Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has agreed to share operational data from ships in its fleet with Ship Data Center Co (ShipDC) to improve safety and reduce environmental risks
MOL will share operational data from 180 ships in service as part of its own Fleet Optimal Control Unified System (Focus) project, using ClassNK ShipDC’s Internet of Ships Open Platform (IoS-OP), an internet of things (IoT) data-sharing platform.
This process has already begun. MOL had so far stored operational data collected from several vessels to IoS-OP and will expand this to cover all 180 ships, significantly increasing the amount of ship operations data transferred in IoS-OP.
Stakeholders can utilise data shared in IoS-OP to produce information to enhance ship safety, economic efficiency and implement environmental initiatives. MOL and ShipDC’s aim is to further accelerate the collection, distribution and utilisation of data in the maritime industry with IoS-OP at the core.
MOL senior managing executive officer and IoS-OP consortium chair Yoshikazu Kawagoe said this agreement will “boost data use and digital transformation of the maritime industry”.
He said data will soon be available in IoS-OP from 500 ships operated by different companies. “This offers the unique and practical opportunity to utilise more ship operational data,” said Mr Kawagoe. “I am convinced increasing the data volume will bring about better data-driven solutions from IoS-OP.”
Mr Kawagoe signed the agreement with MOL general manager of technical division and offshore technical division Makoto Yamaguchi and MOL general manager of smart shipping division Satoshi Fujii. Also present were ShipDC president Yasuhiro Ikeda and ClassNK president and chief executive Hiroaki Sakashita.
MOL’s Focus project will analyse data collected by more than 10,000 sensing items from vessels, engines, cargoes, maritime weather at a high frequency of around one-minute intervals. The Japanese owner has been developing applications to enhance vessel safety and protect the marine environment.
ShipDC is a wholly owned subsidiary of classification society ClassNK, but IoS-OP operates under supervision of the consortium. It is a universal platform, enabling the sharing of ship operational data among shipbuilders, manufacturers and related service providers. So far, 57 organisations have joined the member association within the IoS-OP consortium.
Other shipping companies are following MOL’s data sharing initiative. In February, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line) agreed to roll out IoT and share data with ClassNK’s ShipDC on 140 ships, They agreed to share operational data on all K Line ships equipped with Kawasaki Integrated Maritime Solutions.
This comes as MOL is tackling the salvage of the stern of Wakashio wreck in Mauritius, which has been thwarted by bad weather and rough seas. The Capesize bulk carrier crashed in the Indian Ocean island in Q3 2020 causing Mauritius’ worst ever environmental disaster following safety lapses in navigation.
MOL said the reason Wakashio changed course from the approved passage plan to within two nautical miles of Mauritius was for a better communication range for crew mobile phones. It also revealed bridge officers were using a nautical chart without sufficient scale to confirm the accurate distance from the coast and water depth and said its seafarers neglected appropriate watchkeeping, both visually and by radar at the time of the accident.
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