US-South Korean partnership seeks to ‘streamline’ smart vessel technologies

Classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) have inked an agreement to explore the international standardization of smart vessel and shipyard technologies.

Under the terms of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) that the two partners signed, ABS and KATS will specifically focus on shipbuilding and vessel maintenance, repair and overhaul, representatives from the American Bureau of Shipping have explained.

As disclosed, the two organizations plan to exchange information via a set of joint workshops and seminars in order to ‘bolster’ international standardization capabilities and ‘streamline’ certification procedures for South Korean equipment manufacturers.

Moreover, the agreement will reportedly allow ABS and KATS to create a conformity assessment framework that could allow for the verification of equipment compliance with a number of international regulations.

Efforts to promote the development and application of smart shipyard-oriented projects in South Korea have seen a steady upward trend in recent times.

As informed, the benefits of such digital technologies in the shipbuilding and repair sectors range from minimized delays, lower material waste and reduced energy use to predictive maintenance and safety improvements, among others.

Among South Korean players that have made increased efforts in this field are shipbuilding giants HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI), HD Hyundai Mipo, and HD Hyundai Samho.

In September this year, the companies selected global solution companies Siemens Industry Software and Aviva as the first preferred negotiating partners for the setting up of a ‘design and production integration platform’, with the overarching goal of the endeavor being the creation of a smart shipyard.

In June, HD Hyundai Samho also joined forces with ABS to jointly work on an artificial intelligence (AI)-backed smart shipyard project. Beyond AI, the project would also focus on automation and robotics, the companies had said at the time,

Just a month before that, ABS had shaken hands with HD Hyundai Mipo, having signed a joint development project (JDP) with the vessel construction company to create digital manufacturing-based automation equipment for shipyards.