LR Certifies CETENA’s ‘ASSIST’ Digital Solution

Lloyd’s Register has certified the ‘ASSIST’ digital solution, a tool developed by CETENA that replaces hard copy Safe Return to Port (SRtP) documentation with a tablet-based solution allowing for key safety manuals to be centrally updated. 

ASSIST – A shipboard operator Smart Assistant for Safe Return – was installed on the 55,000 gt Seven Seas Splendor, Regent Seven Sea Cruises’ newest fleet addition, which was built at Fincantieri’s Ancona Shipyard.

Under SOLAS, all vessels require a SRtP Operations Manual and this digital system – the first tool to replace hard copy SRtP’s documents – will substantially reduce the amount of paper documentation that a ship needs to store and avoids the wear and tear of hard copy manuals as well as human errors relating to sheet replacements and physical updates.

LR first classified the use of a SRtP onboard a passenger ship five years ago and this milestone has helped to develop a SRtP culture focused on improving onboard procedure and helping crew identify key risk factors.

The installation of ASSIST was undertaken in collaboration with the cruise ship’s flag, the Republic of the Marshall-Islands (RMI) Maritime Registry, the shipyard and the system manufacturer.

“Onboard Seven Seas Splendor, paper copies of SRtP documentation are now not needed, as all relevant SRtP information is now part of the ASSIST system, which has been developed and supplied by CETENA with technical support from LR colleagues in Trieste along with representatives from Marshall Islands. As part of a global and multi-disciplinary team, LR contributed and offered support for every stage of this project,” said Gabriele Sancin, Fire and Safety Team Leader, LR Trieste Technical Support Office.

Alessandro Bonvicini, CETENA, Head of Design for Safety said: “The ship houses cutting edge technology, such as CETENA’s Safe Return to Port (SRtP) ASSIST, an electronic digital solution that is equivalent to the  SRtP Operations Manual required by the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), Regulations II-1/21 and 22, it’s the first electronic SRtP program that meets SOLAS requirements in a modern, responsible way. 

The fully independent software system greatly reduces potential for errors during emergency situations, reduces the environmental footprint of the paper manuals, and ensures any changes made are updated to the central database immediately. It is the first time such technology has been approved by a Flag State Administration for use onboard a ship, thanks in large part to the certification by Lloyd’s Register. The installation of the SRtP system was performed by Fincantieri shipyard during the ship’s construction”.

“This breakthrough and innovative technology that CETENA has produced and developed sets a new level of service for ships in the future. Like Regent Seven Seas Cruises, the RMI Registry is known worldwide for our high quality standards, and we’re proud to have the vessel in our Registry? said Bill Gallagher, President of International Registries, Inc., which provides administrative and technical support to the RMI Registry.
 
Ivana Elice, Fincantieri Project Manager of Regent Seven Seas Splendor, said “In our field a key factor of success is the creation of an “innovation ecosystem”, enabling long-term partnerships and supporting a long lasting and sustainable capability to compete in highly technological markets: the project ASSIST summarizes this approach and helps us with boosting our technological leadership.”

Seven Seas Splendor recently departed from the Port of Miami for its first voyage through the Panama Canal.