Behind many operational inefficiencies lies a structural issue: fragmented systems that do not communicate effectively. As organisations adopt specialised tools, integration often becomes an afterthought. This insight explores how disconnected data environments impact decision-making.
Fragmentation is reinforced by the growing gap between regional requirements. Jeet Banerjee, a sustainability and emissions data specialist with experience across auditing and ship management, noted that “the approach that organisations take to EU ETS, they cannot take for FuelEU, and what they take for FuelEU they cannot take for UK ETS.”
He described the overall picture as being “very much segmented and fragmented.” Each compliance regulation requires different logic and processes. This adds another layer of organisational complexity.
While each system performs its individual function without major issues, the result is that company information is spread across platforms that are poorly connected. “If a client does not have the ability for these systems to speak together and create that single source of truth, it creates unnecessary work within the organisation and too many manual steps and that again leads to a risk of mistakes,” said Thomas Hechmann, Head of Sales, EMEA, with a commercial shipping background, Sofar Ocean.
Fragmentation is not the result of poor decision-making, but the natural outcome of market development.
For Panagiotis Mouameletzis, IT Manager at Almi Marine Management SA, fragmentation is a part of how systems are designed and procured. He explained that, “this comes to the design because the provider will make equipment according to their specifications, but does not take into account the other peripherals that may need to be connected.”
When tools are designed in isolation, integration becomes more reactive than proactive. This makes it difficult to achieve full structural integration across fleets and organisations.
It is natural for digital solutions to evolve to solve specific problems. Tools are often built in response to regulatory and operational pressures. The issue is that disconnected systems make it difficult to form a shared view of performance and risk across an organisation.
Download “The Great Integration: How connected maritime technology is unlocking compounded value across performance, compliance, and operations”, and discover how shipping companies can move from fragmented systems to more connected, decision-ready operations.
