Quarterly March 2012 - Odfjell

20
BRiEFiNgS odfjell quarterly magazine
Stowing for
tomorrow
By Leif Gunnar Alvær
Until eleven years ago the stowage planning
was a manual task. However, in order
to ensure not only maximum safety related
to the stowage, but also to ensure that
operational and commercial interests
were a priority, the old fashioned ‘pen
and paper approach’ was simply no longer
sufficient. it was this realization that led
to the development of Odfjell Tankers
Stowage Tool, OTHELLO.
OTHELLO was designed with the following
goal; ‘to ensure a high quality of stowage
on our operated fleet’. OTHELLO was, and
still is a sophisticated piece of software but
unfortunately it contains a lot of features
that are seldom being used and these features
have added to its shortcomings. The
system was intended to be used on both
vessels and ashore, but was never put into
production on board our vessels that were
using ‘SUPERCARGO’. When evaluating
the OTHELLO system we can now see that
because of the high number of features,
OTHELLO has become a slow system, and
for many it is seen as frustrating to use.
A new solution on ship and shore
As Odfjell Tankers is now updating our
ICT portfolio, OTHELLO will no longer be
compatible with the new system. OTHELLO’s
main purpose still remains valid though;
‘to obtain the highest possible quality of a
vessels stowage’. Odfjell Tankers clearly see
the benefit in having one common stowage
system for both ship and shore. The system
should also be available to both owned and
chartered vessels.
Project ORCA
The new stowage tool project started in 2011.
The project team consists of representatives
from Operation and Shipboard Management.
We have scrutinized the systems that we use
today, keeping what works, and removing
what does not, which has resulted in a
list of specifications we believe will be of
importance. When looking through that list
I thought ‘we wanted an axe, but in Othello
we got a chainsaw’. Now we are creating that
axe. We have a clear focus on what the users
really need, and are aiming for a simple and
robust system.
January 2012 we signed a contract with UMOE
Consulting, the same company that created
OTHELLO for us some 11 years ago. Times
have changed, we are more experienced,
and we have ten years of user experiences
with different systems to guide us and I am
therefore confident that this system will be a
valuable assistance to masters, chief officers
and operators when implemented.
As of now, the project is well underway. After
several workshops we have agreed on the
fundamental layout of the system, and we
have set a target date for implementation. A
software development team with experienced
www.odfjell.com
The new stowage tool system will be used ashore and on board.
consultants will be responsible for the implementation
of this project. This team is a mix
of new faces and consultants with extensive
experience of the stowage process. This will
give us the opportunity to consider new solutions
for old problems, but will also ensure
that we focus on the right things.
The user interface
The decision on the system’s main layout
has been made in close cooperation with
representatives from both operations and
fleet. All information required should be
available in an intuitive and user friendly
way. Adjustments and tweaks to the design
are expected throughout the project and we
are relying on constructive feedback to the
elements that we present.