Damen and TCS Receive Innovation Award for Connected Vessel Platform

Damen Shipyards Group and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) have received the CIO Magazine Innovation Award 2020 from ICT media. The award was given for the Connected Vessel Platform, Triton, an integrated, collaborative IoT platform that collects data from Damen vessels. Triton is directly related to Damen’s strategy to become the most sustainable, digitally connected shipbuilder and to provide its clients with a service spanning the lifecycle of its products, from sales lead to decommissioning. 

Delivering the award to the Damen and TCS, the jurist stated that, with Triton, “Damen is repositioning itself as a digital maritime solution provider that assumes a leading role in an ecosystem of multiple sector suppliers.”

Smarter & more efficient 

With the platform, Damen vessels are equipped with 10,000-15,000 sensors, which collect various data. For instance, how much fuel, fresh water and oil are stored in on board tanks or engine performance indicators such as power, RPM or fuel consumption. 

This information is relayed to the Connected Vessel Platform. This makes Damen vessels smarter, which in turn offers numerous benefits to Damen’s clients. For example, it allows the remote monitoring of the vessel. The information presented can be applied to optimising efficiency in operation, sailing the most efficient routes and reducing both fuel consumption and emissions. It can also aid preventative maintenance, avoiding potentially costly repairs and maximising vessel uptime. 

Collaborate to innovate

Damen and its clients are not the only ones to benefit from Triton, however. The company’s goal was to develop a platform from which it can share information and stimulate collaboration throughout the maritime supply chain – thus further improving maritime efficiency and sustainability. 

Damen CEO Arnout Damen said, “Damen is investing considerably in digitalisation. The further connectivity of our vessels is a crucial aspect in our ability to deliver lifecycle solutions to our clients. 

“More than that, digitalisation stimulates the evolution of our products – and those produced within our ecosystem – enhancing efficiency in performance and driving maritime sustainability. As a family business, we are constantly thinking about the future – about ensuring the long-term viability of our industry for the next generation. Because of this, we are completely committed to sustainability.”

Exploring new horizons

Damen’s chief information officer Aart Rupert said, “We are delighted to receive this innovation award for the Connected Vessel Platform, Triton. I would like to congratulate our team and our partner TCS for their outstanding work. This platform exemplifies our objective to make our vessels smarter and better connected to our ecosystem in order to contribute to a more sustainable future. We are excited to continue exploring new horizons. We hope that the new technologies that we apply to an industry almost as old as humanity will be an inspiration to other companies and sectors to develop business models that will help maintain their relevance for the future.”