Wärtsilä to emphasise digital transformation at Nor-Shipping 2017

At the upcoming Nor-Shipping conference and exhibition in Oslo, Marco Ryan, Chief Digital Officer & Executive Vice-President of Wärtsilä Corporation, will outline the company’s proactive work in embracing the digital transformation affecting the shipping industry.

Wärtsilä’s focus on innovation and emerging technologies has been prominent for many years, notably with its industry leading development work in the 1990’s to enable gas fuelled marine engines to become a viable alternative to the conventional use of diesel fuel. More recently, the company has introduced advanced next-generation solutions, such as its SmartPredict and Nacos Platinum innovations. Furthermore, its recent acquisition of Eniram, a producer of energy management and vessel performance systems, demonstrates Wärtsilä’s ambitions and active role in helping its customers to benefit from smart technology initiatives.

In his presentation, Marco Ryan will refer to the digital transformation as being the transitional and acceleration force creating Wärtsilä 4.0; a data-led, insight driven, agile company that leverages the most extensive product portfolio in the marine industry, while developing it at an unprecedented pace into a range of exciting new solutions, services and partnerships.

“Digital disruption is already affecting the marine sector and will do so increasingly in the future. There is today a subtle, yet significant, shift in thinking at all levels of the industry as we move from closed systems to more modular, secure, and interoperable products and solutions. Wärtsilä is a total solutions provider to the industry with the broadest product range and tremendous knowledge on how to extend the lifecycle of our customers’ installations. We are building on this by accelerating the pace at which we create new digital solutions, services, and opportunities for our customers,” says Marco Ryan.

In order to develop digital services and products in a more agile way, Wärtsilä is launching digital acceleration centres globally. The idea of the centres is to take promising ideas and transform them into service concepts and products in cooperation with customers and partners. The first digital acceleration centre is already in operation in Helsinki where currently five active projects are underway, and a second is scheduled to be opened in Singapore later this year. Two more acceleration centres will be opened during 2018. Additionally, Wärtsilä is creating a technology incubator to focus on accelerating its technical projects around core systems and platforms.

Marco Ryan will emphasise that Wärtsilä is working closely with its customers and partners to co-create greater value for shipping owners and operators. Central to this thinking is the fact that at Wärtsilä, digital development is not separated from other functions but is integrated into all its business activities, culture, and future opportunities.