Making more money: how digital platforms drive profit in shipping

Working in maritime means managing complexity. You’re balancing fast changing international regulations, a competitive marketplace, weather volatility, fuel cost, aging fleets, fluctuating freight prices, geopolitical volatility and an unpredictable global economy—all while trying to maximise every voyage’s profitability.

Whether you’re a ship owner, operator, charterer, or financial stakeholder, leveraging the latest digital solutions is now critical to ensure you can still be profitable among all of these variables. This is not just to meet compliance, but to enhance decision-making, reduce risk, and ultimately improve margin.

“Most organisations in this industry are here to make money,” said Jeremy Daoust, Vice President of Product Innovation. “We’re dealing with complex, interconnected factors, from fuel costs to port delays to outdated charter clauses. A person with a spreadsheet can’t manage that anymore.”

1. Fine avoidance = protecting the bottom line and your reputation

Non-compliance is expensive and increasingly visible. Detentions, environmental breaches, and safety oversights damage your bottom line and your reputation.

Maritime legislation is fast changing and bigger than ever. The inspection regimes are getting more thorough. Country regulations and individual port protocols complicate things further.

Jeremy Daoust says at a recent maritime summit, ship owners said “we have seen more change in the last year than in the last 30 years.”

Compliance with these ever-changing rules has become more than a tickbox exercise. It is now a direct factor in commercial viability.

Violations can cost operators tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars per incident. Beyond the financial penalties, regulatory breaches affect reputation. Violations are publicly visible, and charterers are scrutinising operator records more than ever before.

“Compliance isn’t just a legal obligation; it’s a business asset,” said Alex Mangan, Director, GTM Operations & Enablement. “Avoiding fines and detention is about savings, but it’s also about maintaining trust with charterers and financial institutions.”

2. Operational efficiency = bigger margins

Efficiency is the foundation of profitability. Smart digital tools such as those provided by OneOcean mean those onboard and onshore can make better, quicker decisions, respond in an agile way and have all of the information they need available at a click.

Alex Mangan points out: “These ships are assets which are either making money or losing money every day. A bad route, time spent stuck in a port, a less efficient crew – all of these and many other factors will hit margin and once again, impact reputation”.

3. Empowered people = higher performance

Shipping is still powered by people. Well trained, properly qualified, highly motivated and fully rested crew working with information that is both real time and relevant will perform better than those who do not have these advantages.

And this is not just about efficiency. Jeremy Daoust points out that the people onboard are focused on mission critical issues which often exhaust what he calls mental capital – the capacity to make better decisions that would make the journey more profitable.

“Right now, mental capital is being used on survival, avoiding non-compliance, avoiding risks on ship i.e. incidents instead of focusing on where you should be focusing.”

“Shipping is still about people. The way that I see digital solutions being utilised is to provide an enhanced experience to the seafarer or professional mariner on ship or shore. This augmented reality provides enhanced insight.

“The majority of what we do is foundational towards seaworthiness, the right to sail. We have solutions that provide hyper accuracy of information for the crew, learning and assessment of the crew, the maintenance of the vessel and towards the safe navigation of ships from one point to the other, all of which meet regulatory and statutory requirements.

“So if you are a stakeholder and you want to make money, you need table stakes. And today meeting table stakes is really complex. Working with digital solutions is the bridge to help you manage, derisk and optimise your operations as each seafarer on the ship or onshore is getting the insights but also is getting a solution that taps into a well oriented workflow.”

OneOcean’s Shoreside Routing service takes this even further, blending human expertise with software-generated insights. Master mariners based onshore analyse real-time data to provide captains with guidance on optimized routes that consider not only safety and fuel efficiency but also commercial obligations under charter parties.

“Captains don’t always see the commercial context,” said Daoust. “But our routing teams can factor in fuel costs, market conditions, and contractual commitments to guide decisions that optimize both safety and earnings. This service has been shown to deliver 5-10% savings per voyage, so the numbers can be big.”

Let’s say you’re managing a bulk carrier on a transatlantic route. Traditionally, you’d plan a voyage, assign crew, monitor weather, and handle compliance, with each step done manually across different tools.

With digital solutions from OneOcean:

• The route is optimised in real time, saving 5 to 7% in fuel.
• Regulatory information is up to date, easily accessed and put into practice, helping avoid a potential $50,000 fine for non-compliance.
• Port information and crew training software support smoother entry and exit, reducing the risk of detention.
• The captain receives voyage-specific guidance based on weather, compliance zones and emissions targets, allowing real-time decisions that make the journey more efficient and safe.

The result is a faster, safer and more cost-effective journey. Multiply that across a fleet, and the savings and profit can be transformative.

Digital platforms are increasingly viewed not just as tools for today, but as the foundation for adapting to what’s next. From AI-driven route optimisation to automated emissions reporting, the shipping industry is on a digital trajectory that is becoming more descriptive, predictive and eventually prescriptive.

And as Alex Mangan points out, the long-term vision extends beyond daily operations. Platforms that collect and connect data from across the vessel and fleet may also enable new services: better due diligence for lenders, benchmarking tools for charterers, and insurance insights based on real-time vessel performance.

“We’re building the digital infrastructure that allows the industry to see what it couldn’t see before,” he said. “Whether it’s better understanding crew performance, voyage profitability or fleet-wide risk, the goal is the same: help operators make better decisions faster.”

As the maritime industry looks to navigate a new era of regulatory complexity, environmental demands, geopolitical uncertainty and cost control, digital solutions are proving to be more than a way to be compliant. They are becoming the basis of commercial edge, the compliance safety net, and the human performance engine — all in one.

It gives shipping companies the right to sail, the tools to perform, and the trust to grow, while providing data to those who invest in and charter vessels to make more informed decisions.

Alex Mangan says those not embracing digital solutions are now leaving money on the table.

“This will lead to new value generation for your business. New cost savings and probably additional revenue capture.

If you don’t do that you may rapidly be left behind by the rest of the sector. By embracing digital solutions you’re setting yourself up for the future, and to be a more profitable business.”