2. Map your current situation
Catalogue key data assets, the on-board data being collected as well as the data from external sources. Describe the vessels’ data network infrastructure. Identify the practices of the crew’s handling of manual input data. Describe the company’s data management infrastructure. Identify which decisions are taken based on the data onshore. Consider the capability to generate new insights from data and the willingness to collaborate in cross-silo data exploration.
3. Chart the way ahead
The above assessment of the current situation will have identified multiple opportunities to work on issues that hinder better data analytics, like poor or unknown data quality, insufficient data standards or limited access to data across organizational units. Once these limitations and bottlenecks are removed, the organization should focus on extracting more value from the data that are already available. This might require investment in analytics tools – now worth it, as the results will be based on known quality data. Once sufficient data management and analytical performance has been achieved and measurable effects of these start to become visible, it is probably time to extend the effort and onboard these new data streams and tools. More data use and better structured information is an enabler, but large cost reductions or revenue increases depend on operations, fleet management and commercial departments to innovate and explore opportunities.
