Can you help us improve crew training on ferries?
Startups and SMEs: we need your help to improve training at sea
We are looking for solutions that can improve the training or leisure time of seafarers.
A shortlist of proposed solutions will be put before a jury made up of seafarers and Inmarsat and Attica representatives.
The best solution will be awarded a £10K GBP cash grant to fund a proof of concept on board an Attica ship.
The Thetius Innovation Lab aims to connect world leading maritime businesses with innovators to solve real problems. To improve welfare and safety at sea, we are working in partnership with Inmarsat, the leader in global mobile satellite communication, and Attica. Thousands of vessels rely on Inmarsat’s end-to-end service availability and coverage for operational communications, safety and welfare. Attica is a leader in the provision of ferry services for passengers and cargo in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The Attica fleet consists of 32 vessel’s that provide high quality transportation services for passengers, trucks and private vehicles.
Programme Overview
In partnership with Inmarsat and Attica Group, we are looking for novel solutions that have the potential to improve crew training and entertainment across five innovation challenge areas spanning vessel familiarisation, regulations training, onboard safety training, customer services training and improving crew entertainment and leisure time.
We are seeking applications for solutions from startups and SMEs who want to conduct a proof of concept onboard a Attica vessel, supported by Inmarsat’s technology. Startups and solution providers who apply to the Innovation Challenge will be required to submit a pitch that details their proposed solution and a proposal for the proof of concept.
From the submitted applications, a shortlist will be generated, and successful solutions invited to pitch their idea to a decision making jury. The jury will be made up of serving seafarers, with representatives from Inmarsat and Attica also attending.
The team behind the chosen idea will be awarded a £10,000 GBP cash grant, funded by Inmarsat, to test their idea by implementing a proof of concept onboard a Attica vessel equipped with Inmarsat’s communication and digital capabilities. The cash will be awarded upfront to the winning solution provider, and the winning startup will receive support from Thetius, Attica, and Inmarsat to implement their idea.
The challenges
We are seeking solutions across five challenge areas; improving familiarisation for new crew members, enabling continuous regulations training, improving onboard safety, improving customer services training onboard and improving crew entertainment and leisure time.
Even for experienced seafarers, joining a new vessel can be intimidating. Getting new crew members up to speed as quickly as possible after they have joined a vessel is critical to running a safe and efficient ship. This is particularly true during the summer season when higher ferry passenger numbers mean more crew are needed to safely operate the vessel.
Familiarisation needs to cover all of the safety procedures for the vessel, all of the equipment that a crew member will need to do their job effectively, and a crew member’s specific duties including relevant procedures. On top of this, learning the layout of the whole vessel, understanding the crew facilities and amenities, and simply knowing who everyone is are critical to being able to live and work onboard a ship.
We are looking for innovative solutions that can improve the familiarisation process for new crew members. This can include but is not limited to, solutions that can help crew members understand new equipment or standard operating procedures for their duties, help crew get up to speed with safety procedures onboard, or assist new crew members to learn about the vessel and its crew. Proposed solutions should be able to support training content delivered in Greek language.
Deck and engine crew need to learn a wide range of regulations to go to sea. As well as learning existing rules and regulations, there is a requirement for the crew to remain up to date with rapidly changing regulations as they come into force.
This can include learning and understanding major international conventions such as STCW, MARPOL and its annexes, and SOLAS. But it can also include learning and understanding regulations from the ship’s flag state, and being aware of changes issued via notices to mariners. Lastly, it is important for the crew to understand any local regulations and notices to mariners in the ports they operate in. Recent regulation changes have required training to be delivered on cyber security, hazardous materials handling, and environmental regulation changes.
We are seeking innovative solutions that can help crew members to stay up to date with changing rules and regulations on board their vessel. This can include but is not limited to, solutions that can provide a continuous assessment of crew knowledge of regulations, help crew to understand regulation changes as soon as they become relevant, and help the fleet management team to understand where there are gaps in crew knowledge. Proposed solutions should be able to support training content delivered in Greek language.
High-quality onboard safety training is critical to helping all crew members to react in the right way to an emergency situation onboard the vessel. It is also critical for equipping crew members with the skills to stop an emergency from happening in the first place.
But safety training is currently limited to onboard drills and workshops or mandatory refresher training ashore conducted every five years. The drills currently conducted onboard include emergencies such as man overboard, fire fighting, lifeboat and rescue boat launches, and abandon ship procedures.
We are seeking innovative solutions that can improve the way safety training is conducted onboard the fleet. This can include but is not limited to, solutions that enable realistic simulations of emergency situations in a safe and cost-effective manner or solutions that can test knowledge of emergency procedures onboard the vessel. Proposed solutions should be able to support training content delivered in Greek language.
The first priority of any ferry operator is that passengers arrive at their destination safely, but ensuring they have a great experience while onboard the ship is also incredibly important. Great customer service and interactions with the onboard services crew are some of the most important ways to ensure that customers have a positive experience while onboard.
All crew members in the onboard services department are given a customer services handbook when they join the vessel. The handbook serves as a guide to everyone on the team who interacts with customers to ensure they have a great onboard experience.
We are seeking innovative solutions that can improve the way customer services training is conducted onboard. This can include but is not limited to, solutions that can digitalise the customer services handbook to make it an interactive and highly engaging tool. Proposed solutions should be able to support training content delivered in Greek language.
A ship is not just a workplace, it is also a temporary home for the crew. Crew members live and work onboard for weeks at a time without seeing friends or family.
All crew members bring their own smartphones onboard the vessel but there is no internet access as we know it ashore and it is not possible to communicate with friends or family or access news and entertainment using regular social media applications like WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram.
We are seeking innovative solutions that can improve the way crew spend their downtime. This can include but is not limited to, solutions that enable the crew to use their own devices for communication with friends and family ashore, access to entertainment, or for catching up with news and current events.
Timeline
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Applications Open
We are seeking applications from starutps and SMEs who want to test innovative solutions to our five training challenge areas.
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Closing date for entries
The deadline for solution proposals is 23:00 UTC on the 28th of February 2022. Click here to learn how to apply.
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Shortlist announced
Applications will be reviewed by experts in technology and vessel operations from Attica Group, Inmarsat, and Thetius to assess their suitability for a proof of concept and a shortlist will be announced.
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Solution pitches
Shortlisted startups will be invited to pitch their solution via video call to a decision making jury made up of experts from Attica Group, ferry crew members, and representatives from Inmarsat.
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Winner announced
The decision making jury will select the solution they believe will have the greatest positive impact on crew training.
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Proof of concept begins
Now the real work begins. The winner will receive a £10,000 cash grant to fund their proof of concept. With the support of Inmarsat and Thetius, the chosen solution provider can begin the work of testing their solution on an Attica Group vessel.
Solution requirements
There are specific operational constraints that your solution must be able to work within including remote implementation, limited bandwidth, the need for plug and play hardware, and cost at scale.
- Remote implementation – Partly due to global travel restrictions, and partly due to operational constraints of the Attica Group fleet, we are seeking solutions that can be implemented remotely. It will not be possible for any representatives of the solution provider to physically visit the vessel to install equipment, train crew members, or oversee the proof of concept. You should be able to ensure the solution is properly installed, to troubleshoot if necessary and to track and monitor performance remotely.
- Efficient bandwidth use – Inmarsat will provide the winning application access to their high-speed Fleet Xpress service at sea onboard the Attica trial vessel. It will also make its digital solutions available including dedicated bandwidth (Fleet Connect) and APIs (Fleet Data) to enhance the capabilities of the winning solution where relevant. However, the solution must be able to operate within the bandwidth constraints that come with satellite communication. The operational bandwidth requirements for the solution should not be more than 1Mbps.
- Plug and play hardware – Similar to the requirement for remote implementation, we are seeking solutions that do not require extensive hardware installation. Any hardware required for the solution must be small enough to be delivered to the vessel by courier. It must also be possible to quickly install the hardware without any specialist skills, knowledge, or tools.
- Scalability – We are seeking solutions that, if successful at the proof of concept stage, could be rolled out globally across a large fleet of ships. It must be possible to scale the solution to multiple vessels in a cost-effective way.
How to apply
The deadline for applications is 23:00 UTC on the 28th of February. A group of shortlisted proposals will be invited to take part in a virtual event to pitch their solution to a judging panel made up of seafarers and representatives of Inmarsat and Attica. Out of the shortlisted solutions, one will be selected to receive the funding and conduct the proof of concept.
To submit an application, create a pitch deck or proposal document that covers the details listed below, you may also submit a demo video to support your pitch as part of your application. The details of your pitch and proposal will be shared with the challenge partners but not be shared publicly.
- About you
- Information about your company
- Information about the team members behind it and their professional backgrounds.
- Your challenge and solution
- What is your solution? (include benefits, unique selling points and pricing)
- What is your solution’s track record?
- How does it solve the specific challenge area you are applying for?
- What do you expect will be the tangible benefits to Attica Group crew members and shoreside staff?
- Your proposal
- If you are successful, what is your proposal for running a proof of concept to test your solution?
- What will you use the £10,000 GBP for?
- What are your expected results? What would a successful trial look like?
- Solution requirements
- How does your solution meet the requirements for remote implementation, bandwidth, plug and play hardware, and cost-effectiveness at scale?
Questions?
If you have any queries, concerns or comments, or you would like to ask some questions before applying please get in touch:
By email: hello@thetius.com
By phone: +44 (0) 208 614 0788
By social: @Thetiustech (DMs open)