Integrated Software News

Classification society Lloyd's Register (LR) announced Thursday it has acquired GreenSteam, a marine data intelligence company specializing in improving vessel efficiency through machine learning. The acquisition will be integrated and managed by i4 Insight, a subsidiary of Lloyd’s Register. i4 Insight, part of LR's Maritime Performance Services business, is a digital platform that allows shipowners, operators and charterers to access insights on vessel performance and fuel consumption across their fleets.

The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has granted its Integrated Software Quality Management (ISQM) notation to OOS Serooskerke one of the world’s largest semi-submersible, heavy-lift crane platforms.The ABS Integrated Software Quality Management (ISQM) notation recognizes OOS' risk-based approach to critical software control safety systems.ABS said that key operational software on the ABS-classed OOS Serooskerke, a 138m-long vessel with hotel capacity for 750 people, has undergone…

Unique among the nation’s armed services, the Coast Guard’s missions include national defense, law enforcement, natural disaster incident management, recreational boating safety and environmental protection. This diversity of mission scope presents opportunities for the Coast Guard at the strategic, operational and tactical levels as the service works to make their efforts as effective and efficient as possible.Contributing to the service’s overall execution effort is the Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC), based in New London, Connecticut.

As a core backbone for their vision to be the leading provider of technology-driven maritime solutions and transform customers experience the Wallem Group has chosen BASSnet Fleet Management Systems. Wallem has selected the complete suite of integrated software to manage their entire fleet.The signing of Wallem marks a key milestone for BASS, signaling a wider move to complete enterprise solutions in the maritime industry as a means to effectively standardize ship processes. Wallem has chosen to use BASSnet as a total solution for maintenance…

Technology and engineering company Emerson has announced the release of Roxar Tempest 8.3, its integrated reservoir engineering suite that offers tools for advanced reservoir management and flow simulation.The latest release takes automation a step further and focuses on increasing user productivity, for a superior understanding of the reservoir and its potential for return on investment.The new product suite strengthens Emerson’s end-to-end Exploration & Production (E&P) software portfolio, comprising Paradigm and Roxar software solutions, aimed at helping operators efficiently exploit both new and established reservoirs.Tempest 8.3 provides increased compatibility with industry-standard reservoir simulators…

Wallenius Wilhelmsen, the global finished vehicle logistics provider, has signed an agreement to acquire 70% of the membership interest in Syngin Technology  for an initial purchase price of USD 22 million on a cash and debt free basis. "The future of logistics lies in combining digital services, physical assets and a deep understanding of logistics flows. With Syngin we boost our digital capabilities, setting us up to better support the changes we see in our customers' needs for the future", says Craig Jasienski, President and CEO of the Wallenius Wilhelmsen group. Syngin is a leading provider of automated logistics solutions for disposition of used vehicles through an electronic marketplace currently operating in the US and Canadian market.

Foss Maritime will centralize fleet management and operations with Helm CONNECT. The announcement comes as Foss progresses to better organize and streamline operations across core business units and wholly-owned subsidiaries along the U.S. West Coast, and in Hawaii and Alaska.As part of the agreement with Helm Operations, Foss will centralize its vessel dispatching, billing, maintenance, compliance and personnel management in the Helm CONNECT software platform.“At Foss, we’re constantly looking at new ways to improve our business.

ABB Ability Marine Advisory System – OCTOPUS marine software will map the safest and most efficient routes for a fleet of heavy lift vessels servicing the expansion of a giant oil field in Kazakhstan.ABB has secured a series of contracts for nine heavy lift vessels transporting modules for the Tengiz oil field expansion by Tengizchevroil (TCO). OCTOPUS will enhance the safety and efficiency of the heavy-lift vessels carrying out the transportation work by indicating the optimal route based on weather and forecasted vessel motions.TCO has contracted China’s biggest shipping company…

DNV GL has revised its classification rules for Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) systems and introduced two new class notations DRILL(MPD) and DRILL(MPD READY). Stena Drilling Ltd. (SDL) is the first drilling contractor to receive the notation Drill(MPD) for their harsh environment drillship Stena Carron. Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) is an adaptive drilling process that allows greater control of the annular pressure profile throughout the wellbore. This can help operators drill new wells safely and more efficiently and in some cases to drill previously undrillable wells. Since 2013, DNV GL’s offshore standard DNVGL-OS-E101 Drilling Plant has covered the design and commissioning requirements for MPD systems. “Stena Drilling Ltd.

ABS has issued the first Integrated Software Quality Management (ISQM) Product Design Assessment (PDA) Certificate in the Asia-Pacific region for Industrial Control Systems software to Singapore-based Excel Marco, a solutions provider for process automation and safety systems for the marine and offshore industries. The SPCP assess 81 requirements and best practices to improve delivered software quality and integrity. Excel Marco is ISO 9001: 2015 certified, so implementing the SPCP process is straightforward because it takes a similar approach to software integrity assessments. Policies and procedures are reviewed, and personnel are interviewed to ensure compliance to policy.

Mont Hope Ship Management, a new and specialized company focusing on services for vessels engaged in energy segments, is implementing DNV GL’s integrated software system ShipManager on the entire fleet in order to optimize operations and improve performance. Mont Hope Ship Management is a new company, started in May 2015 and based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Concurrent with the start-up, they began the process of selecting a comprehensive fleet management software system to support efficient and safe operations, as well as to improve business performance. The amount of resources needed to gather data from various sources can be challenging and inefficient.

DNV GL has welcomed the world’s largest semi-submersible drilling rig into class recently. Ocean Greatwhite is 123 metres long and 78 metres wide and was delivered at Hyundai Heavy Industries in Ulsan, South Korea. Owned by the Houston-based drilling contractor Diamond Offshore, the rig will be chartered to oil major BP and will operate in the Great Australian Bight. Ocean Greatwhite is also the first new-build rig to receive the DNV GL Integrated Software Dependent Systems (ISDS) notation. ISDS are systems whose performance is dependent on the overall behaviour of their integrated software components. DNV GL’s ISDS standard helps owners and operators minimise software integration errors and delays in projects involving complex integrated systems.

Global shipping and offshore oil and gas operations are increasingly dependent on integrated networks, based on various software and data transfer solutions. Systems and equipment onboard are interconnected, monitored and controlled through an onboard automation network. Onboard systems are increasingly also connected ashore to the owners’ or technology providers’ control centers. Equipment manufacturers want to remotely upgrade the software of their systems and monitor their use to be able to optimize operations and to scheduled needed maintenance service.

Siemens and CD-adapco have entered into a stock purchase agreement for the acquisition of CD-adapco by Siemens. The purchase price is $970 million. CD-adapco is a global engineering simulation company with software solutions covering a wide range of engineering disciplines including Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Solid Mechanics (CSM), heat transfer, particle dynamics, reactant flow, electrochemistry, acoustics and rheology. Last fiscal year, CD-adapco had over 900 employees and revenue of close to $200 million with software-typical double digit margins.

Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG), a shipbuilder based in Panama City, Fla., is due to launch the HARVEY SUB-SEA in November 6, marking the launch of the shipyard’s first vessel designed with the FORAN CAD/CAM System developed by the engineering and technology group SENER. The newly built multipurpose support vessel (MPSV) is the first of a series of two with a length of 103.7 meters, beam of 22.3 meters and depth of 8.92 meters. It is regulated by ABS/USCG/SOLAS DP2 DE Z-Drive MPSV and will operate in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico for HARVEY Gulf International Marine.

Hybrid propulsion systems and connected ship solutions are emerging technologies that are gaining ground faster than expected, according to Tor E. Svensen, CEO DNV GL – Maritime, giving an update on the classification society's Shipping 2020 report. "While operational efficiency and emissions reductions are the main motivators behind these developments, the update shows that the future fuel mix will be much more diverse," Svensen said. Though LNG as a ship fuel was one of the standouts in the 2012 report, its prediction of up to 1,000 LNG-fueled vessels by 2020 will most likely not be met, due to continuing high investment costs and slower development of infrastructure. However, as more bunkering options come in place, growth could accelerate, he added.

With 2020 in sight, DNV GL looked at the lessons to be learned from the update to the classification society’s “Shipping 2020” report which was published in 2012. Now, three years later, hybrid propulsion systems and connected ship solutions are emerging technologies that are gaining ground faster than expected, outlined Tor E. Svensen, CEO DNV GL – Maritime, at the opening day of Nor-Shipping in Oslo. “While operational efficiency and emissions reductions are the main motivators behind these developments, the update shows that the future fuel mix will be much more diverse,” Svensen said. LNG as a ship fuel was one of the standouts from the last report…

“Ships and offshore structures are becoming more and more interconnected,” said Tor Svensen, CEO DNV GL - Maritime, when taking the stage at this year’s CMA (Connecticut Maritime Association) event in Stamford, CT. Cybersecurity in the maritime and offshore industry was also up for discussion at this year’s CMA Shipping event during a session with the US Coast Guard, ship owners and class representatives. In the past, critical network segments onboard vessels used to be kept isolated. This has changed. “This is a weak spot,” said Svensen.

Reederei Hamburger Lloyd GmbH & Co KG (RHL), signed a contract with BASS on December 31, 2014, for virtually the full suite of BASSnet software solutions for its fleet of 28 container ships and chemical tankers. BASS said its shipping software solutions cover all major aspects of fleet management under its concept of providing one complete solution for the maritime and offshore industries, providing RHL with a package to streamline and optimize its operations. The key modules involved are BASSnet maintenance…

Vessel performance monitoring and optimization solution ClassNK-NAPA GREEN was named the maritime industry’s top IT system by earning the IT Solutions Award at the International Bulk Journal (IBJ) Awards held at the Beurs-World Trade Center in Rotterdam on 17 November. The software solution, developed jointly by leading classification society ClassNK and leading global maritime software company NAPA, was recognized both as an advanced technical achievement and for reductions in fuel costs it has helped achieve and validate on actual vessels in service. Held annually by the International Bulk Journal, the IBJ Awards recognize companies and individuals for their contributions to the bulk cargo sector and wider maritime industry in a variety of categories including environmental protection…

NVision, Inc., a company in 3D laser scanning and reverse engineering for over 24 years, said it was able to help a motorsports boat designer optimize the design of the custom-built propellers created for its Top Fuel Hydro drag boat. The boat is equipped with two custom-designed and handmade propellers. The double-bladed propellers worked well but the boat maker felt their design could be improved further to produce even greater speed and power. In order to achieve this goal…

Thor Offshore, an offshore support services provider and fisheries company, has chosen the integrated software suite BASSnet Fleet Management Systems as a part in its strategy to expand offshore operations globally. In parallel with Thor’s fleet expansion, BASSnet is being implemented across its current fleet of 29 vessels and its shore-based organization. Giving a resounding endorsement to BASSnet software solutions, Thor, based at the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic, has chosen to install the complete BASSnet suite covering planned maintenance…

Ship classification society risk and sustainability service provider DNV GL briefed the press today on the future of shipping at an event at the Posidonia exhibition in Greece. Tor Svensen, CEO, DNV GL Maritime, examined the potential and the challenges of shipping’s increasing use of connected systems to improve safety and efficiency. This new paradigm requires a different approach to testing and certification, to ensure safety and reliability while retaining a level competitive playing field. Tor Svensen presented DNV GL’s recently released report: “The Future of Shipping”. The report maps out six pathways to a future for the industry which is safer and more sustainable: safe operations of ships…