Smart shipping safety and cyber assurance

Trailblazing clean maritime
Smart shipping
 
This feasibility study aims to identify potential cyber and safety vulnerabilities in current small boat (<150 kW) electric propulsion and control technologies, and to develop a roadmap outlining the tools and techniques needed to assess and mitigate these vulnerabilities in the future. This work is crucial for enabling the wider adoption of decarbonisation technologies within the maritime industry.
 
The shift towards electrification, digitisation, and autonomy in the maritime sector has transformed traditionally closed and isolated mechanical systems into ones that increasingly rely on software and external connectivity. This shift exposes these systems to new vulnerabilities, including threats to digital cyber security and overall safety.
Cyber security and safety assurance will be critical to unlocking the potential of the rapidly emerging marine electrification market, which is already valued at £4.5 billion per year. Ensuring the integrity of these systems is particularly important for government users, large corporations, and safety-critical industries.
Woman sat at computer in cyber-SHIP lab conducting cyber security measures on a screen that says 'virus alert'
 

Project objectives

  • Cyber security and safety testing: Through rigorous testing, the project will identify vulnerabilities and propose secure design practices for electric propulsion systems.
  • Development of assurance tools: Tools and techniques for the future development of safe and secure electric maritime technologies will be created, offering clear guidance for industry stakeholders.
  • Safety benchmarking: The system's software will be benchmarked against established safety practices, ensuring it meets industry standards.
  • Roadmap for safe smart shipping: A detailed roadmap will outline the steps necessary to develop and deploy safe, secure, and scalable electric propulsion systems for the maritime industry.
  • Trial demonstration: A future trial will showcase the application of the proposed safety and cyber security processes in a realistic operational setting.
 
 

Related research

MSc Advanced Navigation for Professionals
Maritime Cyber Threats Research Group

The group has been formed to bring together leading-edge multidisciplinary research and practical expertise in the core areas of cyber-security and maritime operations together with psychology researchers, and maritime law and policy experts.
Cyber-SHIP lab
Cyber-SHIP Lab

A nationally unique £3.2m hardware-based maritime cyber security research and development platform. Our researchers analyse and address cyber security at the hardware, software, and human levels to identify, understand and mitigate threats.
Porthleven wave cropped
Safe Seas

Explore how our research, expertise and facilities protect those working at sea and safeguarding coastal communities
Clean Maritime

Trailblazing clean maritime innovation

At Plymouth, we are among the UK's leading proponents of clean maritime research, with a track record in consistently securing government funding through the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition.
Through engagement with business and the wider scientific community, we are co-creating ways of transforming this research into practical solutions to challenges faced by the marine and maritime sectors.

Centre for Decarbonisation and Offshore Renewable Energy

In response to climate change imperatives, we are bringing together a critical mass of leading research and expertise from across the University of Plymouth. Through co-creation and collaboration with partners from business, government and key communities from across the globe, the Centre aims to be a beacon for the University’s whole-system transdisciplinary approach to solutions-oriented research, accelerating sustainable developments in decarbonisation and renewable energy.
Centre for Decarbonisation and Offshore Renewable Energy