One Hundred. Billion. Dollars. That’s the industry’s best guess on the total value of fuel that goes unaccounted for on our seas, and it’s likely much more. But these losses aren’t felt solely by the fleets – from the toaster in your kitchen shipped halfway around the world to the offshore energy production we rely on to power our cities – almost every item in your life is affected by decisions made at sea. Decisions made primarily on instinct and antiquated methods.
Maritime moves slow – with good reason.
When navigating a 1,200-foot container ship through swirling winds, biting weather, and towering seas, you have to have complete faith in every system you bring aboard. Rightly so. Crew safety and confidence in your equipment absolutely have to come first. But it does mean, as an industry, we are incredibly cautious about the adoption of new technologies.
Over the last few years, the Internet of Things has revolutionized the world. Autonomous vehicles. Virtual assistants. Connected homes. Even your lightbulbs are smart enough to know when nobody’s home. So, why are we still relying on noon reports, crew curated readings, and costly reconciliation reports when it comes to keeping track of such a valuable asset – the fuel aboard?
You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
No matter the size of your fleet or how advanced your vessels are, fuel is going to be one of your most significant expenses. In today’s economy, every drop needs to be accounted for – putting your fuel spend under the spotlight more than ever before.
For too long, we have relied on monitoring methods too susceptible to inaccuracy, human error, and in the very worst of cases, crime. At FUELTRAX, our CEO and Founder, Anthony George, saw this often-overlooked weakness as an area of opportunity and a problem that smart technology and data could turn into a strength – empowering fleet owners and their crew to take proactive steps to save big on their bottom line.
It begins with building trust.
Today, FUELTRAX is setting the standard for the future of smart tech within the maritime industry with a smart, secure, and self-contained solution that can seamlessly integrate with any vessel.
By keeping the FUELTRAX system completely independent of the vessel’s operating systems – it minimizes the perceived risk for traditionally cautious captains. Meanwhile, the super-accurate Coriolis mass flowmeter technology, dedicated satellite connection, and industry-leading 99% uptime have been carefully developed to build trust and confidence in the technology.
With more than 500 connected vessels and millions of hours of high-quality marine data to learn from, FUELTRAX is only getting smarter.
It’s not just about fuel – it’s about everything.
You could be forgiven if you were thinking this kind of smart technology can only benefit the vessel charterers. But the facts remain that the broader economic impact of digitalization in marine fuel monitoring will be felt the world over. For example, every single item in the thousands of containers aboard a cargo ship is paying the price for every cent spent on wasted fuel. Often this unnecessary fuel spend is passed on to the end consumer.
By empowering fleets to Make Smarter Decisions™ at the dockside, out at sea, and in the boardroom, FUELTRAX has already started to restore the balance. In 2018, our fleets saved more than 15% of operating costs when putting FUELTRAX cost-saving programs in place – a significant reduction, especially in the face of rising fuel prices.
A maritime industry where smarter decisions are the standard.
While we have the world’s largest digital fleet – this is just a drop in the ocean. The maritime industry still has a long way to go before we even come close to maximizing the potential that smart technology, automation, and data insight can offer. Our long-term objective is to make FUELTRAX an industry-standard, ensuring every fleet can accurately monitor, report, and react to their fuel use.
Victoria Cantu
Victoria leads marketing and new business development at FUELTRAX.
