Ship Visits in July & August 2024 – Bergen, Norway 

Ship Visits in July & August 2024 – Bergen, Norway 

During July and early August 2024, in the Bergen area of Norway, CEO Captain Jorgen Grindevoll visited various external ships and met with shipowners to gather feedback as stakeholders and end users of the SafeNav system. The discussions focused on key enhancements to the SafeNav DSS COLREG module and explored the potential for expanding coverage to additional COLREGs in the future. 

A recurring concern raised by end users was cybersecurity, emphasizing its critical importance. This issue has been escalated to the stakeholder meeting and the MVP focus group to ensure it receives the necessary attention. 

Other discussions covered topics such as retrofitting the SafeNav system for older vessels and integrating it into the bridge layouts of new builds. These elements have been confirmed to align with SafeNav's vision. Additionally, the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) were highlighted as crucial aspects, ensuring the system remains intuitive and accessible for regular navigators without advanced technical software knowledge. Captain Jorgen was pleased to see that these priorities align perfectly with the goals and objectives of SafeNav. 

The primary focus remains on enhancing safety at sea today—going beyond the current industry buzz around autonomous shipping. It is evident that a human-in-the-loop approach will remain essential for many decades to come. 

A brief visit to a local shipyard specializing in retrofitting pleasure crafts provided opportunities to explore the potential application of a COLREG DSS module for smaller yachts. The features discussed were deemed comparable to those applicable to larger vessels, offering promising prospects in this domain.