Leading Greek shipowners, members of historic shipping families of Hydra, senior business executives working in the shipping industry, technology companies representatives, consultants and academicians will develop their views in a productive dialogue and will guide forum delegates in a tour from the traditional ships of the 18th and 19th century to the autonomous ship, which is now a reality.
Information and communications technology (ICT) first appeared in shipping in the 1860s when the new cable network, a very expensive innovation, gave owners access to cargoes they would never have found without it. Since then, shipowners have been even more involved in the information business and smart shipowners use it to make serious money.
For three centuries shipowners have spent half their lives struggling with recessions and the 22 shipping cycles since 1740. Each cycle evolves in a different way and often “big cycles” ferry along mini-cycles which give out misleading signals. But recently the big cycles seem to have got bigger and longer. It is a high rolling poker game and to make things even more interesting, every so often the world economy throws in a wild card like the Credit Crisis in 2008 or the current China slowdown.
Can the use of rapidly evolving ICT tools make “smart shipping” smarter? Which are some of the most advanced and innovative applications in the toolbox of digital shipping? Are technological tools the aim or the means to achieving better management systems and to maximizing performance? Are shipping companies ready to take up “smart action”? Is the adoption of digital architecture and engineering a sprint race or a marathon? Do the benefits outweigh digitalization cost? Is the ROI measurable and in how much time? Is successful and efficient use of ICT simply an investment or does it permeate the companywide management, corporate culture and the whole strategy, requiring digital transformation? Finally, is it worth or not worth the trouble and cost?
Dr. John Coustas and Dr. Martin Stopford will try to answer these questions and more and will cross-check their … swords, during the 7th Hydra Shipping Conference to be held on Saturday, September 17, in Hydra, organized by the Fraternity of the Athenian Hydriots.
Further information may be found by viewing events dedicated webpage http://www.aya.com.gr/
