Digital technology can transform ship repair sector

Real-time connections are generating major benefits in raising operational efficiency across the global merchant fleet but the ship repair business still works on a reactive maintenance model, says ship repair executive Arran Dall. Speaking at a ship repair seminar organised by DVV Media at SMM last week, Dall said that routine survey work is supplemented by operational faults and failures noted by engineering and deck staff during operation at sea, but the whole process can be made much more efficient.

His message comes at a key moment for the repair sector. “Digital solutions can help transform the industry to a predictive maintenance model,” Dall said, “whereby potential failures are identified in advance and pre-emptive maintenance occurs before things go wrong, eliminating any collateral costs. Many digital systems already exist but have not been widely adopted so far, Dall said.

For individual ships, 3-D scanning and digital twins can optimise component fabrication and through-life maintenance, Dall said; augmented and virtual reality system can provide real-time data for guidance during repairs and upgrades; and drones can provide remote inspection services, location intelligence, and the optimisation of repair yard labour and equipment allocation.

Dall has developed new software, Slotstream, to optimise repair yard slot scheduling. The system, he tells SRN, gives live forecasts of materials, revenues, and labour requirements based on real-time docking schedules, reducing the challenges of overloading and underloading at repair yards.