BAE teams on software analyzing ships’ big data

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 — BAE Systems is leading a consortium of technology suppliers to develop software that monitors the equipment, fuel and energy performance of a ship.

Known as Ship Energy Assessment – Condition Optimization & Routing Enhancement System (SEA-CORES), the technology is based on BAE Systems’ expertise in supporting U.K. Royal Navy vessels and analyzes big data from the complex systems on board a ship to provide a live model of its performance wherever it is in the world.

BAE Systems is in partnership with the University of Southampton and technology suppliers to the shipping industry James Fisher and Sons plc, Fugro GEOS and OSISoft UK Ltd. The collaborative project is sponsored by Innovate UK.

BAE Systems is testing the technology on a commercial tanker provided by James Fisher and Sons plc in Northern Europe until the end of 2016 where it will be used to monitor the operational performance of the vessel at sea to inform the operator of potential efficiencies.

The vessel, the 4,426 dwt The Speciality, is being provided by James Fisher Shipping Services and is equipped with James Fisher Mimic’s condition monitoring software which will be used to capture key performance data and display additional parameters as part of the SEA-CORES project.

Fugro GEOS is part of the Fugro Group, the world’s largest integrator of geotechnical, survey, subsea and geosciences services.

OSIsoft’s PI System captures operational data from sensors, manufacturing equipment and other devices and transforms it into information streams that can be used to reduce costs, optimize production or make critical decisions. Worldwide, more than 1.5 billion sensor-based data streams are managed by the PI System.

Innovate UK is a public body, sponsored by the U.K. Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy,

Chris Courtaux, Head of Engineering and Energy Services at BAE Systems, said: “This technology will provide the Royal Navy with valuable information that will enable it to make better decisions about how it operates the fleet. For instance, reducing speed may save fuel, but could increase the wear to the engine if it sails below its optimum speed.

“Providing real time data about the impact of such decisions can help the operator to reduce fuel consumption and minimize wear on the engine, helping to save costs and increase the availability of the fleet to fulfil operational commitments around the world. The same technology is valuable for commercial companies looking for opportunities to boost the competitiveness of their operations.”

SEA-CORES has been developed in response to the increasing complexities of modern warships and the amount of data their systems produce. The technology analyses the vibration and trim performance of the vessel, its hull and superstructure state together with environmental conditions such as weather and associated ship performance characteristics, including energy consumption.

The software works in collaboration with existing BAE Systems technologies Ship Energy Assessment System (SEAS) and System Information Exploitation (SIE) technology, connecting fuel and engine optimisation to model the relationships between the different ships systems. Using genetic algorithms, it then recommends strategies to optimize the vessel’s performance.