Lloyd’s Register (LR), the global engineering, technical and business services organisation, and the new Technology Centre for Offshore and Marine,

Singapore (TCOMS) have agreed to jointly develop technology, infrastructure and skills necessary for future marine and offshore systems, digital and data innovation, and robotic autonomous systems in a marine environment.

TCOMS will allow industry partners, technology partners, incubators, regulators and the research community from Singapore and around the world to connect and collaborate through physical and digital modelling of marine and offshore assets.

TCOMS will house one of the largest ocean basin test facilities in the world, which will be capable of simulating complex and extreme sea states at water depths of up to 3,000 metres. This state of the art facility will also invest in high performance computing, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data analytics and cloud computing to push the boundaries of marine and offshore operations.

LR’s Technology Radar survey highlighted that digitisation is one of the most effective ways of improving operations, increasing speed to market, enhancing safety, increasing reliability and realising efficiencies. It also points to an increased need for strong capabilities in mathematics, statistics and data alongside the traditional science and engineering skills.

However, deployment of new technologies, cultural barriers and mastering advanced technologies are major barriers that need to be overcome in order to realise the benefits of digitisation.

Prof Chan Eng Soon, CEO of TCOMS explains: “TCOMS and LR will make an important contribution to the marine and offshore engineering industries in helping stakeholders to adapt and transform their business for the digital economy. We see the world of innovation being one which is about collaboration and co-creation. Efficiency benefits and new business opportunities require innovation and TCOMS will play a key role in fostering fruitful collaborations that will turn bright ideas into impactful real-world applications.”

Simon Reeve, VP Technology & Innovation of Lloyd’s Register, said: “Digital disruption is happening in many different industry sectors. Smart investments using digital technologies help reduce costs and improve operational efficiency. LR has been at the forefront of collaborating with clients and regulators in the safe and effective adoption of technology over many decades. By partnering with TCOMS, its clients and industry partners, LR aims to create new applications for digital and data technologies and create a community of new skills to enhance our development capabilities. The partnership between TCOMS and LR will focus on the development of future systems that are safe, reliable and sustainable.”