Partnership delivers new classification notations for Laskaridis bulker

(Posted on 07/12/23)

A smartship partnership bringing together ship management company Laskaridis Shipping, digital technology provider METIS Cyberspace Technology and classification society Bureau Veritas (BV) has developed new notations reflecting the latest advances in digitalization, and in particular the use of augmented data to optimise the efficiency of shipping operations and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The results of this partnership were made official during a meeting at the offices of Laskaridis Shipping Co. LTD. on the 17th of November 2023.

The project, which was launched in June 2022, led to BV delivering an Approval in Principle to METIS Cyberspace for its METIS Ship Connect System, an automated data acquisition platform for the monitoring of vessel operations and subsystems. Furthermore, two new classification notations were awarded to the bulk carrier LETO, built in 2015 and managed by Laskaridis Shipping CO. LTD., which is one of the 20 ships of the company’s fleet equipped with METIS Ship Connect.

METIS Ship Connect serves as the onboard Internet of Things (IoT) component within the METIS solution. METIS Ship Connect collects data streams from onboard sensors, instruments and automation control systems that are utilized by the METIS cloud–based platform to generate actionable intelligence. Essential vessel metrics such as fuel oil consumption, engine performance, electrical power production etc. are monitored in real time and through advanced data analytics and machine learning techniques the METIS platform provides optimization recommendations, predictive insights and regulatory compliance management.

With METIS Ship Connect on board, the bulk carrier LETO became the first vessel to be awarded the DATAINFRA notation, which was developed by Bureau Veritas as part of the project. The DATAINFRA notation recognizes that the ship is equipped with data infrastructure consisting of data assets, technologies, organizations and data management processes, ensuring the reliable collection, transmission, storage, sharing and availability of data to multiple data consumers.

The LETO is also the first in-service vessel to receive BV’s SMART (EnE1-W, -S, -Em) notation, which recognizes that the company and the vessel incorporate software and hardware that provide smart functions for the collection, transmission, analysis and visualization of data related to energy efficiency, speed optimization, weather routing and emissions monitoring.

Focusing on the use of big data and AI technology, the new notations and the METIS Ship Connect platform will help shipmanagers reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vessels and optimise performance. The project and notations scope support ship-to-shore connectivity, remote decisions and remote operations.

Mrs. Eleni Polychronopoulou, CEO at METIS Cyberspace Technology, said: “Shipping is now coming to accept that real-time vessel data, predictive analysis and artificial intelligence will be crucial to meeting the needs of the transition ahead. Used correctly, data not only helps optimise maritime operations to boost energy efficiency, but also supports better decision-making at the strategic level. Approval in Principle from Bureau Veritas confirms METIS Ship Connect as fully ready and fit for purpose to help the maritime industry navigate its digital challenges.”