Shipping

Modernising the centuries-old sector

Shipping could claim to be the world’s first genuinely global industry.

It connects businesses, countries, cultures and people – and, through maritime innovation, we’re working with it to address the challenges and opportunities facing the sector today.

NOC Innovations shipping

How we are helping the industry

If shipping ceased to exist tomorrow, the world would grind to a standstill.

That’s why NOC Innovations is supporting the sector in many varied ways.

What are we doing?

Today, in collaboration with private and public organisations in and around the shipping industry, we’re:

  • Providing extensive models focused on ocean and sea ice dynamics, ocean circulation, marine ecosystems and biogeochemistry
  • Helping to assess the potential risks, consequences and environmental impacts of oil spills in Arctic regions
  • Predicting future navigability of Arctic Sea routes
  • Developing and manufacturing lab-on-chip sensors for ocean science and industry applications
  • Helping to address the ballast water monitoring and pollution challenges
  • Running our ‘Ships of Opportunity’ programme, which invites ships to record data while travelling across the oceans and share it with us to shape our understanding of scientific ocean parameters 
  • Providing advanced models and optimised navigation routes

We also have a long-standing relationship with the Hydrographic Office. Between our two organisations, we freely exchange tidal data to ensure both parties can rely on the most up-to-date metrics – essential for the safety of shipping around the UK. All data is checked and validated, and predictions are compared to observed data to ensure quality and accuracy.

And our Polpred software predicts tidal water levels and offshore currents with unrivalled accuracy.

Layton Quinton

Head of Marine Information Products & Services

It’s used by ferry operators and offshore energy suppliers to improve the efficiency and safety of their worldwide operations.

Polpred is innovative particle-tracking feature predicts the position of items when lost from a vessel, taking into account tidal currents and other relevant data.

Our 'Ships of Opportunity’ programme invites ships to record data while travelling across the ocean and share it with us to shape our understanding of scientific ocean parameters.

Huw Gullick

Associate Director NOC Innovations