In the Know 82: Solving the Shipyard Data Challenge With Oxalis

In this episode of In the Know, TME caught up with Sasha Trifunac, chief commercial officer of Oxalis Solutions, a consulting firm that provides data solutions for heavily regulated industries like ship repair. Oxalis' team has spent years working with shipyards to digitize their paperwork and their estimating process, with particular emphasis on U.S. Navy MRO contracts.

Oxalis' YardOS system digitizes the shipyard contracting process from bid to closeout, and it can be integrated with a shipyard's existing ERP system. The product is what the firm calls a "single pane of glass" tool for planning, tracking and reporting on projects in process. It was designed for U.S. Navy work from the start, including reports for the Navy Maintenance Database (NMD).

The most critical differentiator for the system is that it is closely tailored to the needs of workers at the deckplate level, Trifunac says. Without buy-in, an ERP system may simply not get used to its full potential. That means that software developers have to spend time out in the shipyard, alongside the people who use the product, to make sure that the system meets real-world needs.

"If you don't design for adoption at the deck plate rather than the boardroom, you're basically not going to be successful," he says. "That's the real struggle - you have to actually make sure that you're getting the data from the people who are working on the deck plate."

For more details, listen in below.

The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.