Information Processing News

Shell Shipping & Maritime and Orca AI kicked off with a pilot project trialing Tel Aviv-based start-up Orca AI’s maritime navigation platform on a Shell-managed gas tanker. But it has now morphed into a long-term development collaboration resulting in new features that can significantly enhance safety at sea. Here Saurabh Kumar, Project Engineer at Shell Shipping & Maritime, and Dor Raviv, CTO at Orca AI, reflect on outcomes and benefits of the partnership so far.Navigational error resulting in collision or grounding is one of the highest safety risks associated with maritime transport.

Classifaction society ClassNK released new guidelines that explain the revised rules for using condition based maintenance (CBM) in class surveys to promote the use of CBM technology.Condition based maintenance, a method for monitoring the operating state of equipment, diagnosing the state of said equipment based upon the information obtained from such monitoring, and then performing necessary maintenance and inspections, has been attracting attention in recent years. ClassNK first introduced the concept of the CBM in its class rules in 1994.

Technology, from mobile to cloud to social media, have all had an enormous impact on the way companies operate and interact with their staff and customers. However, research from technology media company IDG, found that while 89% of companies plan to adopt a digital-first strategy, only 44% of them have actually done it. While the shipping industry has been slow to adopt digital technology, there are signs this is changing. According to the Navis Business Bellwether report  – an ongoing benchmark study designed to track the perceptions…

Japan's Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) is currently considering the establishment of a new network that will enable onboard financial settlements through the remittance of electronic money (e-money).The the shipping and logistics company said it is as a part of the NYK Group’s medium-term management plan “Staying Ahead 2022 with Digitalization and Green”.Onboard tests have been conducted to examine the potential to reduce administrative work and the risk of cash loss, and thus foster an employee-friendly workplace where crews can work comfortably and concentrate on ship operations.Today, onboard payments are made in cash. Crew members are given a part of their salaries in cash, and daily goods are paid for in cash.

Nimble and quick, unmanned aerial vehicles have evolved into a valuable tool for marine and offshore applications.When a U.S. oil tanker conducts a Critical Area Inspection Plan (CAIP) as required by ABS, it is an onerous process. For example, each tank requires seven days of set up with scaffolding and staging. An ABS inspector and UDT technicians must access, and be carefully lowered into the tank with instrumentation and tools. Inspection points in far reaching places are surveyed.

DCNS said it has been awarded a contract from the French Defense Ministry for the development and construction of five intermediate-size frigates (FTIs) intended for the French Navy. DCNS will propose a French version of its new BELH@RRA frigate. The first of the five frigates from this French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA)-managed program should be delivered in 2023 with an entry into active service in 2025. The new BELH@RRA frigate will be designed and developed by DCNS, in joint project management with THALES for the development of the new-generation radar it will be equipped with.

Sea trials for the newly refurbished U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) commenced on October 5, following a 20-month Extended Planned Incremental Availability (EPIA) at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash. Nimitz entered the shipyards in February 2015 for its fifth major maintenance period and completed the largest maintenance period to date without bringing the carrier into dry dock, according to Cmdr. Mark Yates, Nimitz chief engineering officer and native of Smithfield, Va. “We've repaired and replaced quite a few systems,” said Capt.

General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, was awarded a $16.2 million contract by the U.S. Navy to produce Type-3 Advanced Mission Computers (AMC) for the F/A-18 E/A-18G Super Hornet aircraft. Since 2002 General Dynamics has produced, tested and delivered the F/A-18 AMC, which serves as the nerve center of the Super Hornet and provides the Navy with situational awareness and combat systems control. "By leveraging commercial off-the-shelf technologies and an open architecture, we are helping the Navy keep lifecycle costs down, while strengthening mission-critical performance capabilities for the flight crew," said John van Dyke, senior director, Sensors and Processing at General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems.

iDirect Government Technologies, Inc. (iGT), a wholly owned subsidiary of VT iDirect, Inc. (iDirect), today announced the availability of iDX 3.2.3 software, which meets the  military, intelligence and public safety communities growing needs for increased bandwidth and higher throughputs. iDX 3.2.3 features Adaptive Time Division Multiple Access (ATDMA), which improves return channel performance and increases network availability under rain fade and satellite link degradation. The software enables customers to design networks for a typical case scenario instead of worse-case scenario, saving time, costs and complexity without loss of performance.

ABB LV Products releases new generation of its proprietary Arc Guard System, providing enhanced arc flash protection. The ABB Low Voltage Products division has released TVOC-2, a new generation of its proprietary Arc Guard System that has been protecting electrical equipment from dangerous electrical arc flashes for over 35 years. TVOC-2 features numerous upgrades and new functions to provide superior arch flash protection, detecting faults in low and medium voltage switchgear and disconnecting the power provided to the arc within 30 to 50 milliseconds…

As the information age firmly roots onboard vessels of all shapes and sizes — from tugboats to tankers — there is a glaring need for enhanced information processing and handling to ensure that crews maintain their focus on the safe and efficient operation of the vessel. Today's modern wheelhouse increasingly comes with the "cockpit" feel, as designers strive to standardize the form and function as another step towards safety and efficiency. Paramount to this task is the identification and integration of products designed and manufactured with the unique rigors of the marine industry in mind. Monitors onboard vessels are one product category particularly critical to modern ship operations, as they are the hub whereby collected information is relayed and acted upon.

As the information age firmly roots onboard vessels of all shapes and sizes - from tugboats to tankers - there is a glaring need for enhanced information processing and handling to ensure that crews maintain their focus on the safe and efficient operation of the vessel. Today's modern wheelhouse increasingly comes with the "cockpit" feel, as designers strive to standardize the form and function as another step towards safety and efficiency. Paramount to this task is the identification and integration of products designed and manufactured with the unique rigors of the marine industry in mind. Monitors onboard vessels are one product category particularly critical to modern ship operations, as they are the hub whereby collected information is relayed and acted upon.

frigate USS Ingraham (FFG 61) during a leap frog training exercise. The exercise allows ship handlers to practice the approach and stabilization alongside and a breakaway in a simulated underway replenishment environment. Ingraham and Antietam are part of the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) Carrier Strike Group on deployment in the Western Pacific Ocean. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeremie Kerns. By Edward H. The U.S. Navy’s “Cruiser Modernization” program will extend…

By Edward H. The U.S. Navy's "Cruiser Modernization" program will extend the service life and enhance the combat capability of 22 of the Navy's 27 multi-mission AEGIS cruisers (CG-52 through CG-73). The Cruiser Modernization is necessary to enable the CG-47 class to participate effectively in support of joint littoral campaigns. Missions include land attack, littoral undersea warfare, force protection, and anti-air defense, as well as allowing for a possible future Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) mission. The program extends the service life of each ship to 35 years. Combat systems will be upgraded while crew size and maintenance requirements will be reduced.

First Lady Laura Bush smashed a bottle of champagne to christen the Navy’s newest nuclear-powered submarine Texas (SSN 775) in front of a cheering crowd of 4,500 people at Newport News shipyard July 31. Secretary of the Navy Gordon England joined a number of dignitaries, including Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, who delivered the ceremony’s principal address. “It is entirely fitting that USS Texas will become the latest bulwark, and one of the most powerful, in our arsenal of democracy,” said Hutchison. “When she sets sail, she will do so with 22 million Texans and our nation’s First Lady at her side. Mr. Named to honor the 28th state admitted to the union, Texas is the fourth ship of the U.S. Navy to carry the name since the original Texas was commissioned in 1895.

Administration has adopted a maritime industry specification for the Transportation Worker Identification Credential biometric reader and the contactless smart card. TSA and the Coast Guard selected a recommendation advanced by the National Maritime Security Advisory Committee to require encryption and use of the so-called TWIC privacy key as the working specification for readers. The TWIC privacy key is a scheme advanced by the advisory committee to utilize encryption to protect information on the cards. The TWIC has been in development and testing for at least three years, and in 2006 it was decided that the ID card should conform to the Federal Information Processing Standard 201 for government employees.

Jan Ivar Nielsen, Aker American Shipping's Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Head of Investor Relations has accepted a position with Aker Yards and will be leaving the group. Replacing Mr. Nielsen will be Mr. Jeffrey Theisen, who will join the company immediately as VP of Finance and assume the duties of CFO and Head of Investor Relations after a transition period to take place during the next few months. Theisen is a twenty year resident of the Philadelphia area and a graduate of Villanova University. Mr. processing services to financial institutions and commercial end-users.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the U.S. Coast Guard have taken another step toward the implementation of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) by approving proposed regulations for a biometric-based identification credential for port workers. The notice of proposed rulemaking will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days and lays out specific details on the program. The public will have forty-five days to comment and four public meetings will be hosted by TSA and Coast Guard to solicit public input. • TSA would collect worker's biographic information including ten fingerprints; name; date of birth; address and phone number; alien registration number, if applicable; photo; employer; and job title.

The shipping dot.com epidemic will not be remembered for its abundance of straight talk. However, one unusually candid comment from a fraught CEO has stuck. If insiders have only a vague notion of what was actually achieved with their Internet millions, outsiders can be forgiven a little head scratching. Without a considerable shift in emphasis, it is difficult to see any of the class of 2000 taking early retirement. Taken in the context of the evolution of the Internet in shipping, however, the experience was certainly not wasted. We like to think of last year as 'Shipping Internet Version 1.0', of the - build it, and they will come - school of thought.