Hyundai sailing into a new era of smart ships

The world’s biggest shipbuilder, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) – working with Intel, SK Shipping, Microsoft, the Daejeon Center for Creative Economy and Innovation (DCCEI) and the Ulsan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation (UCCEI) – wants to bring smart ships to the world’s oceans.

An agreement signed by the group allows HHI and its partners to team up in an effort to help domestic information and computer technology businesses create software that improves the safety and well-being of crew members, meeting the needs of ship-owners and safe ship operation standards.

In 2019, the Ship Service Software should be applied to smart ships, if all goes according to planned.  Once applied, it will allow for remote medical treatment services for crew members, ballast tank inspections, virtual reality training, maintenance of important equipment and automatic voyage information reporting.

“The Korean shipbuilding industry was developed on the back of advanced manufacturing technology but now is the time for us to shift our focus to differentiated ship service technologies,” stated an HHI official. “We see that customized and value-added software will play a role in reviving the industry.”

Ship-owners, crews and customers work together on new tech

SK Shipping and HHI will offer smart ship platforms and technological mentoring services.  Meanwhile, UCCEI and DCCEI will conduct briefing sessions for shipbuilders and shipping lines to encourage the technology companies to participate.

HHI and Accenture, together, unveiled OceanLink this past May.  OceanLink, their version of a smart ship, is geared toward the shipbuilding, shipping, and onshore-logistics sectors. With a grouping of analytics software and sensors, ship-owners can keep track of a ship’s condition and status in real-time.  Along with this, owners are offered a vast range of ship operation data including location, weather, and onboard equipment and cargo status information.