Market Insights
With the Internet of Things (IoT) gaining rapid traction across the residential, industrial, and healthcare sectors, the maritime industry is set to emerge as the next big application of the concept. According to Ericsson AB, more than 2 billion objects (excluding smartphones) are expected to be connected using cellular technology by 2023. This includes connected vehicles, robotics, agricultural fields and equipment, and shipping containers. IoT in the marine industry is believed to dramatically improve overall transport and logistics, enhance onboard safety, and significantly reduce operational costs. The marine sector is capable of generating a huge amount of data, including weather, voyages, maintenance, the location of assets and machinery, and the status of cargo. Similar to other verticals, marine IoT is based on a network of sensors and connected devices communicating via a satellite network or an onboard 3G/4G LTE network.
One of the most prominent factors expected to drive the marine IoT market’s growth is the rapidly growing adoption of IoT across different verticals. Various industry verticals (including industrial manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation), as well as companies, are inclined towards adopting IoT solutions with the aim of boosting their productivity and convenience. For instance, in September 2017, NYK Group announced it would enter into a partnership with Norway-based digital platform vendor Dualog SA to develop an IoT platform for ships. The two companies, in collaboration with NTT Group, are focused on collecting data from a network of sensors and monitoring equipment onboard vessels for further enhancing operations. Similarly, in October 2017, a consortium of companies, including ExactEarth Europe Ltd., Pole Star Space Applications, U.K. Satellite Applications Catapult, OceanWise, and TeamSurv, completed the demonstration of a new maritime IoT platform. The consortium was led by ExactEarth Europe Ltd.
Another prominent factor contributing to market growth is the significant fuel savings offered by using IoT solutions for route optimization. Marine IoT enables live tracking of a ship with minimal errors as compared to conventional high-frequency radio communication and transmits the same to other ships as well as offshore offices. This helps optimize speed and reduce unnecessary longer routes, thereby achieving optimum fuel efficiency. As fuel contributes to the largest share of a ship’s total operating costs (over 2/3 of them), marine IoT is expected to witness robust adoption for route optimization applications.
The global marine IoT market is segmented on the following basis:
Component:
- Sensing Devices
- Network Connectivity
- I.T. Solutions & Services
- IoT Platforms
Applications:
- Asset Tracking
- Route and Operation Optimization
- Equipment Monitoring
Vessel Type:
- Cargo Vessels
- Passenger Vessels
- Naval Vessels
- Vessels for Special Purpose
Geography:
- North America
- Europe
- Germany
- France
- Italy
- U.K.
- Russia
- Rest of Europe
- Asia-Pacific
- India
- China
- Japan
- Rest of Asia-Pacific
- Latin America
- Brazil
- Mexico
- Rest of Latin America
- Middle East and Africa
- GCC Countries
- South Africa
- Rest of Middle East and Africa
Key players identified in the marine IoT market include but are not limited to:
Cisco Systems, Inc., NTT Group, Accenture Plc., Ericsson AB, Vodafone Group Plc. (in partnership with Siren Marine, LLC), Wartsila Oyj Abp., Dualog AS, Wilhelmsen Holding ASA, Orange Business Services, and several others. One of the major strategies observed in the market is focusing on providing customized IoT solutions to shipping companies. This is primarily due to the varied requirements of operation management and asset tracking across cargo ships, passenger ships, naval vessels, and special-purpose vessels.
