From paper charts to digital-first: how the role of the bridge crew has changed

ECDIS moved from a specialist tool to a standard bridge feature in barely a decade. Crews now sit at the centre of a digital-first environment where the job is no longer to process information themselves, but to judge whether what the system is showing them is right. This article traces how the role of the bridge crew has shifted since the move from paper charts, and why interpretation has become the new core skill at sea.

Recent digital developments in bridge operations have improved crew capability levels. For example, tools like ECDIS have improved situational awareness, supported enhanced route planning, and enabled more effective approaches to collision prevention and voyage optimisation.

The shift of ECDIS, which has evolved from a specialist system to a standard feature on most vessels over the past decade, is evidence of a broader advance towards a digital-first bridge environment, where software systems sit at the centre of how information is presented and used.

Shravan Bhagra, Master Mariner, described the transition from paper charts to digital navigation as a quick and challenging shift for crews: “It was a sudden shift from absolutely analogue work to digital work, when I transitioned, it was pretty scary because you don’t understand the system.”

The tools bridge teams use increasingly rely on data from onboard sensors, AIS, performance-monitoring tools, and connected ship-to-shore systems. Research into ship performance standards illustrates how valuable these data streams are for improving efficiency and how difficult it can be to preserve consistency due to data quality issues and fragmented system architectures.

The IMO has made clear that ECDIS is not a simple tool and is a complex system with layers of information and varying levels of integration with other onboard systems. This is important because it highlights that digitalisation has not removed the need for seafarer judgement, but has altered its nature.

As Capt. Abhijit Arvind Mohite, HSSE Manager at a tanker operator and former Master Mariner, said, “You cannot go without technology, but you also cannot fully rely on it. You have to balance both and use them as a tool.” Technology improves user effectiveness, but only when crews understand its limitations and actively check what systems are telling them.

For example, officers are expected to interpret systems, understand how information is structured, what tools they use, and the data they rely on. This is becoming increasingly important as digitalisation reaches beyond navigational tools.

Meaning that operational decisions are being shaped more by how well crews can interpret and validate what these systems are telling them. John Hissey, Senior Product Manager at OneOcean, spoke about how the role of the bridge team has changed as information has become more centralised. “The human was the processor,” he said. “Now the difference is that information is provided there for you, and you need to know, is that right or not?”