VIKAND, a company in maritime healthcare, and Scoutbase, a Danish tech company, are partnering to bring a data collection tool ensuring instant insights into crew life onboard. Until now, this facility, enabling immediate engagement and corrective actions by leadership teams where required, has never been available to the maritime industry.
VIKAND is employing Scoutbase’s in-house developed technology which automatically collects anonymous feedback from seafarers and shore-based personnel on safety and critical issues ranging from seafarer welfare to mental health and crew engagement. This will provide ship operators with unique real-time insights across their fleets which will help raise operational standards and safety.
Peter Hult, CEO of VIKAND, said: “VIKAND and Scoutbase share a common purpose around seafarer wellness and sustainability in the maritime industry. The integration of Scoutbase’s safety and wellbeing tools into VIKAND’s healthcare solutions technology will give ship operators a better understanding of the real-time challenges faced by their crew members. This will help ship owners and managers to improve seafarers’ working conditions continuously and proactively.”
Mitigating health-related risks on board is at the core of everything VIKAND does and the introduction of Scoutbase’s technology will enhance its own solution by empowering seafarers to report on their experiences while working onboard. Ship operators can then use that feedback to rectify issues, improve processes and track progress.
For the first time ship operators will have live information as it happens from their workforce. Before they may have had a vague sense of life onboard but that tangible link with their crews via Scoutbase’s intuitive software will ensure that they can take direct action to improve their crews’ well-being, and in doing so support safe vessel operations and health-related cost reductions.
Insights emerging from Scoutbase’s platform have already helped shipping companies make positive changes to impact important safety and well-being changes such as the quality of sleep and fatigue in their workforce.
Yassin Askar, Co-Founder at Scoutbase, concluded: “Scoutbase allows shipping companies to anonymously connect with their seafarers and gain a true understanding of their well-being onboard.
“Often, when fleet management teams connect with vessels, they only hear from the master and chief engineer. Scoutbase, however, provides a complete picture by continuously connecting with the entire crew. Our non-intrusive, simple and automatic AI feedback collection solution gathers daily instantaneous insights from thousands of seafarers, providing a leading indicator of the crew’s feelings and stresses.
“By cutting through layers of administration and bureaucracy, Scoutbase gives a direct voice to the frontline, enabling proactive measures to improve mental health and overall wellbeing. Our solution focuses on preventing problems before they arise, promoting a healthier working environment. As one customer noted, ‘Scoutbase shines a spotlight on the challenges lurking in the shadows, allowing us to address them before they escalate.’”
Photo credit: iStock/ jacoblund
