Norwegian dry bulk operator Western Bulk has signed a deal with Oslo-based tech start up Oceanbolt, to use its web-based market intelligence service for decision support and to become a data partner for the platform.
The online application, targeted specifically at the dry bulk industry, provides real-time insights into trade flows, tonnage, fleet speed, dry docking and congestion by analysing AIS data in real-time. The data is assessed using geospatial analytics algorithms in combination with a polygon database to create usable information.
“Western Bulk sees great potential in the context that such a system provides, and going forward aims to blend this real-time and historical data with our other data sources and proprietary systems to allow for greater market insight and knowledge for our chartering, operations, and analytics teams,” the company said, in a statement confirming the deal.
“Oceanbolt’s primary focus on minor dry bulk, Cloud-based systems with open APIs, and combined with a shared desire to extract the full value of data in the shipping industry, made this a natural partner selection for us. We look forward to working closely with them going forward.”
Western Bulk will leverage Oceanbolt’s Data API and web-based Analytics Dashboard to support the analytics efforts of its in-house data scientists and analysts, and to aid the commercial and operational understanding of the chartering and operations teams.
