Slaves to the Algorithm
Time was when senior officers at sea called the shots, relying occasionally on the wise counsel and support of the team back in head office. This served shipping well enough, but technology has changed the landscape. Now the levels of accountability, the demands for information and data have skewed the dynamic. Add to the mix that soon the ship will be making the decisions, and it seems we are all set to become slaves to the algorithm.
Back when the best seafarers had every finger a marlin spike, little mind was given to those ashore. The company set out its loose requirements, there was an understanding of what needed to be done and the Master was in the right place at the right time to call the shots and had the authority to do so.
Seafarers, and therefore the ships, made their best effort to do the right thing, getting to port safely, with the cargo intact and on time. It worked for centuries, but times they have a changed, and now we have the fevered push from all parts of the marine adventure to know more, to feel more connected, and to have constant oversight.
This is what has initially driven the push to digitalisation. The devolution as power shifts from the shipping company to shipper. This has seen a rush for technology, as the focus shifts to developing high-tech solutions. Allowing shipping companies to carry out all voyages with optimum performance, safety and efficiency, so that clients can be kept happy. The ultimate win-win.
However, this is not a zero-sum game, and we must be careful that we work both sides of the equation equally. We have all seen that maritime technology has greatly increased the range of data and inputs that are now available. This has generated huge potential to create solutions that provide intelligence and insight encompassing every aspect of the entire voyage. Now we must harness the power which comes from that level of knowledge.
FROM WHAT TO WHY
Is that enough though? Or is it time to dig deeper into not so much the “what”, but the “why”. This is where I see the market going; not just optimising any one aspect of a voyage, but instead bringing together datasets from multiple and sometimes unexpected sources. To ensure we able to give seafarers, crew and operators the answers they need. While giving clients, regulators, and even society, the answers they want.
We are at the alteration point, where voyage analysis has to become voyage intelligence, as we drive forward to a future of maritime informatics. It is not enough to churn out numbers, it is about using them. We need the alchemy to transform base data into good decisions.
Now, while there is much opportunity, this is a change that can be painful for some. There’s huge potential for machine learning, but does that come at a cost? Is this race for enhancements blinding us to the value of data and of how to actually use it?
Is more always the way? Is generating more data going to enhance or constrain? We might think that the more we know the better for all. Well, yes and no. Yes, if we can respond to data if we can build responses worthy of the intelligence which is produced. No, if we are going to try and shoehorn old systems and ways of managing ships and people into the new digital future.
TAIL WAGGING THE DOG
This brings us to the point of asking how we can index, search and manipulate data, coming up with new insights and to drive optimisation. Currently, there is a real danger in always looking too far over the horizon, and shipping has to keep in touch with the human side, and the application of good seamanship.
There is a tendency towards a gold rush and futuristic mentality within the shipping industry around the power of Big Data. The danger is that if you are continually rushing around, adopting each new thing that comes your way, you risk losing sight of the bigger picture. Technology is the tail, the ship is the dog. This is not going to deliver the results that are wanted, needed, promised or expected. We can do better, and we should. That is what I want, to help navigate and plot a course through the reefs of reality.
They say the past makes fools of us all, well the sea can do that every bit as well. Desires, dreams, promises and hopes will not make seafarers, cargoes or ships safer. There is a need to make all parts come together, to use technology, solutions, data and intelligence which encompasses the whole of the voyage.
Given the current challenging market conditions, shipowners and operators aren’t in a position to adopt the “move fast and break things” approach to technology adoption that has prevailed in other industries. So, there is a lot of work to be done guiding the industry through its digital transition.
CALL FOR CALM
To be honest, I thought we had made more progress than we have, and hence my frustrations and the need to at least try and help drive some debate, to challenge convention, and to try and shake things up a little until proper solutions fall out. The world is changing fast, but things cannot happen overnight. It is by easing the adoption of technology at a reasonable pace, that is how the solutions come together.
Rather than forcing people to adopt the latest new shiny solution they are not necessarily going to realise the full benefit from, we need to instead talk, and find out the true problem to be solved and the best ways of doing so. When it came to the sea, even Apple’s Steve Jobs tied himself in knots. The vision for his yacht, Venus, caused constant conflict with designers and builders. And as a result, sadly never got built before he died. It is all very well to think different, but we need to deliver too.
Shipowners, shipmanagers and operators are on a voyage that we need to help them navigate, step-by-step. While on the other side of the equation, the technologists need to understand that the wrong solutions are no solutions at all. The digital transformation needs to be rolled out with thought, strategic vision and with a steady hand on the tiller.
We need balance in the tech universe and empathy from both sides. What we need is zen Masters. So, we make the data work for all of us. It can save time, effort and safeguard against wasted resources. It can provide insight and oversight and can make shipping safer, more efficient, cleaner and more secure.
