- Sanjeev Namath, Chief Business Officer at Alpha Ori Technologies Pte Ltd, shared insights during the 2023 SAFETY4SEA Singapore Forum, highlighting key aspects of navigating the evolving landscape of industry and technology.
- In this presentation, he emphasized the tangible force of digitalization reshaping the maritime sector and explored three critical aspects: the challenges on the digital horizon, digitalization as a strategic investment, and the interconnected link between digitalization and decarbonization.
Challenges on the Digital Horizon
Namath acknowledged that as the industry sails toward a digital future, it faces challenging waters. Cybersecurity remains a persistent concern, showcasing an ongoing battle with hackers. High installation costs present hurdles, necessitating urgent collaboration to drive down expenses. Despite progress, challenges like disparate systems, lack of data standards, and ensuring data quality persist. Return on investment (ROI) also poses a challenge as clients seek quick returns, whereas digitalization demands a long-term investment perspective.
Digitalization as a Strategic Investment
The presentation highlighted the shift in perspective required for digitalization, emphasizing that it goes beyond technological upgrades. A holistic transformation of operational and business models is essential for realizing the true return on investment. Namath stressed the need for collaborative efforts, urging original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to work together to further reduce installation costs. Over the years, the financial barriers to digitalization have significantly decreased, making it a more accessible investment.
Digitalizing to Decarbonize
The intricate link between digitalization and decarbonization took center stage in Namath’s presentation. While achieving zero-carbon fuel remains a distant goal, the journey itself offers opportunities to create value through digitalization. Establishing operational baselines and embracing mature energy efficiency technology solutions emerge as pathways to tangible improvements. The presentation emphasized that digitalization is crucial for achieving sustainability goals.
A Call to Industry Leaders
The presentation concluded with a call to industry leaders, urging commercial operators and charters to collaborate and leave behind split incentives. Effective coordination among key stakeholders, including charterers, commercial operators, ship owners, ship managers, and the crew, is essential for successful digitalization and energy efficiency. Namath emphasized the active participation of the crew in areas like weather routing and speed optimization for realizing envisioned value.
Charting the Course of Trends
The maritime industry’s future is characterized by emerging trends highlighted in the presentation. Companies like Starlink, Amazon, and Mangata Systems promise superior real-time connectivity between ship and shore. Generative AI, with its transformative potential, is spotlighted as a tool to harness vast volumes of data for unprecedented value creation. The industry’s commitment to innovation and efficiency is showcased through technological integrations.
Harmonizing Change: Transforming Operational Models
As the maritime industry charts a course into the future, Namath emphasized the need to harness the winds of change brought by digitalization, technology, and collaboration. The future promises a connected, efficient, and sustainable maritime ecosystem, and it’s time to set sail toward this transformative destination.
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Source: Safety4sea
