Technology News

Hydrodemolition company Aquajet plans to launch two robots in April: the Aqua Cutter 450A and Aqua Cutter 450V.The new electric 450 series is a more compact, maneuverable design than the Aqua Cutter 750V. The new models incorporate the Evolution 3.0 control system and the patented Infinity oscillation system.Despite their reduced size, they can handle reaction forces up to 1400N, making them highly effective in confined spaces without compromising performance.Like all Aqua Cutter robots…

The Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF) has published a revision of its Guidelines for the Purchasing and Testing of SPM Hawsers – critical equipment used to ensure the safe mooring of tankers during the loading and discharging of oil cargoes from offshore facilities.Single point mooring (SPM) hawsers connect tankers to FPSOs, FSOs or offloading buoys. Testing and specification of SPM hawsers is crucial for ensuring the hawsers have the required strength, durability and reliability to perform safely and effectively under demanding circumstances…

New ABS Singapore Maritime Safety Centre to support immersive training in alternative fuels and safety operationsThe American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) have renewed their long-standing partnership with the signing of a multi-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) focused on accelerating maritime innovation, talent development, and regulatory collaboration. The expanded agreement reinforces Singapore’s position as a leading global maritime hub…

Miros has extended its agreement with Prysmian for the supply of wave monitoring systems, which have been installed on Prysmian Monna Lisa and Prysmian Marco Polo cable laying vessels (CLVs).Both vessels have been fitted with Miros’ WaveSystem and Miros Cloud technology and now benefit from real-time sea state and weather data.This builds upon the successful deployment of the same monitoring systems on Prysmian Leonardo da Vinci vessel in 2021.Prysmian's Marco Polo specializes in shallow-water cable laying and burial installation, even in harsh environmental conditions.

The International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) has published a new recommendation, Rec.186, that meets the need for a standardized approach to integrating additive manufacturing (AM), commonly referred to as 3D printing, into marine and offshore applications.The maritime industry continues to embrace developments in manufacturing technologies to enhance efficiency and sustainability in shipbuilding and offshore operations. Additive Manufacturing (AM) has emerged…

GBM Works has made progress with the development of its Vibrojet technology, designed to address noise pollution affecting marine life during the installation of foundation piles by using vibrations and water jetting, instead of traditional piling methods.In collaboration with MSA-Service and their data acquisition platform, multiped, the first large-scale tests of the technology are currently underway. The core of this technology, as GBM explains, lies in the application of water and vibrations. "Instead of forcefully hammering a pile into the seabed, we use water and vibrations.

HarborLab, the Athens-based maritime technology company, launched a new AI-powered feature designed to optimize Disbursement Account (DA) analysis and streamline port expense management.This latest innovation, known as HL AI, is part of the company’s drive to fully integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into its entire platform ecosystem helping shipowners and operators unlock efficiency and major cost savings in daily vessel operations.With annual port-related spending for ship owners and operators being currently roughly $2 million per year for a single vessel on voyage charter…

The Switch, a provider of power electronics for the marine industry, has signed a multi-million-dollar contract with Vard Electro to deliver equipment for five diesel-electric hybrid walk-to-work vessels.The Switch will supply its DC-Hub technology to multiple vessels on order at Vard Electro, a subsidiary of Vard, a Fincantieri company.With a total of 15 DC-Hubs to be delivered, the project showcases the increasing demand for flexible and future-proof power distribution systems.The five diesel-electric hybrid walk-to-work vessels of the VARD 3 32 design will provide maintenance…

Dr. Harry S. Banga and Mr. Angad Banga of The Caravel Group announced their acquisition of the International Maritime Institute (IMI), a maritime academy. In addition to its commitment to future seafarers, the Group will leverage IMI’s capabilities to strengthen the training available to its 28,000-strong global workforce, ensuring that present officers, crew members and onshore professionals remain at the forefront of industry advancements. This will include advanced simulator training, as well as specialized courses in alternative fuels, emissions reduction, and digital navigation.

Gall Thomson said there were 21 known activations of its Marine Breakaway Couplings during 2024. The activations occurred in nine different countries around the world.On each occasion, the Marine Breakaway Coupling (MBC) operated exactly as expected, the company reports. Oil spill pollution, injuries and damage to assets such as hoses, equipment and vessels were avoided. There were no spurious activations of Gall Thomson MBCs.Gall Thomson MBCs are designed to activate in an emergency…

Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat company, verified its fully managed bonded connectivity service, NexusWave, achieved maximum download speeds of 330–340 megabits per second, with maximum upload speeds of 70–80 Mbps, in real world tests. The trials demonstrated average download and upload speeds of 120–150 Mbps and 20–45 Mbps respectively, with network availability on board NexusWave vessels over 99.99%.Unlike the load balancing which hybrid connectivity solutions typically use to deliver bandwidth via the best available underlay network…

TMC Compressors (TMC) has secured a contract to deliver a large capacity marine compressed air system to the large floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) unit that Wison New Energies is building for Malaysia-based Genting.TMC will deliver its scope as a subcontractor to Jereh Offshore, which is a China-based engineering technology and service company to the offshore industries.As part of its scope of supply, TMC will deliver a marine compressed air system consisting of six compressors in total, for control air, instrument air, N2 feed air and utility purposes.

Petrobras obtained approval from the country's environmental agency to clear corals from the underside of the drilling vessel it plans to use in the Foz do Amazonas region, Reuters reports. Its February 10 request was granted on Monday for the vessel the state-run firm will send to drill off the coast of the northern Amapa state if it obtains a long-sought license to explore the environmentally sensitive region.Due to the corals being a potentially invasive species if moved to another biome…

Singapore, the world’s largest bunker hub for ships, has launched a new standard for methanol bunkering, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Monday.The move is aimed at helping to facilitate methanol bunkering at scale as the shipping industry continues to explore alternative fuels for dirty conventional fuel.A new technical reference (TR129) on methanol bunkering has been published to provide a framework for safe and efficient use of methanol as an alternative in bunkering operations, said MPA.Singapore completed the world’s first ship-to-container methanol bunkering op

AST Networks announced it is an official re-seller of the SAL SPU-200, an anti-jamming and anti-spoofing solution designed to safeguard vessel operations. The SAL SPU-200 system, designed by SAL Navigation, delivers resilience, precision, and security, enhancing operational performance for commercial and government maritime stakeholder worldwide.Key benefits of the SAL SPU-200 include signal protection, navigational accuracy, operational reliability, integration, real-time threat detection and response, and backup power and connectivity.

The global ocean shipping industry that handles 80% of world trade is navigating a sea of unknowns as U.S. President Donald Trump stokes trade and geopolitical tensions with historical foes as well as neighbors and allies.That is the backdrop for this week's S&P Global TPM container shipping and supply chain conference in Long Beach, California, an annual event that marks the start of container shipping contract negotiating season.Attendees this year include industry heavyweights like container carriers MSC…

MODEC has entered into a Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) contract with Samsung E&A for the installation of carbon capture technology on a floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel.The offshore carbon capture project envisages the installation of a carbon capture module on a MODEC FPSO vessel as a pilot, and it will be a first-of-a-kind deployment of Carbon Clean’s CycloneCC technology in an onboard carbon capture setting.Carbon Clean will provide FEED support to Samsung E&A…

Artemis Technologies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Delta Marine to manufacture eFoiler vessels for Washington’s Puget Sound.Artemis will work alongside Delta Marine to meet the growing demand for zero-emission ferries, including smaller vessels ideal for high-speed, short-haul routes. Washington State, with more ferries than any other region in the U.S., is under increasing pressure to transition to cleaner, more efficient models as public interest in sustainable transportation rises.The company has grown significantly since its founding in 2017…

SBM Offshore and Petrobras have signed an agreement to study the application of carbon capture modules on floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) units.The module design is based on an engineering and design study between SBM Offshore and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), qualified by DNV. It is based on a combination of MHI’s proprietary CO2 capture technology and SBM Offshore’s Fast4ward principles.This compact modular solution allows a significant reduction of the overall emissions associated with the production of oil and gas from FPSOs…

Some expert thoughts on AI in 2025:“In 2025, AI won’t just be a tool; it will be a collaborator.”“In 2025, the most productive employees will work alongside AI agents.”AI agents are an advance on large language models (LLMs). LLMs at present are popularly used as creative and conversational search engines. They can’t directly interact with external tools or data processing system or autonomously set up systems to monitor and collect ongoing data. AI agents can, and they can proactively track and collect data streams to refine their decision-making.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in collaboration with Royal Caribbean, conducted the first biometric debarkation for Royal Caribbean cruise passengers on Feb. 2 when Rhapsody of the Seas was the first Royal Caribbean vessel to utilize this technology at the San Juan Seaport’s Pier 4 in Puerto Rico.CBP’s biometric facial comparison technology streamlines the debarkation process, reducing clearance times by up to 30% and allowing passengers to transition smoothly from ship to shore.At debarkation, guests pause at a kiosk equipped with a camera and take a photo.

Manson Construction has long been a pillar of the U.S. maritime industry, rooted in a tradition of U.S.-built, U.S.-owned, and U.S.-operated vessels. The company was founded in 1905 by Peter Manson, when he dug up a jar of gold coins [because he didn’t trust the banks] and purchased a winch, a winch that was then put on a barge and that became Manson's first pile driver. With barge-mounted pile driver, Manson Construction  embarked on its journey into marine construction and eventually dredging, a journey which continues today as it has become a dominant player today in the U.S.

Since entering service in 2015, the all-electric ferry MF Ampere has sailed the equivalent of 17 times around the equator on batteries alone.Despite a chorus of critics and skeptics in during the project, a decade later, Ampere continues to showcase the potential of electric technology, tech that has been emulated in ferries globally.It all started with the Ampere and the Norwegian Public Road Administration's decision to require sustainable technology onboard the newbuild destined to transport passengers and vehicles across the Sognefjord on Norway's west coast.