Scorpio upgrades ICT on 180 ships

Scorpio Group has contracted Sea IT to manage IT and communications on fleets of tankers and dry bulk carriers to concentrate administration in one cyber-secure system.

Sea IT will deploy its BlueCore ICT solution on at least 180 of Scorpio’s ships and will manage IT equipment purchasing and daily management.

Scorpio Group chief information officer Nicola Fainelli said this is the beginning of a long-lasting partnership with Sea IT.

“This is not only an evolution from our existing onboard IT infrastructure, it is a change that involves all the vessel IT service delivery process chain,” she said.

BlueCore provides daily support to seafarers and IT managers, said Scorpio vessel IT delivery service line lead Alastair Saunders.

“It provides us with an IT platform with real-time monitoring of all services and applications managed and maintained remotely within a service management agreement,” he said. “It supports the onboard crew user experience while enabling the faster introduction of new or updated services across our fleet.”

Sea IT will introduce BlueCore on at least 180 ships at a rate of 10 vessels per month in the coming 18 months.

BlueCore provides Scorpio vessels with a functional operating ICT system with cyber security that has been tested and validated by IOActive.

It integrates with third-party systems within Scorpio. As part of the agreement, Sea IT has integrated a fuel optimisation system in the BlueCore service.

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BlueCore is also prepared for future system installations such as engine monitoring, emissions scrubbers and training programs on Scorpio ships.

Sea IT’s concept consists of multiple components such as:

• System design
• Testing and verification
• Training
• Policies
• Documentation
• Support
• Monitoring
• Communications
• Standardisation
• Logistics planning

In the Scorpio Group agreement, Sea IT manages large data volumes with more than 100 real-time monitors covering critical components such as server processes and loads, uptime and the uninterruptable power units’ battery status.

These are set up and monitored to optimise the vessels run time and guarantee smooth operations at sea.

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Connectivity between ship and shore is through VSAT with L-band back-up.

BlueCore ICT provides shipowners with operational efficiency and cost savings, said Sea IT chief executive Kristian Ryberg.

“It is all about logistics and planning,” he said. “We run logistics planning, an area where great cost savings can be made, and we make sure technicians have the right tools and are in the right place to meet the vessel’s operational needs 24/7. This allows us to complete the installation in 30 hours during a port stop.”