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The main subject of research involves the characteristics and assessment of the already ongoing process of maritime shipping radical decarbonization. There were identified and analyzed international legal and administrative regulatory measures as well as a package of technical, technological, operational and economic solutions, including the possibility of choosing alternative low-emission fuels that are necessary to achieve the already set targets by 2050. This research aimed to indicate and assess the most promising types of measure which are to be applied to achieve the required reduction of CO2 emissions in global shipping as well as developing a potential roadmap leading to their implementation. In the conducted research work, mainly qualitative analyses were applied, i.e., factor analysis (FA), comparative analysis (CA), and a series of consultations with representatives of the maritime industry were carried out, following the procedure typical for the Delphi technique. The main result of the research work is the development of a scenario for potential supply and distribution of fuels to the maritime shipping market by 2050. The basic conclusion is that shortages in manufacturing, commercialization, and supply of low and zero-emission fuels to the shipping market may be the main obstacle hampering the reaching of the targets of shipping industry decarbonization. Such a scenario could significantly slow down the stepping up process of greening the global supply chains.

This paper explores the nature of fluctuations in world bulk shipping by quantifying the impact of time to build and demand uncertainty on investment and prices. We examine the impact of both construction lags and their lengthening in periods of high investment activity, by constructing a dynamic model of ship entry and exit. A rich dataset of secondhand ship sales allows for a new estimation strategy: resale prices provide direct information on value functions and allow their nonparametric estimation. We find that moving from time-varying to constant to no time to build reduces prices, while significantly increasing both the level and volatility of investment.

With the development of Internet technologies, the shipping industry has also entered the Industry 4.0 era, which is the era of using information technology to promote industrial change. Group decision making (GDM), as one of the key methods in decision science, can be used to obtain optimal solutions by aggregating the opinions of experts on several alternatives, and it has been applied to many fields to optimize the decision-making process. This paper provides an overview and analysis of the specific applications of GDM methods in Shipping Industry 4.0, and discusses future developments and research directions. First, the existing relevant literature is analyzed using bibliometrics. Then, the general procedure of GDM is investigated: opinion/preference representation, consensus measure, feedback mechanism, and the selection of alternatives. Next, the specific applications of GDM methods in Shipping Industry 4.0 are summarized. Lastly, possible future directions are discussed to advance this area of research.

Purpose Existing literature is still lacking field works that reflect the implications and applications of blockchain in supply chain management. This paper aims to explore the role of blockchain technology in improving the performance of maritime shipping and develop a model to enhance blockchain applicability. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative data were collected through 28 semi-structured interviews from several supply chain actors in the Middle East and were analyzed based on a thematic analysis approach using NVivo software. Findings An emerging model for improving the performance of the maritime shipping industry through blockchain technology has been developed. The findings suggest that there are transparency and process efficiency–related improvements as an outcome of Blockchain implementation in the maritime shipping industry. Practical implications As shipping industry is largely fragmented, small players find it difficult to achieve great benefits such as those achieved by larger players in the sector. The authors’ model provides guidance for the implementation of Blockchain. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first scholarly works to investigate Blockchain applicability in shipping industry in the Middle East. The lack of a universal standard is a considerable challenge which is still hindering the development of blockchain applications that integrate the different actors.

As smart technology in the shipping industry accelerates, demand for technology development, which aims to increase competitiveness by utilizing the latest smart technologies, is increasing. The shipping industry in each country is pushing for developing its smart technologies at a rapid pace, and it is urgent to prioritize the demand for smart technologies in the shipping industry for sustainable industry growth. The purpose of the present study is to verify the importance and urgency of smart technologies in the shipping industry, and the present study surveys 74 domestic and foreign shipping industry officials, covering shipping companies, brokers, governments, etc. The importance and urgency of each smart technology item in the shipping industry are questioned in a survey. It is necessary to focus investment on specific smart shipping items under a limited budget, and, since the priorities presented in this study were derived through comprehensive collection of opinions from 74 shipping experts, the priorities presented in this study are expected to be effective reference values when implementing sustainable shipping investment policies. According to an interview analysis on importance and urgency, both “autonomous ships” and “blockchain” items show high importance and urgency. Since both importance and urgency are high, strategic priorities are the highest, and it is expected to contribute effectively to enhancing the smartness of the shipping industry when it focuses its investment capabilities in those fields.

Alternative fuels are a measure discussed in the International Maritime Organization (IMO) strategy in order to reduce emissions from shipping. This is deemed necessary to achieve emissions reduction in the shipping industry, but the way in which this needs to be applied to such a resilient industry overall is a current challenge. The increasing impact of ships’ emissions on the environment and current preventative regulations that have been introduced by the IMO present a paradigm in the consideration of alternative fuel measures that could possibly be applied to this industry. Existing and new ships are different assets that need to converge to reduce emissions partially or completely by 2030. Determining the technology readiness level (TRL) for producing these alternative fuels, and their availability to be applied to these assets, involves a mix of evaluation and analysis as covered in this work. The TRL of producing alternative fuels is at the commercial level, which means that the shipping industry could apply it by itself following economical evaluation, but these alternative fuels’ services and capabilities have not yet been evaluated in comparison to traditional fuels. A supply chain for alternative fuel production needs to be built to serve the shipping industry. This supply chain would need the support of governments because the inclusion of alternative fuels in the supply chain would impact the national energy matrix. This work presents a revised path for the Chilean shipping industry to follow, focusing on the consideration not only of the emission reduction measures themselves but also of the analysis of the impact of those measures on the supply chains, as well as the stringent necessary regulations issued by the IMO and the government. The methodology used in this review considers the revision of the actual advances towards emission reductions, the development of alternative fuels, and the possibilities of applying them, considering the current state of development of the Chilean shipping industry. This review shows that room for the development of the Chilean shipping industry exists if it wants to move towards using alternative fuels with support from the government.

PM (particulate matter) emissions from ships are the main sources of marine atmosphere pollution. Controlling the emissions of particulate matter from ships is related to the sustainable development of the shipping industry. To reduce PM emissions from marine four-stroke diesel engines, DPFs are effective. Our results show that DPF had more than 90% capturing efficiency for both the number and mass emissions of PM, and the capturing efficiency for the accumulation mode was higher than that of the nuclear mode. DPF can also significantly reduce the chemical components of PM in marine diesel exhaust gas. The removal efficiencies for OC and EC were 89.7–91.6% and 84.8–92.8%, respectively, with each particle size range showing over 80% efficiency. SO42− was the ion with the highest content, followed by NH4+, NO3−, Na+, NO2−, and Cl−, with their reduced proportions remaining consistent with the removal efficiency of particulate matter. DPF can also effectively reduce PAH content and toxicity. The use of DPF can greatly improve the impact of ship emissions on the marine atmospheric environment. The appropriate DPF with the best performance can be selected according to the exhaust parameters and particle size distributions with different characteristics.

Yu, Y., 2020. The support of commercial banks to marine shipping financial business based on SWOT analysis. In: Li, L. and Huang, X. (eds.), Sustainable Development in Coastal Regions: A Perspective of Environment, Economy, and Technology. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 112, pp. 451-453. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The development of marine shipping financial business by commercial banks helps marine shipping enterprises cope with capital risks and provides capital guarantee for the development of shipping industry. Therefore, it has become an important part of high-end financial industry. Based on the SWOT analysis method, this paper studies the advantages, opportunities, threats and challenges faced by commercial banks in carrying out marine transportation financial business, introduces the relevant concepts of marine shipping finance, and gives suggestions for commercial banks to support marine shipping financial business.

The human factor is a hot topic for the maritime industry since more than 80 percent of maritime accidents are due to human error. Minimizing human error contributions in maritime transportation is vital to enhance safety levels. At this point, the maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS) concept has become one of the most significant aspects to minimize human errors. The objective of this research is to predict the human-machine interface (HMI)-based operational errors in autonomous ships to improve safety control levels. At this point, the interaction between shore-based operator and controlling system (cockpits) can be monitored and potential HMI operational errors can be predicted. This research utilizes a Success Likelihood Index Method (SLIM) under an interval type-2 fuzzy sets (IT2FSs) approach. While the SLIM provides a prediction of the human-machine interface (HMI) operational errors, the IT2FSs tackles uncertainty and vagueness in the decision-making process. The findings of this paper are expected to highlight the importance of human-machine interface (HMI) operational errors in autonomous ships not only for designers but also for operational aspects.