Abstract
Proposes the establishment of a management information system (MIS) for the promotion of safety in shipping. Considers the information technology in shipping to be the combination of satellite systems and computers onboard and ashore. In this combination, which enables the provision of an optimum selection and management of data for automatic or human decision making, the role of satcoms is information transfer and that of computers is information processing. Acknowledges the importance of the human factor in shipping safety. Human decisions affecting shipping safety often depend on the quantity and quality of the available information. In the proposed MIS the need to improve the limited ability of humans to receive, store, process and interpret information, which is usually vast and complex, is acknowledged and fulfilled. Among the available maritime satcom systems and computer services, the proposal reveals those services which satisfy the criteria of useful, interactive, flexible, fast, reliable and low‐cost transfer and management of information in support of safety‐oriented decision making in shipping operations. The proposed MIS integrates the information resources of shipping office(s), the ship(s) and the maritime‐related industry as a whole and provides the shipping company with the capability to document, monitor and control the safety‐critical aspect of “technical reliability” towards promotion of safety in shipping and compliance with the International Safety Management Code.