Not just clever, but smart solutions
22 Oct 2018 Reading time calculated text
Read Michel van Roozendaal's editorial from the MacGregor News, issue 173, Autumn 2018.
MacGregor’s commitment to shape the maritime industry, drive its transformation and pioneer intelligent cargo handling means that we are investing in the growth of digital services, which are being developed under the MacGregor Smart framework.
We all operate our businesses in an increasingly digitised environment, with many new smart solutions available to make operations safer, more efficient, and in turn, more profitable. The key to successfully adopting them is identifying which solution would make the most difference and then effectively implementing it to ensure that it delivers the best advantage. Knowing which solution to choose may be obvious to some, but in many cases it is undetectable losses that mean profits are literally slipping through the fingers of operators.
MacGregor understands that customers in every sector need different solutions because their priorities are different, and their customer’s priorities are different again.
We want our customers to be able to capitalise on the wide-ranging benefits that our broad digital portfolio can offer. These solutions are not long-hoped for dreams, but are available now. We can monitor, safeguard and optimise assets and operational performance. We can help reduce inefficiencies and maximise capacity utilisation and, through automation, improve safety and efficiency even further. For example, we are delivering the very first autonomous discharging cranes the industry has seen.
Our other commitments also continue. We are strengthening our position in China with a new joint venture and our Shanghai-based RoRo team is proving invaluable for European owners looking for guidance when embarking on newbuild projects in the country.
The fisheries and high-end, specialist research vessel sector can now benefit from our acquisition of Rapp Marine and we are already seeing ground-breaking technology stemming from our broader portfolio.
MacGregor’s first fibre-rope offshore crane, known as FibreTrac, is entering its final stages of construction, ready for introduction to the market later in the year. We are confident that the technology will deliver some of the most significant advances that the offshore load handling market has seen in years.
On a final note, we maintain our position that the industry landscape is changing so fast that all major stakeholders must work together. Through collaborations, we are shifting the way that we develop products and services for customers, ensuring that they reap the benefits.
Michel van Roozendaal, President, MacGregor
