Sponsored By

BV, Sembmarine, Nokia complete trial of remote surveys on newbuilding construction

Bureau Veritas (BV), in collaboration with Sembcorp Marine and Nokia, has completed a trial of remote surveys in Singapore in a move to embrace digitalisation, as Covid-19 has severely disrupted traditional manned surveys.

Lee Hong Liang, Asia Correspondent

September 3, 2020

2 Min Read
pic
Photo: BV

Classification society BV said the successful trial has paved the way for establishing a new class procedure for the remote inspection of vessels under construction.

At the pilot trial conducted in August 2020, BV, Nokia and Sembmarine test-bedded remote surveys on a newbuild vessel construction at Sembmarine’s Tuas Boulevard Yard. Various checks were carried out to assess the integrity of the hull components, which were in various stages of construction. The checks included material verification, panel fit-up, as well as visual inspections of the sub-assembly block.  

“The pandemic situation has led to an acceleration of remote survey techniques. As we now move forward in our ever complex digital world, and manage new norms of working post Covid-19, we feel that true success is often about working collaboratively with stakeholders,” said David Barrow, BV vice president - marine & offshore, South Asia and Pacific.

Utilising digital technology, remote surveys can be performed at multiple locations with feedback transmitted to a single monitoring station. This optimises the waiting time between surveys and increases operational efficiencies by providing connectivity between all stakeholders involved, while minimising inspectors’ and workers’ exposure to onsite safety risks, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Related:DNV GL claims completion of world’s first in-water remote ship surveys

Stuart M Hendry, head of Nokia Enterprise, Asia Pacific, said: “With our Fastmile 4G CPE solution and cloud-based digital collaboration platform for remote tools, both BV and Sembcorp Marine teams working in the shipyard can communicate and work seamlessly together.”

Sembmarine said that as part of its innovation and sustainability strategy, the shipyard group has embraced Industry 4.0 technologies including digital design, advanced manufacturing and the Industrial Internet-of-Things (IIOT) to boost its production capabilities and capacity.

With the successful pilot trial, BV, Nokia and Sembmarine said they have further reinforced the feasibility of complementing remote surveying with specific traditional surveys without compromising personnel safety and survey quality.  Such remote service delivery will likely become the new normal in vessel surveys.

Read more about:

Singapore

About the Author

Lee Hong Liang

Asia Correspondent

Singapore-based Lee Hong Liang provides a significant boost to daily coverage of the Asian shipping markets, as well as bringing with him an in-depth specialist knowledge of the bunkering markets.

Throughout Hong Liang’s 14-year career as a maritime journalist, he has reported ‘live’ news from conferences, conducted one-on-one interviews with top officials, and had the ability to write hard news and featured stories.

 

Get the latest maritime news, analysis and more delivered to your inbox
Join 12,000+ members of the maritime community

You May Also Like