Satellite connectivity enables owners to use optimisation solutions on offshore support vessels
Owners can implement internet of things, cloud-based platforms, remote monitoring and inspections and emissions reduction technologies using geostationary or low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
At Riviera Maritime Media’s Annual Offshore Support Journal Conference, Awards and Exhibition, held in London, UK, 15 June 2022, vessel owners discovered the benefits of connectivity from satellite operators and digitalisation from application providers.
OneWeb vice president of maritime and energy Carole Plessy said LEO satellite networks will have lower latency in Ku-band than geostationary satellites, opening more applications to offshore vessel owners.
Along with higher bandwidths and larger data packages, LEO satellites will enable cloud-based applications, real-time monitoring, digital twins, artificial intelligence and remote control of drones and remotely operated vehicles.
Ms Plessy said OneWeb will be similar to 4G over satellite and will be used as primary connectivity, or as a back-up to fibre networks. It has started a pilot project on an offshore platform in the North Sea and has two demonstrators in Aberdeen and London, UK.
There are four antennas forming two terminals on the platform, with one set for crew communications and welfare services and one for operational needs of the energy company.
“We are live now offshore and will be commercial at sea in Q1 2023,” she said.
Inmarsat vice president for offshore energy and fishing Eric Griffin said there has been a “massive increase in adoption of remote monitoring and services” increasing the maritime data flowing across the company’s satellites.
From January 2020 to November 2021 there was a 77% increase in average data transmissions. There was another rise of 17% between the end of 2021 and June 2022.
“Fleet Xpress use has doubled since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Mr Griffin.
Data is used for remote vessel and crew management, performance monitoring, environmental reporting, ECDIS updates and crew welfare applications, such as social media and telemedicine.
“These were all proven to work during the pandemic,” said Mr Griffin, who expects more applications to be applied as owners strive to reduce emissions and cut operating costs.
Shell Marine OEM relationship manager Ketan Damle explained how remote and real-time lubricant monitoring can help owners cut costs and detect engine issues before they become problems through a remote monitoring platform Shell has developed for collecting and analysing lubricant data.
Shell Remote Sense collates data from vessels and transfers it to a cloud platform where Shell’s artificial intelligence and machine learning technology automatically analyses it.
Mr Damle said this platform supplies information on the condition of the lubricant oil, if there is water in the oil and the remaining oil life.
“This real-time lubricant monitor is a prime technique to determine machinery health,” he said. “It detects contamination of water in oil and other issues and alerts operators.”
Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore global process owner director Tihomir Kezic explained why vessel owners and engineroom systems providers should collaborate with class societies for digital surveys and condition-based maintenance.
He said Bureau Veritas is developing a collaborative platform for machinery maintenance applications and remote class surveys.
This is a “classification transformation through digital surveys” Mr Kezic said. This platform will enable owners to “optimise machinery maintenance and class surveys.”
It involves regularly monitoring vessel machinery, consistent checks of condition and annual reports.
“We want to do this in real-time for full digital surveys,” said Mr Kezic. “This is how class sees the future of survey schemes.”
