IACS is pleased to announce the publication of its Recommendation on Cyber Resilience (No. 166).  This single, standalone Recommendation consolidates IACS’ previous 12 Recommendations related to cyber resilience (Nos. 153 to 164) and applies to the use of computer-based systems which provide control, alarm, monitoring, safety or internal communication functions which are subject to the requirements of a Classification society.  Part of the objective in consolidating the 12 Recommendations was to define responsibilities and harmonise and simplify the language used therein.  This Recommendation has benefited from the valuable input of a wide range of industry partners contributing via the Joint Industry Working Group on Cyber Systems and covers the constructional aspects of the 12 previously published Recommendations.  It provides information on matters such as reference guidelines and standards, terms and definitions, goals for design and construction, functional requirements, technical requirements and verification testing.

IACS Chairman, Arun Sharma, said ‘The publication of this important Recommendation marks a significant milestone in IACS’ work to support the maritime industry in the delivery of cyber resilient ships.  I am pleased to note the significant cross-industry cooperation that led to its development and we look forward to maintaining that dialogue as we assess its practical implementation and effectiveness’.

This new recommendation is applicable to a vessel’s network systems using digital communication to interconnect systems within the ship and ship systems which can be accessed by equipment or networks off the ship.  Robert Ashdown, IACS Secretary General, added ‘The network design forms the basis for a reliable and robust network. Issues such as compatibility of various devices, communication between devices, communication from various systems and sub systems, need due consideration during design phase.  This Recommendation is an important step in addressing cyber resilience from the earliest stages of a vessel’s life.’

Operational aspects that were included in the superseded 12 Recommendations have been identified and grouped under a separate annexure.  Following the publication of this consolidated Recommendation the earlier 12 Recommendations have been officially deleted by IACS.

IACS will continue to work with its industry partners and look for their feedback regarding its practical implementation and effectiveness.  Based on the experience gained from the practical implementation of this Recommendation IACS will assess the suitability of using it as the basis for a Unified Requirement on Cyber Resilience.

Ocean Network Express (ONE) is expanding its current refrigerated container (reefer) fleet by adding another 5000 (40” HC) units, including 200 units equipped with advanced Controlled Atmosphere (CA) technology, to meet
growing demand of refrigerated cargo around the world.

ONE has one of the largest, state of the art reefer fleet in the world, equipped with the most advanced technologies designed to handle perishable cargo demand. With this new investment of 5000 reefer units, coming on the heels of last year’s procurement of 6,000 units, ONE demonstrates its strong commitment to meet growing demand for containerized reefer trade.

In 2019, global refrigerated container volume grew by more than 7%, augmented by expansion of middle class in Asia constantly demanding healthy food choices. In 2020 too, despite challenges posed by coronavirus pandemic, the prospect of global refrigerated container trade remains strong specially for protein and fresh fruits segment and ONE expects the growth momentum to be maintained for remaining months of the year.

ONE is currently working towards the application of latest IoT technology into its fleet of reefer containers which allows real time visibility of critical information such as temperature, humidity inside the container, thereby enhancing value chain proposition of perishable trade.

Jun Shibata, Senior Vice President of Strategic Yield Management, commented “As one of the leading refrigerated container carriers in the world, ONE is continuously investing in new reefer containers to meet growing demand in perishable cargo segment around the world. We are committed to provide our customers with reefer containers equipped with the most up to date specifications to ship perishable goods and enable them to expand to new markets around the world.”

ONE’s Global reefer strategy The Global Reefer Business Planning team (GRBP), based at ONE’s HQ in Singapore, develops ONE’s global reefer marketing and business strategy through close monitoring of market demand and closely collaborating with the regional reefer steering desks located in different parts of the world. ONE’s Reefer technical team is available both on board and on shore to provide round the clock assistance and monitoring of precious reefer cargo thorughout the voyage.

GAC has partnered with Singapore-based start-up F-drones to develop large-scale drones that can deliver up to 100kg of supplies over 100km to vessels and offshore platforms. Testing is currently underway on F-drones’ 3rd prototype that is capable of handling items up to 5kg over 50km.

F-drones can help to reduce cost, time and manpower in sending supplies to vessels. Its drones are fully electric and are therefore environmentally friendly in reducing carbon emissions when supplying to ships. At a time when social distancing as a measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is at the top of the agenda for many, delivery by drone can also help reduce social contact.

“Joining forces with F-drones is part of GAC’s drive to embrace technology to develop new ways to meet the demands of the maritime industry we serve,” says Lars Bergström, GAC Group Vice President, Asia Pacific & Indian Subcontinent. “When fully commercialised, drones can be an attractive alternative to launches and helicopters for delivering supplies to vessels, especially for on-demand deliveries.”

GAC’s Singapore office will be supporting F-drones in a test flight to deliver packages to vessels in the near future.

F-drones has received Singapore’s first Beyond-Visual-Line-of-Sight (BVLOS) drone delivery permit and is now scaling up commercial delivery with an off-the-shelf drone.

“We are working towards launching our first commercial drone flight of our proprietary drone which can fly 10 times further later this year,” says Nicolas Ang, Co-founder & CEO of F-drones. “The support of GAC and all our partners is vital in helping us make this happen.”

Besides GAC, F-drones counts Eastern Pacific Shipping, the Schulte Group, Techstars, Port XL, Entrepreneur First and Hafnia among its supporters.