, the decision to embrace new technology is typically made through the same style of objective business and investment case described above. Interestingly, despite the potential benefits of increased awareness and risk mitigation, companies rarely apply this level of analysis to existing "legacy systems."

As a result, many businesses operate with outdated methods evaluated against obsolete criteria, hindering their understanding of the true costs and risks associated with maintaining the status quo. There is no shortage of case studies outlining tragedy and/or business failing where businesses have failed to appreciate the inherent risk and issues with leaving the situation as is. Furthermore, it’s often this perceived comfort and inability to let go of the status quo that is the biggest factor in preventing businesses from making necessary investments in technology or new ways.

There are presently significant and possibly unprecedented, considerations and drivers for change across the transport sector including safety, quality, precision, assurance, global management, labour scarcity, skills loss, knowledge synthesis and an ever increasing focus on costs, the environment and sustainability.

While the list of drivers may appear overwhelming and is unlikely to be resolved with a single solution, many of these considerations have been addressed in other industries through increased adoption of technology. The commonly recognised benefits of technology and automation include:

• Safety: reducing the need for workers to perform hazardous tasks and minimising their exposure to dangerous

  environments.

• Human error: decreasing human error, resulting in fewer accidents and improved safety.

• Improved system integrity: monitoring equipment performanceand identifying potential problems leading to fewer accidents and injuries.
• Labour: reducing the need for manual labour in certain tasks, making jobs more attractive to help retain skilled workers.
• Continuous operation: enabling sustained 24/7 operations, increasing productivity and reducing downtime.
• Quality and reliability: ensuring consistent and accurateperformance, reducing errors and enhancing overall quality and reliability.
• Real-time visibility and decision support: providing real-timedata on equipment performance and operational efficiency, facilitating data-driven decision-making and identifying areas for improvement.
• Sustainability: improving monitoring and controlof equipment and resources, leading to optimised usage, reduced fuel consumption and minimised waste.
• Environmental benefits: implementing earlier alerts, enforced actions and fail-safes that reduce the likelihood of significant environmental issues.
• Supply chain optimisation: allowing a global synchronous supply chain to dynamically adjust to real-time global demands.
• Costs:decreasing labour costs, operational expenditure and costs associated with errors.

To address today's and tomorrow's challenges, the maritime industry cannot depend on the status quo or rely on incremental improvements to increasingly outdated methods. Instead, it must leverage its extensive core knowledge base, embrace new technologies, partner with academia and industry and learn from other industries, just as they have learned from maritime practices over many generations. It’s this approach that will foster genuine innovation and develop effective solutions to meet current and future challenges.

This article appeared in the June-July 2025 edition of DCN magazine