Today, on the United Nations’ World Day for Safety and Health at Work, Esa Henttinen, executive vice president for safety solutions at software provider NAPA, discusses how AI and digitalisation can support safety at sea. With this year’s theme of “revolutionising health and safety: the role of AI and digitalisation at work”, it is an apt time to check in on what real impacts AI can have in the maritime industry today.

In a survey of 400 seafarers from 29 countries by the International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN), 53.8% of respondents reported added workload due to shipping’s decarbonization transition; 44% spoke of increased stress levels; and 32.8% stated fears about potential criminalisation, as the complexity of current reporting regimes led to greater risks of inadvertent error.

While maritime decarbonization is rightly an industry priority, it must not come at the expense of seafarers’ safety and welfare. This is where decarbonization and digitalisation must go hand in hand. Expanding reporting requirements must not place a burden on crews. By removing simple yet time-consuming, repetitive administrative tasks, AI and digital tools free seafarers up to focus on what matters most: operating the ship safely. Essentially, addressing admin efficiently has a positive knock-on effect on safety.

Ships must, for example, comply with different reporting systems. While the IMO Data Collection System (DCS) requires seafarers to record and report their vessel’s fuel consumption, the EU Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) system requires ships calling at EU ports to report their CO2 emissions. When implemented effectively, a digital reporting tool allows a single data entry and automatically adapts it for various databases.

Beyond reporting requirements, digitalisation can also support onboard safety processes. A modern ship is one of the most information-dense workplaces on earth. Crews manage stability calculations, cargo operations, voyage reports, regulatory logs, safety permits, checklists, logbook entries, emergency procedures and much more – all while also managing the hands-on work of operating the ship. AI can give mariners better information faster, with less manual effort, so they can focus on the decisions that matter.

It is important to note, however, that AI supports the crew rather than replacing them. Implemented well, the digital system suggests, the human decides. AI-generated cargo plans, for example, are reviewed and approved by officers. Voice-created logbook entries are confirmed before completion. Dashboards answer questions and give clear insights, but they do not make decisions for the crew.

AI-supported permit-to-work processes are a clear, tangible area where digitalisation can underpin superior safety. Permit-to-work is a relevant example, as it is the single most important document governing whether a crew member comes home safely from a shift. 2023 data from InterManager showed a sharp increase in the number of seafarers who died from asphyxiation in enclosed spaces. More than 30 people died, which was the second-highest annual number in nearly three decades. The data also show that 55% of accidents over the past 28 years occurred during planned work, with most occurring in the hold, access areas, and oil tanks.

When every active work permit, enclosed space entry, or high-voltage intervention depended on a process that had historically existed only on paper, this pattern could not be identified. Paper also cannot alert a shore manager that three high-risk permits are active simultaneously on deck 5, whereas AI-powered digital permit management systems can. As well as enhancing safety, digitalisation creates a data trail that AI can learn from: which permit types generate the most near-misses? Which departments need additional training? Which ships have the longest authorisation delays? Digitalisation should also connect the ship to the shore. Data collected onboard feeds AI analytics shoreside, which informs better decisions that flow back to the ship.

The maritime industry generates millions of data points every day, and with regulatory reporting on decarbonization proliferating, this admin is only set to increase. Digitalisation and AI can not only help to enhance safety processes for seafarers but can also generate operational insights that actively protect crews and improve performance. In one of the world’s harshest workplaces, digitalisation is revolutionising how we keep seafarers as safe as possible.