SmartSea has warned that the shipping industry’s move towards smart vessels is being held back by poor use of existing operational data.

The maritime technology firm stated that shipowners have invested in sensors, artificial intelligence and onboard connectivity, but much of the information generated at sea is still not being properly collected, linked or analysed.

Over the past decade, digital tools covering engine monitoring, voyage optimisation and maintenance have been installed across fleets. SmartSea argued that these systems often operate separately, leaving crews and shore-based staff to work across fragmented platforms rather than a single, useful operational picture.

Kris Vedat, chief executive officer of SmartSea, said: “The industry is not short of data — ships are already collecting huge amounts of it every day. The real problem is that too little of that data is being harvested, connected and analysed in a way that supports better decisions. If crews still need to piece together information from multiple platforms, then the ship is not smart, it is just more complicated.”

SmartSea noted that this lack of connectivity can affect decisions on speed, fuel consumption, maintenance and routing. Seafarers may also face extra pressure when several onboard systems show overlapping or inconsistent information.

The digital platform provider stated that it is addressing the issue by consolidating existing shipboard technologies into a single operational layer, enabling information to be transformed into clearer insights for crew and shoreside users.

Vedat added: “Shipping does not need more dashboards or more raw data, it needs better use of the data it already has. That only happens when information is connected, analysed properly and presented in a way that people can actually use.”

SmartSea focuses on digital integration across maritime and wider logistics operations. Its work covers areas including vessel IT support, project management and port-related digital systems.