Page 36: of Marine News Magazine (April 2023)

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Tech File

Software

Fuel Savings Are Just a ‘Nudge’ Away

BY ERIC HAUN

The commercial maritime industry is hard at work de- Young Brothers, a tug and barge carrier that transports veloping, testing and implementing new and innovative ocean cargo between the Hawaiian Islands, recently trialed technologies to limit its environmental impacts. While Signol’s software during a ? rst-of-its-kind pilot program much of the effort has focused on physical solutions such partly sponsored by Elemental Excelerator, the Honolulu- as improved hull design, cleaner burning engines and al- based climate tech accelerator and investor. The ? ve-month ternative fuels—all of which are important components of trial ran from June to October 202, marking Signol’s ? rst the industry’s decarbonization journey—software ? rm Si- for tugs following successful test runs aboard larger ships gnol has its sights set on helping vessel owners and opera- such as tankers, bulker carriers and containerships.

tors reap the rewards of behavioral ef? ciencies. Signol went live on six Young Brothers tugs and had 24

The U.K.-based company has developed a solution that participating captains and engineers throughout the pro- leverages big data and behavioral science best practices to gram. Enrolled captains received personalized goals, mo- “nudge” captains to operate their vessels more ef? ciently, tivational reports on their performance and impromptu reducing fuel consumption, operating costs and emissions. noti? cations via email. They were also given access to the

Signol has been moving into maritime after its start in the Signol web app, where they could review and re? ect upon aviation industry, saving Virgin Atlantic more than $6 mil- their own individual performance.

lion in fuel costs and 24,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions “Signol recognizes that captains of tugboats are experts during an eight-month trial. in their ? eld, where they understand their vessels and the

Young Brothers 36 | MN April 2023