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adds, “That kind of safety level is something that custom- ers appear to be willing to pay for.”

T H EECHNOLOGY AND THE UMAN LEMENT

There are, says McFadyen, other ways to bring lessons learned from the aero side of the business onto the water- front. “We’re not that far behind in terms of the technol- ogy. In terms of the acceptance of operators, we are quite a bit further behind.” That hasn’t stopped rolls-Royce from bringing industry along for the ride. In their Norway- based simulators, they can model the operation of a PSV or an OSV, simulating the operation of a crane, with mul- tiple participants on deck, in the engine room, etc. “We have customers that view that as critical to their ability to maintain a trained and certi? ed workforce.”

The Rolls-Royce approach, as part of the energy manager solution, also allows the customer to identify that there are some crews and vessels that have best practice. A particular op- erator might want to share that knowledge across their ? eet.

And, says McFadyen, “By giving them the data and pointing them in the direction of which of their vessels is operating best, it allows them to facilitate that kind of best practice sharing.”

O E : L LFFSHORE NERGY MAKING EMONADE OUT OF EMONS

In a tough global maritime market, it is the offshore side that arguably has been hardest hit. When this happens, op- erators typically cut costs, often in areas like the bells and whistles which Rolls-Royce brings to market. And, while

McFadyen admits that they’ve seen a downturn in terms of revenues, that’s been driven by the usage of the vessels in the offshore industry. On the other hand, the climate has pro- vided an opportunity to develop a different business model.

“Since the beginning of the maritime industry, mainte- nance has been traditionally done on a time and material basis. We’re looking to ? ip that into a condition-based mon- itoring where the OEM takes the responsibility for deliver- ing the life cycle maintenance costs for the equipment, at a ? xed price to the customer, or at a price based on the num- ber of operating hours,” explains McFadyen. Effectively, this aligns the interests of the equipment manufacturer with the operator. When the vessel’s working, the equipment manu- facturer is getting paid, and when the vessel is not working, the equipment manufacturer is not getting paid.

McFadyen adds, “So this bit of a downturn – while it has hit our short-term revenues and pro? ts – is provid- ing us an opportunity to enter into those discussions that we think will really form up a more collaborative view of how we approach maintenance going forward.” The plan www.marinelink.com

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