Success factors for navigational assistance: a complementary ship-shore perspective

The maritime domain is under pressure from changing economic, political and environmental factors. Technological advancements facilitate increased monitoring and control from land. By viewing the maritime domain as a complex socio-technical system, the importance of understanding the role of the on board and shore-side operator in maintaining safety and efficiency of navigation becomes apparent, particularly when introducing new technology. This paper looks at the success factors for navigational assistance, as currently performed by maritime pilots and Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) operators, aiming to identify issues worth consideration in future navigational assistance services. One focus group and one combined workshop/focus group were held with three pilots and two VTS operators respectively. The first looked at the prerequisites for successful navigational assistance from the perspective of the pilot. Using a grounded theory-style approach, a proposition was created that the main indicator of success is “no incidents”, that success depends on the integration of local knowledge, preparation and foresight into the ship-shore system and that good communication is vital to achieving this. Testing this, the second study considered the role of communication in enabling the VTS operator to support the pilot; it confirmed the results of the first study, emphasising the importance of communication when working both with on board and shore-based pilots