A Journey to Actual Savings
The primary goal of using Syroco‘s weather routing and voyage optimisation platform is to reduce fuel consumption and emissions, while respecting operational constraints. While the ultimate measurement of the efficiency of the solution is the fuel and emissions saved, getting to this destination and actually obtaining these savings is a journey. The product and customer success teams at Syroco are managing this journey, to ensure that the best results are obtained.
There are actually 3 legs on this journey...
Adoption: use the platform
When a ship owner selects the Syroco solution, it usually means that we have convinced the fleet management, the decarbonisation team, the finance department, etc. of the benefits of the platform. The next major step is to show to the actual users - the captains of the ships - the value and relevance of the solution.
As soon as the digital twin of a vessel is deployed on the Syroco Live platform, the Syroco Onwatch team plans an onboarding session with the captain. This is usually done through a visio meeting, which can be organised when it’s most convenient for the captain regardless of where in the world the ship is sailing. During this discovery session, the concepts of the solution are presented, the digital twin of the vessel is explained, and a thorough walk-through of the app interface is performed. The captain and his crew are then in a position to use Syroco Live and launch their own voyage optimisations.
During the first few voyages post-onboarding, the Onwatch crew keeps an eye on the usage by each vessel, and reaches out to users who seem to be struggling with app usage. And of course they remain available 24x7 to answer any question or provide advice.
Adhesion: follow the recommendations
Launching a voyage optimisation is only a first step. In order to actually get savings, it is key that the vessel follows the recommendations provided by the app: course, speed, power settings, RPM settings, use of wind assistance if applicable.
Of course, let’s never forget that the ship master is the ultimate decision maker and carries responsibility for vessel safety. Syroco Live provides advice, the captain decides to follow the advice (or not). Many factors can impact this decision, including for example:
- Does the route stay clear of navigation hazards, respect land distance and bathymetry requirements?
- Will the vessel be sailing safely in projected weather conditions (wave height, wind)? Are seakeeping constraints accounted for (parametric roll, synchronous roll, slamming, etc.)? Does vessel roll generate too much boil-off (for LNG carriers)?
- Can the vessel actually follow Syroco’s advice? Is the desired speed attainable with the recommended power setting?
The accuracy of the models used in the digital twin is extremely important to answering “yes” to all of the questions above and ensure adhesion.
Savings: measure the actual fuel and emissions reduction
During the voyage, the Syroco Live app displays predicted savings: in real time on the route map, and every time an alternate route is computed. These are estimates, based on the data available at the time they are calculated, including weather forecasts for the rest of the voyage.
The actual savings are computed after voyage completion, and take into account the encountered weather (hindcast).
At the end of the day, savings is the metric that matters the most. They hinge on the first two legs: adoption, and adhesion. And they are the result of all the complex simulations that happen behind the scenes to always provide the best routing and voyage optimisation parameters to the crew.