NYK is set to begin sea trials for the first use of Electronic Logbook services in Japan, with the goal of automating many of the functions involved in logbook data recording.
The EL-100 Electronic Logbook, under development by Furuno Electric Company in cooperation with Japan Marine Science Inc, gathers data from the ship’s navigation systems as well as from vessel crews to fill out relevant fields.
Logbooks are required on most ships in Japan, and Title 46 of the United States Code requires that a log must be maintained by vessels meeting certain requirements. Electronic logbooks can offer a range of improvements over traditional versions completed by hand by automatically inputting data from navigational equipment, reducing seafarers’ workload and the potential for errors.
A software-based system can also perform automatic calculations of operational data and improve capabilities for information-sharing between various logbooks, reducing additional entry tasks.
NYK Group says that it will conduct trials of the electronic logbook on vessels under its own operation and management, with the data obtained from those trials, along with feedback from the crew, to be used to improve the quality of the EL-100 system.
After the completion of the trials, further discussions will be held to assess the full-scale introduction of the product.
