Spyros Zolotas is RINA's Marine Southern Europe & Africa Area Senior Director
RINA at a glance
With 160 years of experience across a wide range of industries including Energy & Mobility, Marine, Certification, Real Estate & Infrastructure and Industry, RINA is a multinational company that helps clients build strong, successful businesses. Through a global network of 4,000 talented professionals operating out of 200 offices in 70 countries, we support market operators across the entire lifecycle of their projects, whilst assisting them in renewing their products, technologies and services. Entrusting a project to us means being sure that everything will be taken care of, and our mindset allows us to apply a simple approach to complex situations.
RINA Hellas for Southern Europe & Africa Area
RINA Hellas is the center of Southern Europe & Africa Area and offers classification services to all types of ships, yachting services, ISO certification, marine training, R&D/innovation and cooperates with the most reputable companies in Greece and abroad. A dedicated expert team, the Marine Technical Support Center in Piraeus, guarantees an immediate reply to all questions and any issues of our clients with the scope to support their operations in the most effective way. From the beginning of 2019, the Global Marine Training Centre in Piraeus coordinates the worldwide marine training activities of RINA, working with new methods and tools to assist shipping companies in improving the competence of their personnel. During 2020 the state-of-the-art Fleet Operation Center of RINA has been inaugurated at Piraeus. It is the first installation of its kind and it is composed of dedicated audio-visual and IT infrastructure. It aims at hosting all digital applications of RINACube for the management of fleet, remote surveys, emergency response services, etc. Other activities related to the support of our clients on new environmental regulation compliance, newbuilding specifications, innovative design, alternative fuels, operational optimization, cybersecurity, etc. are being followed by a team of experts under our new Technical Department.
NAFS: What are the latest improvements in technology, regulatory changes and green technologies regarding the shipping industry?
S. Z. : The shipping industry is undergoing the biggest revolution of the last decades. Engine makers, class societies, shipyards and
designers are working to find ways to reduce pollution. This includes green fuels with less or zero carbon but also innovative designs to improve the efficiency of vessels so they burn less fuel.
Along with major ship designers, RINA is exploring some novel concepts to maximize ship performance and efficiency. Digital tools are a large part of this, providing the information needed to support the best operating decisions.
NAFS: In what ways RINA is determined to play an active role in the evolution of decarbonization to build a sustainable future. What is the role of the Hellenic Decarbonization Committee in this?
S. Z. : It is important to find solutions that not only move us along the pathway to decarbonization but that are also sustainable for ship owners and operators. If we work only on technology without considering operational requirements, we will not produce sustainable solutions. To this end, it is important to facilitate constructive, valuable exchanges with ship owners where we can share points of view, suggestions and critical points to find the right solutions for the future. This is the primary role of the Hellenic Decarbonization Committee. It provides an open platform with the Hellenic shipping industry to collect ideas, comments and feedback about the challenges that lie ahead of us.
NAFS: What is the contribution of RINA to bring different stakeholders of the industry into a constructive dialogue to share their ideas regarding possible solutions for shipping when it comes to climate change?
S. Z. : The Decarbonization Committee is open to different stakeholders to share ideas and work together to find possible and practical solutions to reduce the environmental impact of the industry and combat climate change.
NAFS: We would like from you Mr. Spyros Zolotas to analyze a statement of your that goes “Greece is not only a maritime nation by tradition, but Greek shipowners own over 20% of the world tonnage. RINA knows that the contribution that this country can give to the entire industry is fundamental and through our Committee we want to maximize that together with shipyards, engine makers, and the main players of the sector”.
S. Z. : The Greek shipping industry has an important role to play in helping to define strategies that are practical and sustainable to take the global industry towards a carbon-neutral future. The Hellenic Decarbonization Committee is the new one that we have established in Greece, but we also run for many years the Hellenic Advisory and the Hellenic Technical Committees in which many prominent shipowners and technical experts are members. These Committees allow RINA to be in close contact with one of the most vibrant shipping communities of the world and maintain a constructive dialogue with important stakeholders to the benefit of future developments.
NAFS: Would you like to tell us about your training efforts to support the shipping community to keep pace with the recent and forthcoming technology and regulatory enforcements and to improve technical and non-technical skills of professionals for them to cope with this difficult period?
S. Z. : RINA works hard to provide both technical and non-technical training to support ship owners in meeting the latest regulations and environmental challenges. We have invested heavily in a new training centre with all necessary equipment at our Fleet Operating Centre in Piraeus but, although we have state-of-the-art space to host training courses, recent events have meant that these activities have been carried out remotely with great success. Piraeus is the heart of RINA Global Training and new digital tools such as the ones related to VR and on-line training further enhance the potential of RINA Training team worldwide.
NAFS: Are you ready to meet the emissions targets set by IMO for 2030 and 2050?
S. Z. : We are working very closely with the shipping industry to find solutions and ways of operating that will meet these targets. We have several projects looking into alternative fuels, including LNG, ammonia. methanol and hydrogen. We are also helping ship owners with digital tools to ensure they fully optimize the efficiency of their fleets.
NAFS: It is quite difficult to determine about the future fuel of shipping industry at this time. However, do you believe that ammonia and methanol are fuels with a lot of potential as clean, zero-carbon fuels? What are the more promising fuels in this race of decarbonization?
S. Z. : There will be more than one solution to help us meet our environmental objectives and we are working across all options. In the short term, LNG offers an excellent transition fuel to immediately reduce emissions. Longer term, zero-carbon fuels offer exciting possibilities but there is a way to go to ensure logistical and economical viability. This will take a combined effort from the whole industry and other stakeholders, such as governments, to make sure these become a reality as quickly as possible.
NAFS: What is exactly the “make it sure, make it simple” approach?
S. Z. : Test, inspection and certification (TIC) services are at the heart of the RINA business. This is the essence of ‘make it sure’. ‘Make it simple’ comes from our work to make difficult challenges and complicated projects simple for our customers. We solve the difficult problems and deliver easy, straight forward solutions to our clients.
NAFS: Do you feel happy with your strong digital competences, successfully achieved business continuity with the use of remote inspections and audits and new services? Could you please say few words for one of them, let’s say the Biosafety Trust Certification?
S. Z. : We are very happy with our digital competencies but are still working hard to provide more digital solutions to the maritime industry. Existing solutions include our electronic logbook, predictive maintenance tools, remote inspection capability and digital twin. RINA Optimum is installed on more than 350 ships and the number is growing quickly. This leading edge technology has been much appreciated by our customers and is helping ship owners achieve much greater operational efficiency.
RINA has been a pioneer of remote inspections since 2019. The pandemic has greatly accelerated the take of this service and enabled business continuity for many of our clients. We were the first class society in the world to perform a fully remote survey with the authority of a Flag Administration. Since then, we have performed many more surveys and gained a lot of experience in carrying out remote inspections. Combining this digital solution with a solid regulatory framework, we are confident that more and more remote inspections will be carried out in the future with increasing acceptance and satisfaction from both owners and flag administrations.
NAFS: Regarding the Marine unit of RINA would you like to present the figures of development for 2020 starting with the revenues that were 4% higher than 2019?
S. Z. : Notwithstanding the pandemic, 2020 was a successful year for RINA’s marine business, achieving year on year growth of around 5% (€135M). This accounts for all services to the shipping industry, including classification, certification, shipyard supervision, remote inspections and other value-added advisory and support services such as environmental compliance and risk analysis. We saw particular growth in 2020 in the yachting sector.
NAFS: Is it true that RINA’s Marine Business reaches 50 million gross tonnage and over 7150 vessels? In this context, in what ways the Piraeus office aims to a rapid growth?
S. Z. : RINA’s fleet reached 50 million gross tonnage in December 2020. It currently stands at over 54 million. We are the fastest growing
classification society in terms of fleets size (as indicated by Clarkson) with growth of around 10-11% compared with other societies where typical numbers were 3-4%.
NAFS: Mr. Spyros Zolotas, Senior Director Marine, please present us in details the brand-new RINA Piraeus Fleet Operation Center, which supports shipowners 24/7. What the latest news about Remote Surveys and digital solutions?
S. Z. : Greece is a key strategic market for our marine business. Over the past two years we have invested heavily in human capital, reinforcing the team with additional technical and commercial competencies, and adding new value-add solutions, including new digital tools. We have seen the benefits of our investments as one year ago RINA’s fleet size in Greece was around 9.5 million gross tonnage. Today, it stands at well over 12 million.
NAFS: We would like to refer to the roadmap to 2030 and beyond and present to us the relative projects RINA Greece is working on. When do you believe the shipping industry will be ready to proceed more energetically with the decarbonization process?
S. Z. : We need an acceleration of decarbonization efforts to meet 2030/2050 targets. We cannot stop shipping, it is an essential part of global trade. LNG is not the perfect fuel for 2050, but it is a fuel that can be used for the next 15-20 years. We need to work on projects to bridge the way from current emission levels to a future with zero carbon. RINA is the major class society for the biggest cruise ships using LNG. This sector has the most demanding safety constraints and our experience in this area will be useful for all shipping.
We cannot sit and wait for a perfect solution but new projects and ships need to be designed now to withstand new rules and regulations for the next 20 years. LNG offers a practical, available solution with easy adaptation to future zero-carbon fuels.
NAFS: How the shipping industry could deal with Cyber Security and to ensure safety in shipping industry?
S. Z. : Medium to large ship owners are gearing up for cyber resilience and RINA is ready to support this. Our mitigation strategy is based on a security risk-based approach that considers the rapid evolution of ICT technology and threats and analyses potential construction and operational vulnerabilities that can be exploited. It assesses analysis and testing of embedded and mobile systems and complex service-oriented applications following International best practices (NIST, OWASP, CEH) and includes support in the certification phase of ICT systems in accordance with ITSEC and Common Criteria standards.
NAFS: Could you please present us RINA’s digital services on remote inspections, “chat the with expert”, RINA IHM tool and RINACube Electronic Log Books?
S. Z. : “Chat with the expert” is a tool which allows customers to directly communicate with RINA experts on certain topics, including clarification or information about new rules or to check the compliance of a new design. Traditionally such communications were carried out via email, but this new service gives a real-time connection to experts for immediate answers.
Our IHM tool is an easy and straightforward way to help ship operators manage the inventory of hazardous materials. The digital tool replaces the need for a paper registry, inventory and logbook and provides and easier and more reliable way to manage this process.
Our Electronic LogBooks (ELB) do more than just replace paper, they reduce the risk of mistakes in statutory documents that may result in substantial fines or even prosecution for ship owners. The books are intelligent and guide he user to input the correct data. We are continuing to expand the range of ELB available to cover all logbooks required on board.