Ship’s digitalization
The EU should facilitate a shift from traditional methods to cutting-edge engineering practices. Projects should focus on technologies that integrate AI and data-driven design approaches, emphasizing tools that enable rapid generation and assessment of feasible design alternatives. This ensures the efficient production of high-quality data, essential for leveraging advanced machine learning techniques. Such advancements will be key in enhancing the maritime sector’s long-term competitiveness and meeting environmental objectives. The maritime industry is undergoing a significant transformation through digitalization, paving the way for cleaner and more autonomous ship operations. While technological advancements promise improved efficiency, sustainability and automation, human-centred solutions remain crucial to ensure seamless integration, operational safety, and acceptance by maritime professionals. Innovative digital concepts (i.e. smart ships; smart ports, etc.), supported by technological enablers and by a clear definition of human-automation interaction specification and processes, are expected to create a relevant value within the maritime industry transformation path and in a way they can be considered as laying ground for innovative services or operational concepts in support to the enhancement of safety, awareness, efficiency and training.
The ECMAR vision highlights the importance of human-centred innovation and solutions in ship digitalization, addressing challenges and proposing strategies for an effective transition.
1. Decision-support tools and human automation teaming.
In other reference sectors, such as aviation, space and defence, Decision Support Systems (DSS) have been introduced with the objective to enhance situational awareness rather than replace human judgment, ensuring that operators remain engaged, in charge of the final decision and capable of intervening when necessary. The same approach is relevant for application in the maritime sector. Real-time information and suggestions provided by intelligent agents can be used to improve operations, decisions and the best course of actions to take. Furthermore, this type of tools (from deterministic to AI driven) can play a very important role in terms of informing teams on how to operationally implement the more suitable actions to meet energy efficiency and sustainable goals. Advanced DSS can also advise on states that can lead to operational failures and potentially can be very useful in post-operational phases, for instance to reassess and improve failing procedures, to make a diagnosis of a problem for improving the operations both for crew and for maintenance teams. A shift towards sustainable shipping will involve a change which is not only limited to the components and technology aspects but also to operations, processes (new types of planning and fuel use), maintenance. Advanced automation, i.e. ML and AI based solutions can play an important role in achieving improved decision making and in providing a type of assistance that can get closer to the role of an actual human team member.
The following research topics will be come increasingly important in supporting the introduction of decision-support tools:
ب Design for Human-Artificial Intelli gence Teaming
ب Transparency and explainability in decision-making
ب Data visualization, dashboards and HMI design
ب New procedures and new types of teams and SA distribution
ب Re-skilling workforce to resource management with digital assistants
ب Ethics and liability assessment
2. Generation and assessment of feasible design alternatives in early stage.
To differentiate from the global competition the European shipyards should assist the shipowners in defining ship design with minimal environmental impact during the life-time of the vessels. Specially in the pre-contract phase of a project technical decisions need to be based on reliable prediction methods, even if no comparable ship designs are available. As there are no such tools presently on the market, low TRL research and development efforts should be driven forward. AI based data generation has to enable newly developed system engineering methods, which should shorten the design process by up to 80% compared to the traditional analytic way. In parallel, all phases of a ship’s life have to be evaluated with regard to GHG emissions, including the main components.
Future research programs should aim at:
ب Machine learning processes to generate complex data basis with GHG emission information during different operational stages of vessels in combination with installed equipment
ب KPI driven early design tools forecasting the influence of design alternatives on the vessel’s GHG emissions ب Holistic approach analysing the parameters which trigger the life time GHG balance of machinery components and energy efficiency devices
ب Enabling design for production under consideration of new shipborne technologies and energy sources
3. Safety culture and Cybersecurity awareness.
Increased reliance on automation can have the undesired effect of making ships more vulnerable to failures or cyber threats. Mistakes in digital security protocols can compromise vessel operations. The maritime regulatory environment with respect to cyber security standards and rules is fast evolving. From the GDPR to the IMO Resolution MSC.428(98) of 2021 to the unified requirements (URs) for cyber security taking effect from 1 July 2024, there is still a great deal of work to be done to implement the associated compliant processes, to improve the maritime safety culture and to protect ships from cyber-attacks and data breaches. It is of utmost importance that the maritime industry learns from accidents and incidents to protect seafarers and passengers, and even to anticipate certain failure conditions.
The ECMAR community considers digitalisation an opportunity to collect data that can easily and appropriately be used to improve operations, and even to provide a range of users (from investigators to designers) with a framework to learn and gather more accurate and deeper safety-related and cybersecurity lessons.
4. Autonomous shipping and remote operations.
Automating critical shipboard functions such as navigation, collision avoidance, and docking is still a challenge and, at the same time, it could be part of the solution in certain operational contexts and service models. Therefore, the decarbonization and sustainability agenda should consider and support the introduction of innovative operational concepts (i.e. remotely operated systems) for the years to come. To maintain adequate human oversight and safety while shipping is moving towards more autonomous operations, integrated bridge systems and implementation and evolution of digital control rooms will be important concepts to consider.
For maintaining humans ‘in-the-loop’ of enhanced operations, the following research topics will become increasingly important to study:
ب Remote operations concepts and digitalised working stations
ب Change management of processes, procedures and roles
ب Multimodal HMIs, User Experience of new working positions
ب ML and AI-based decision-support tools
ب Digital twinning and advanced simulation environments for ships and port operations
ب New models of Risk (Safety) and security issues
5. Seafarers state monitoring and well-being support.
Digitalization should be considered as an opportunity to leverage great improvements in maritime workers’ well-being and policies ensuring fair employment conditions for seafarers in the digital age should be prioritized. Given the isolation, stress, and unique working conditions at sea, monitoring tools can play a crucial role in detecting, preventing, and managing mental health challenges among crew members. Decision Support Systems (DSS) should also play a role in addressing challenges such as stress and high cognitive workload states by providing adaptive support that ensures crew members remain actively en gaged without being overwhelmed. Moreover, digitalisation can promote the incorporation of worker wellness programs, including virtual peer support networks, guided mindfulness training, and real-time feedback mechanisms, can enhance psychological resilience. Training and knowledge greatly contribute to the well-being and safety of the seafarers, through an increased awareness and capacity to cope with new tasks and a highly automated environment. To bridge the digital skills gap, maritime training institutions and shipping companies should offer specialized courses on digital tools, AI-driven navigation, and cybersecurity. Simulations and augmented reality (AR) training programs can enhance hands-on learning experiences, ensuring crew readiness for digital operations. Implementing mandatory cybersecurity awareness programs for crew members will mitigate digital risks. Regular security drills, real-time threat detection tools, and incident response protocols should be part of ship operations to ensure a robust defence against cyber threats. Research should focus on the long-term impact of digitalization on crew mental health, ensuring that automation and AI integration do not lead to increased stress but rather support a balanced and humane working environment.
The following topics are important to consider using digitalisation to promote well-being:
ب Operator Performance and workload state monitoring
ب Fatigue monitoring tools
ب Worker wellness programs tailored to groups or individual needs
ب Contingency operations training on advanced simulators (DT, or VR/AR simulation platforms)
ب Comprehensive Training and Continuous Learning
ب Enhanced cybersecurity training
6. Digitalisation for validating innovative operational concepts.
Digital Twins, augmented reality and other types of digital simulating platforms are important to study and validate innovative operational concepts, so it can be considered a critical area to enable R&D activities that can enhance design iterations on the two necessary and parallel streams (operational and technological). The digital platforms and simulators can also be used, as already mentioned in the previous paragraphs) to improve training programs with newly required digital operation skills and hands on learning experiences that ensure crew readiness (i.e. using operational setups or scenarios that are difficult to be reproduced otherwise). The shift towards autonomous and innovative operational concepts will require new skills from the workforce and training programs to ensure seafarers are well equipped to manage and oversee these systems (re-skill).