OREANDA-NEWS. Rolls-Royce and the Technology Centre for Offshore and Marine, Singapore (TCOMS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form a strategic partnership to develop smart ship technologies.

The partners will work on world leading research to develop fundamental technologies, such as smart sensing, digital twinning and integrated modelling which are essential to the development of future marine data based solutions. These developments will be applied to technology demonstrators to show how they can be used by specific ship types.

Kevin Daffey, Rolls-Royce, Director Engineering & Technology – Marine, said: “Our partnership with TCOMS will greatly benefit future marine technology by allowing us to leverage the great research capabilities in Singapore which we can apply to smart ship solutions. By developing demonstrator technology around sensors, data analytics and the Marine Internet of Things we will see ships become more reliable, more efficient and more closely integrated into global supply chains generating cost savings and improving revenue generation.”

Professor Chan Eng Soon, CEO of TCOMS, said: “TCOMS is in a unique position to enable synergy between industry, research institutions and academia for the advancement of the marine and offshore engineering (M&OE) industry. We look forward to a fruitful collaboration with Rolls-Royce, where we will co-create innovative solutions in smart ship technologies, and play a pivotal role in elevating Singapore’s position as a key hub for M&OE research globally.”

TCOMS is a joint venture between Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research, and the National University of Singapore. The Centre is also supported by the Singapore Economic Development Board and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. Through strategic global partnerships with industry, research institutions and academia, TCOMS aims to sustain Singapore’s leadership position in the sector by enabling the local M&OE industry to undertake higher-value activities.

Alongside Singapore’s existing expertise in digital ecosystems and electronics, TCOMS is constructing a next generation Deepwater Ocean Basin equipped with state-of-the art wave and current generation systems that could simulate harsh ocean environments, including those in ultra-deep waters. Scheduled for completion in 2019, the ocean basin facility will facilitate the development of innovative concepts including intelligent floating platforms and ships, autonomous systems, marine robotics and subsea systems.

About Rolls-Royce and autonomous shipping

  1. Rolls-Royce is pioneering the development of remote controlled and autonomous ships, applying technology, skills and experience from across its businesses with the ambition of seeing a remote controlled ship in commercial use by the end of the decade. Rolls-Royce’s experience in secure data analytics across civil aerospace, defence, nuclear power and marine; coupled with its ship intelligence capabilities, design, propulsion and machinery expertise means it is ideally placed to take the lead in defining the future of shipping, in collaboration with industry, academia and Government.
  2. The Marine division of Rolls-Royce already has strategic partnerships with the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Tampere University of Technology (TUT), Norwegian University of Technology and Science (NTNU), and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, together with numerous collaboration projects with SMEs and start-ups specialising in novel technologies.

About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc

  1. Rolls-Royce’s vision is to be the market-leader in high performance power systems where our engineering expertise, global reach and deep industry knowledge deliver outstanding customer relationships and solutions. We operate across five businesses: Civil Aerospace, Defence Aerospace, Marine, Nuclear and Power Systems.
  2. Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 4,000 marine customers including 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.