Published Jan 28, 2023 10:00 AM by
maritime executive
In the age of ever-smarter shipping, one of the key areas of ship and fleet management seems to be stuck in the dark ages. Pierre Dominet explains why he is Stolt Tankers rapidly moving to digital logbooks, unlocking the benefits of a wide range of big data.
The switch from paper logbooks to digital logbooks is not yet mandated, but Pierre Dominé, Quality Assurance and Research Specialist at Stort Tankers, believes there is no need to wait.
“There is so much data across a single ship’s record book portfolio, and it is very likely that we will collect all of it across the fleet for better understanding, analysis and decision-making.” he says.
“But now the standards are a series of big paper books that officers have to physically fill in and are separated from other duties. To share documents (e.g. for commercial or regulatory/port authority needs) you need “old school” methods such as photocopying, scanning, faxing, etc. ”
Dominé stresses that this is not only time consuming and impractical, but also a source of potential human/administrative error since the book is handwritten.
“In the digital age,” he adds.
change is coming
On 1st October 2020, the IMO allowed the use of electronic logbooks instead of hardcopy records. The books subject to this action include the Oil Record Book (ORB Parts 1 and 2), the Cargo Record Book, the Garbage Record Book and the Fuel Oil Changeover Record.
Domine was well versed in the limitations of analog logbooks and was already ahead of the game, having spent 17 of his 26 years with Stolt Tankers as Mariner Captain. Along with other veteran professionals, he saw the move coming and was an early adopter of INTERTANKO’s “Practical Considerations for Selecting Electronic Record Book (ERB) Products and Suppliers”.
Progress in the industry has been slow since 2020, he said, but change is slowly taking hold.
“It takes time to change behavior,” he comments. Electronically captured case for verification.
“A simple, standardized approach makes everything so much easier.”
A smarter solution
One of the hurdles, however, is the lack of recognition of the benefits at the marine and commercial level, and some digital systems have not yet ‘realized their potential’.
Across industries, he argues that AI and machine learning will drive improvements, enabling benefits such as the “trending” of learning engines (thereby providing smarter preventive maintenance schedules) and benchmarking across industries. , describes too much “advanced PDF” rather than a customized solution. Fleets for tasks such as fuel transfers to help create best practices.
“Logbooks contain a huge amount of data,” emphasizes Dominé. “So, rather than just ‘going digital,’ how do we leverage smart digital solutions to turn that into business and operational value? Here is the opportunity.”
Setting new standards
The Stolt Tankers team has been researching digital logbook solutions since 2019 and will begin the fleet-wide transformation process in June 2022.
Stolt Tankers has partnered with Norwegian NAVTOR, an industry leader in e-Navigation and performance monitoring and optimization, to refine a simple, smart and standardized solution. Part of NAVTOR’s on-board “ecosystem” (seamlessly connecting ships, teams, assets and locations), the digital package offers the big data benefits Stolt Tankers seek, while leaving room for human error. reducing friction, facilitating compliance and assisting seafarers in their efforts. Administrative burden of manual logs.
“We’ve had great interactions with them,” he says. The result is an integrated, intuitive and intelligent approach that is currently being deployed.
“This is a great tool for crews, and on the owner side, it opens up almost endless doors to real-time data monitoring, efficiency and continuously enhanced sustainability possibilities. Stolt Tankers That’s key for businesses like
At the time of writing, Dominé and the Stolt Tankers team have installed NAVTOR’s Class and Flag State Approved solutions on approximately 60 vessels and expect to complete deployment by the end of the year (105 total).
the future is now
Dominé acknowledges that Stolt Tankers has emerged as an ‘early adopter’ but has no current obligations, but believes other forward-thinking shipowners and operators will inevitably follow…and soon. .
“Why don’t they?” he points out. “Whether you want to contact a friend or fax a handwritten work detail to a colleague, you no longer have to send a letter. There is a better, smarter and more efficient way to do these things.” , and that also applies to deliveries and logbooks.”
For an industry on the front lines of global trade where ships and crews perform critical operations, it is imperative to adopt the best solutions for optimal decision-making and operations, he stresses.
“This is a big behavior change,” he concludes.
“Digitalization is transforming shipping…and it’s time for logbooks to catch up.”
The products and services described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.
