Today I attended the TT Club Innovation in Safety Award Ceremony in London, organised by Mike Yarwood and his great team at TT Club, with the support of ICHCA International and TOC Worldwide. It was great to see so many familiar faces and meet some old contacts.
Two years ago, I was on a panel at this same event, advocating for greater use of technology. Of course I would!
It was pouring down, and looking back, the weather seemed to match the mood: everyone wants to innovate, but rules, compliance, and the sheer difficulty of getting technology into ports, on ships, and more loomed heavy.
Today we had blue skies, and perhaps because of the weather (the first time in weeks in London), my mood was higher too: Is industry turning the tide on the use of tech in maritime safety?
So I felt compelled, really, to share some takeaways that resonated with me … but please read on, the last part is the one that definitely surprised me.
The Human Element: When Systems Fail
Frans Calje, CEO of PD Ports, opened the session with a powerful reality check. He shared a harrowing account of a fatality involving a colleague, which occurred despite a “perfect” system and industry-leading protocols.
His message was stark: you can have the best approved systems in the world, but human fallibility remains.
As Calje noted, humans cannot be 100% alert for every second of every hour. This tragedy drove PD Ports to move beyond technical compliance toward behavioural safety, fostering a culture where colleagues watch each other’s backs when attention inevitably wanders.
The Digital Horizon: A New Generation’s View
Megan Blundell, a young and brilliant Data Technician Apprentice at Shoreham Port, delivered the next generation’s perspective. She challenged the room, one or two generations behind her, to view ports not just as physical gateways for cargo, but as “gateways between the physical and the digital world”.
For this digital-native generation, the question is no longer whether we have data, but whether we are using it intelligently. Blundell highlighted the critical shift from “reactive safety” to “predictive safety.” Her vision is of a totally digitally enabled port where AI acts not as a replacement for people, but as an enabler.
Interesting and refreshing.
The Reverse Burden of Proof
During the panel discussion, Lucy Pritchard (Head of Safety at Shoreham Port) addressed the legal realities that often wake leadership up.
She spoke about the terrifying concept of the “reverse burden of proof” in UK health and safety law, where an organisation is considered guilty until it can prove it did everything “reasonably practicable” to prevent an incident.
Pritchard explained that this legal pressure is a powerful tool for shifting executives to treat safety as a tangible, business-critical risk that requires investment.
The ROI of Nothing Happening
We all know that one of the most challenging aspects of safety is measuring the Return on Investment (ROI). Ray Eagle, SHGQ Director at Doyle Shipping Group, shared a defining conversation he had with a CEO regarding the cost of training as an example.
When asked, “What happens if we train the guys and they leave?” Eagle’s response was simple: “What happens if we don’t train them, and they stay?”
The panel agreed that the true ROI of safety is invisible but immense—found in protecting reputation and avoiding fines, which are now often based on company turnover rather than profit.
Are safety and efficiency in contradiction?
Michael McKenna, Harbour Master at Dublin Port Company, tackled the myth that safety kills productivity. He shared a compelling example regarding terminal tractors.
When his team reduced speed limits from 25km/h to 20km/h, operational flow actually improved. By reducing gear wear and tear and preventing bottlenecks caused by rushing, the operation became smoother. As the saying goes: “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast”.
The shining example
The session concluded with a brilliant, concrete list of innovations from Ray Eagle, detailing what a modern safety strategy looks like on the ground at Doyle Shipping Group. It is not just about one tool, but an ecosystem of technologies:
- Removing redundant systems to free up management to spend time “boots on the ground”.
- Plugging intelligence into existing CCTV cameras to act as proactive analysts rather than passive recorders.
- Tech for testing whether employees are in the right “mental space” to operate heavy machinery on any given day.
- Cameras on plant machinery are accurate enough to distinguish a human from a stencil on the ground, triggering auto-braking systems.
- Cameras inside cabs that monitor the controls, building trust by exonerating operators when equipment failure is to blame.
- Mandating that operators spend weeks on crane simulators before they are ever allowed near a live environment.
Till next year!
So indeed the sunshine today matched the (or was it my?) mood.
Certainly, hearing the next generation of maritime professionals describe ports as “digital gateways” and hearing about an EHS leader rolling out various Safetyech initiatives in their operations was a genuinely refreshing change of pace.
Let’s keep it up!
Last but not least, congratulations to all the shortlisted companies for the award! You are all winners, and to the TT Club and partners for putting on an excellent event and speakers.