Editorial:
Maritime technology making constant progress

A taste of the latest in maritime technology.

Once again it is time for the annual Scandinavian Yearbook of Maritime Technology. Just before Christmas each year, we start to look for the next year’s contributors. It is a very interesting, informative, challenging and time-consuming occupation which keeps us busy for quite some time. There is much to read and much to learn, and we meet many men and women who are dedicated to their work and have exceptional knowledge in widely different fields.
   The challenge for the editor of this issue lies not so much in finding an excellent crew, but rather in choosing so very few individuals from the many suitable representatives in the maritime world. It is a privilege to be the one who has to make these choices, but at the same time it is easy to feel frustration at times.
As always, we have done our utmost to give you a taste of the latest in Maritime Technology and we have tried to present you with as large an assortment as possible.
   MAN B&W Diesel in Copenhagen tells us about the Alpha lubricating system and Tribon Solutions informs us about accurate supplier information for shipbuilding and operation.
Are we ready for dual-purpose maritime officers also in Scandinavia? In modern ships with fewer crew members and more advanced technology, there will probably be no place for single-discipline officers in the future. In several European countries such as France, Germany, the UK and the Netherlands, as well as in Japan and the USA, there has been dual education for many years. Captain Stephen J Cross from the Maritime Institute Willem Barentsz gives us his point of view.
   Wärtsilä Corporation presents a guide to diesel exhaust emissions control. The less fuel you burn, the less exhaust emissions you get and the more money you save. SkySails in Hamburg keep hold of these simple facts and introduce a kite sail system for cargo ships.
   Captain Sanjay Tyagi of Bass in Kuala Lumpur writes about IT in the Maritime sector and Christian Wildstam of Kockum Sonics convinces us that acoustic cleaning for boilers is a sound solution.
   On board ship, there are many places that we seldom visit and rarely see – spaces that are difficult to reach and definitely not very pleasant to find oneself in. It is extremely important that these areas are kept in good order. According to Per E Gabrielsson, this can be done with a new generation of blasting media.
The evergreen question of how to treat bilge water and ballast water is described by Marinfloc in Sweden and Marine Environmental Partners in the U.S.A.
   Jens J Kappel in Copenhagen gives a most interesting description of the Kappel propeller and Vidar Björkedal from Kongsberg Seatex tells us about AIS Solutions.
   SSPA in Sweden introduces us to the development of cost-effective survival suits for passengers, and also writes about direct assessment of unconventional ships. Dr Frans van Walree from the Maritime Research Institute in the Netherlands gives us an insight into the development of an advanced ride control system for a high-speed ferry.
   Steingrim Melbe from HSE-Global AS in Norway examines the use of chemicals on board ships and last, but definitely not least, Jan-Åke Jönsson from WMU in Malmö gives us an in-depth view of the human factor. He states that 100 per cent of all accidents are derived from the influence of the human factor.
   We hope that some of the articles in this year’s issue of the Scandinavian Year-book of Maritime Technology will be of interest to you.
   If we can tempt you to pursue further reading which might broaden your horizons, our mission will have been very successful.

//Robert Hermansson, Editor