TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2023
Chemical shipping company Hafnia announced that it will be using an artificial intelligence-assisted application from paint maintenance company SteelCorr on 57 of its ships to help improve paint preservation and reporting.
According to a release from the company, the Digital Paint Report (DPR) app will use AI to aid Hafnia in collecting and analyzing data to improve remote oversight and data security.
About the Partnership
Hafnia states that paint maintenance is essential to stopping corrosion, as well as reducing downtime and material replacement. The use of DPR is expected to help clarify and automate reporting processes, as well as reduce crew obligations and added workload.
“Digitalization simplifies complex tasks, optimizes performance, reduces costs, and maximizes resource utilization. It is great to further Hafnia’s innovation and digitalization ambitions to drive efficiencies across our operations,” stated Mikkel Boesen, VP and head of the Technically Outsourced Fleet at Hafnia states.
Hafnia states that it will use DPR’s AI to monitor corrosion levels onboard, detecting and notifying staff to increased corrosion in certain areas of the ship.
The adoption of the DPR app will also reportedly work with Hafnia’s sustainability goals, as usage of the AI app could help reduce paint wastage, enhance transparency in data monitoring and extend asset lifespans.
This agreement, Hafnia states, will help keep essential parts of the vessel, such as oil pipelines and crew areas, in a stable condition.
Related News
In March, provider of AI-assisted digital inspection software Qii.AI announced that it had entered into an agreement with Canada’s Naval Engineering Test Establishment for use of the platform in the Royal Canadian Navy’s ship inspection program.
Using the system, the company reported that ship inspections from drone imagery can be completed in a fraction of the time taken for traditional methods. The process was accelerated even further by artificial intelligence, automating the detection and measurement of issues in need of remediation, such as corrosion.
The technology reportedly offered the potential to be applied broadly across military and non-military shipping assets, additionally this was the first of many such engagements with the Canadian Armed Forces as well as NATO partner forces.
The visual data gathered for the new ship-inspection program would reportedly be carried out using small inspection drones from Skydio.
Skydio cofounder and CEO Adam Bry said, “autonomous drones will revolutionize naval inspections by creating comprehensive digital copies of vessels. Skydio 3D Scan automates the capture process, and partnering with Qii.AI enables an end-to-end AI-driven workflow to help operators make better decisions faster. We are excited to help build this program for the Royal Canadian Navy, and are looking forward to more success in this sector.”
Also, in July 2022, a research team from Curtin University in Western Australia developed an artificial intelligence monitoring tool to improve the maintenance of marine structures impacted by corrosion. Headed by lead researcher Dr. Mobin Salasi from the Curtin Corrosion Center, the joint project received funding from Smart Crete CRC to deploy the tool on structures such as jetties and ports.
According to the university’s release, the research assisted Fremantle Port Authority and Southern Ports in proactively monitoring corrosion of aging infrastructure and exploring the suitability of maintenance tools and products.
The research team anticipated that the innovative tool would lead to cost savings in the long term, as well as reduce the environmental impact caused by the corroded structures. Additionally, novel concrete chemistry monitoring was assessed as part of the project, supported by Parchem Construction Supplies.
The project utilized expertise from Curtin’s partnership with technology company Cisco, deploying students from Innovation Central Perth to support sensor fusion, dashboard development and development of an AI tool to support predictive maintenance. The partnership was built upon an existing project involving Curtin and Fremantle Ports, as well as an alliance agreement with the Corrosion Centre at Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute.
Additional partners included researchers from Curtin’s School of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, Macquarie University, and Qatar Environment and Energy Institute at Hamad bin Khalifa University.
Tagged categories: Business matters; Business operations; Coating Application; Coating failure; Coating Materials; Coatings; Coatings Technology; Corrosion; Corrosion protection; Digital tools; Inspection; Inspection equipment; Partnerships; Program/Project Management; Quality control; Surface Preparation; Technology; Tools & Equipment
