IMarEST launched a report focusing on the future of automation in the maritime industry, the role of the seafarers in this future and the challenges that may follow. The findings were based on the views of shipowners, ship operators, ship managers, regulators and other stakeholders that participated.
The study ‘Autonomous Shipping: Putting the human back in the headlines’ was conducted by IMarEST’s Marine Autonomous Surface Ships Special Interest Group (MASS SIG). This report follows the second roundtable discussion held in Manila in December 2018 which sought to get into the nitty-gritty of future human-machine integration in the performance of the onboard functions.
Overall the report is based on assessing the impact that automation of specific ship function will have on duties, responsibilities and roles of the seafarers, as well as it highlights the areas of expertise needed on operating commercial autonomous vessels.
In the meantime, the study emphasizes that in 2040s automation will not replace seafarers’ place with machines; On the contrary it means that seafarers who don’t keep up with the changes and the technological development will have a hard time adapting their skills accordingly to find a job.
Yet, Mr. Dimitrios Lyrakos, Chief Executive Officer, ASCOT Consulting LTD, explained in an exclusive SAFETY4SEA interview that although the number of seafarers will decline, but these changes will create new job opportunities as well.
An additional opinion suggests that autonomous and remote-control shipping is sure to decrease cost of consumer goods and enhance safety for passenger ferries and cruise liners, according to Jeremy Bogaisky, Deputy Editor at Forbes. Meanwhile, Alexander E. Querol, President, MAGSAYSAY Learning Resources, Inc. discusses, exclusively with SAFETY4SEA, that ‘training needs should be developed to keep up with industry’s dynamic environment which is deeply characterized by a digital transformation.’
Moreover, the study explains in details the changes in a variety of maritime fields in the 2030s and 2050s:
- The propulsion system and the changes it will face
- The supporting ship systems
- The performance and efficiency monitoring;
- The safe evacuation of personnel.
A widely recognised risk across the maritime sector is that the numbers of people both entering and being retained in a sea-going career are dwindling. The perception remains that any means to reduce reliance on crew will be welcomed as will the opportunity to sell shipping as a high technology, exciting career.
The conclusions drawn in the report present how human-machine collaboration can boost sea operations and increase capability. In the meantime, the results discuss how the changes that will follow and the improvements coming from automation will be in line with the sector’s expectations and the practicalities of making these changes. To make the results easier to digest, the report considers the case of two hypothetical future vessels, the Horizon, built in 2030, and her sister ship, the Succession, built in 2050.
Concluding, MASS SIG Chair, Gordon Meadow commented
As advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning find their way into more and more ship systems, it is inevitable they will alter the role of seafarers: their tasks, responsibilities and required skills. A key challenge going forward lies not in teaching humans to trust machines – but providing them the skills and competencies to know when to stop trusting them.
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