Page 34 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - MARTIOS 2023

SHIP MANAGEMENT
L-R: René Kofod-Olsen
and Costas Kontes
34
ily in digital technology and training. We
feel that if there is a clear sight of what
young people can do, they may want to
join ships. For example, we have recently
partnered with universities in Greece
to offer maritime degrees via distance
learning.
We must get out there and get young
people, men and women, to work for us.
I say this for two reasons. Firstly, we will
face a shortage of seafarers in the future,
and I am not talking only about men.
Right now, we have a lot of women doing
fantastic work. But it is of utmost impor-
tance to create an environment where
they feel safe and empowered, and their
chosen career fits their needs. So, over
the next 10 years, we must find a solu-
tion to make global shipping a better and
more attractive place for young women to
decide to pursue a career at sea. It is one
of the biggest challenges we will face.
è CII seems to be favouring
vessels that cover longer dis-
tances and spend less time at
ports. Will this affect the types
and sizes of ships you choose
to manage or perhaps the con-
tracts you might enter?
Not really. We have our own digital sys-
tems and can plan the voyages together
with our clients. Using these systems, we
achieve a high degree of automation and
can prepare for the next trip by incorpo-
rating all the available information about
the ship. We have heavily invested in AI,
which is where the CII comes in because
we can help our clients deal with the reg-
adapt. In the old days, you would congre- ulation’s challenges. Remember that we
gate in the mess room when you were on do not control the charter. We operate at
a ship and had finished your shift. Today, the client’s instruction. The client defines
young seafarers will return to their cabins, the next port the vessel will call. So, the
check in with their families, and spend time implementation of the CII doesn’t change
on social media. So, we need to find ways anything for us, as we have the system
and create spaces where they feel they can capabilities to support the client and the
do that. vessel. It doesn’t really matter whether it
We must ensure ships have the technol- is a long or short-distance voyage. We will
ogy tools for seafarers to communicate operate the vessel entrusted to us by our
with the shore. We need to make it easier client to the best of our ability. The dis-
for them by bringing technology on board. ruptions I referred to are emissions and
A young seafarer today would expect that decarbonisation regulations; therefore, it
all decision-making is made using not is vital to help our clients in this new ship-
analogue but digital technology. I think ping landscape. We have been investing a
two of the four disruptions I talked about, lot of time, money, and resources into the
namely people and digitalisation, go hand whole ESG disruption and will keep doing
in hand. Therefore, we are investing heav- so for the foreseeable future.