T26 PMS – Real time Control of Power Generation, Propulsion & Auxiliaries

The Platform Management System is a key component of a lean-manned ship. Centralised remote operation removes manpower from machinery spaces, while advanced algorithms and increased integration simplify the operators’ daily tasks enabling them to broaden their responsibilities. This inherently results in driving down costs and increasing efficiency. There are a great many benefits to increased automation, however a reliance on these systems means placing a greater focus on the up-front engineering effort required to make a safe and secure system which meets the needs of the user. Sometimes, however, requirements can evolve in early stages of a project, so it also needs to be able to adapt with a flexible design able to cope with inevitable change. Strictly following a traditional V-model lifecycle can ensure compliance against customer requirements, whilst emerging requirements and user experience factors can be overlooked. A collaborative approach involving stakeholders throughout the design lifecycle helps to reduce overall programme risk by reducing change and providing progressive assurance. Through this collaboration throughout the design process and the incorporation of innovations from outside the marine industry, the T26 PMS design has evolved into a flexible, scalable and user centric solution. The innovative solution now in place can meet a plethora of challenges, incorporating safety, security and the performance required of real-time control. Safety-accredited components are used to support emergent safety requirements, while a distributed architecture both increases resilience to battle damage and scales to system load. Human factors, often placed at a lower priority than “hard and fast” requirements, have been a key design driver, with the dichotomy between safety and operability being confronted regularly throughout the design. Following a system-of-systems approach, the development team pick a component of the PMS and take a deep-dive into the subsystem development, demonstrating the incorporation of safety, human factors and security into the design as early as possible. The paper then looks forwards to the future of the project, and the “right side of the V”, showing how a proactive approach to assurance and acceptance can help reduce overall programme risk