Page 12: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (October 2013)

12 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News ? OCTOBER 2013 While shipowners are generally classiÞ ed conservative in the uptake of new technolo-gy, the advent of increasingly sophisticated software solutions which manage everything from fuel to cargo to crew make a compelling Þ nancial case to modernize quickly. Earlier this summer Germany?s Fraunhofer CML is- sued what is arguably the most thorough study to date which analyzes the software market as applied to ship-ping companies. Entitled ?Fleet Management Systems 2013,? the 60-plus page report provides exhaustive de-tail and insightful research on software solutions from 46 providers globally, with many pages of product overview helping to measure how one system stacks up versus another. In short, the study seeks to provide clarity to what many see as a confusing technology sector, one born of in-house solutions and evolving with the shipping industry to that of a more corporate and uniÞ ed approach. The umbrella term Fleet Management Systems (FMS) covers software solutions that support speciÞ c business processes in ship management.In analyzing the shipping software market, it is im-portant to keep in perspective that it is still in its in-fancy compared to the industry as a whole, as the study found that providers have been in the market for an av-erage of 18 years, while nearly 30% of the companies have entered the market in the past decade. Maritime Reporter editorial staff have noted a pal- pable uptick in the appetite for advanced software sys-tems in recent years, and the report helps to support this notion. While dif Þ cult to pinpoint the total value of the market given that many of the software provid-ers and their clients are private, the Fraunhofer CML studies estimates the size of the global FMS market to be $408-$545m and growing rapidly. The wide chasm in determining market size is due too to the disparity in company size, as larger companies offering more comprehensive solutions value the market higher. In general terms, researchers at Fraunhofer found the av-erage cost of an FMS application was between $5,400 and $10,800 per year, per vessel. Despite a generally horrible year for shipping in 2011, the FMS market grew about 7.5%, and the mar- ket is expected to grow between 8 and 17% in 2013.While drivers for the growth are numerous, reduced fuel consumption and cost is the overriding reason ship owners are venturing into more sophisticated program-ming, as solid data is emerging which correlates ef Þ -cient route and weather planning, for example, and its direct effect on saving fuel and money. Less tangible but still important factors in software solution growth in the sector centers on rapid communication capabili-ties connecting ship to short. Put simply, ship owners today are able to access faster, more reliable commu- nications cheaper, and while the trend does not exactly mirror shore-based capabilities, the gap is narrowing. Faster, cheaper communication are opening a pletho- ra of new areas for onboard software development, as efÞ ciency measures such as real-time machinery mon- itoring and maintenance assist, as well as crew welfare initiatives such as real-time medical assistance emerge from concept to reality. In assessing the 46 companies, the study found an average operating revenue of $5.2m, meaning that the majority of the companies are relatively small, and given the overall size of market, it is still a highly frag-mented sector with Þ erce competition, meaning future consolidation to fewer, larger players is a distinct real- ity. Finally, the industry-wide trend toward cloud solu- tions is noticeable in the FMS market, as nearly half (48%)of the providers currently provide cloud-enabled software solutions. While the other half does not, the study found that the majority of them plan to do so in the future.NEWSSofware Solutions Sofware Solutions Picking up Steam Picking up SteamA new study from Germany show rapid expansion in the maritime ß eet management software sector. By Greg Trauthwein 18 Average age of software com- panies in the study$408-$545mEstimated size of the global market for Fleet Management Systems$5.2m Average operating revenue of software companies in the study48 % of companies that offer Cloud-based solutions$5400 to $10,800Average cost, per vessel per year, of an FMS application For additional information on ?Fleet Management Systems 2013,? contact Fraunhofer CML: T: +49 4042878 4476 E: [email protected] www.cml.fraunhofer.de For more Software Solutions coverge, please turn to page 58.MR #10 (10-17).indd 12MR #10 (10-17).indd 1210/4/2013 9:54:59 AM10/4/2013 9:54:59 AM