Sea Asia 2019 To Discuss Key Issues Facing Maritime In Today’s Changing Landscape

Sea Asia 2019 To Discuss Key Issues Facing Maritime In Today’s Changing Landscape
21/03/2019 https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/sea-asia-2019-to-discuss-key-issues...

Sea Asia 2019, Asia’s anchor maritime and offshore conference and exhibition, is set to host more than 15,000 attendees from over 80 countries and regions this 9 – 11 April in Singapore.

Taking place as part of the 14th Singapore Maritime Week (6 – 14 April), it will be graced and opened by Singapore’s Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Transport & Ministry of Communications and Information, Dr Janil Puthucheary.

Mr Kenneth Chia, Executive Director of the Singapore Maritime Foundation (SMF), said that this edition of Sea Asia will continue to provide maritime leaders from around the world a platform to discuss the latest trends and challenges in the maritime industry, particularly on the upcoming environmental regulations, and the impact of the increasing digitalisation of the industry.

“The maritime industry is the backbone of global and Singapore trade, and is going through a rapidly changing landscape. With regulations and external trends set to transform the way the industry traditionally operates, we are excited to continue building Sea Asia 2019 as a strong knowledge and networking platform to tackle industry-specific challenges,” said Mr Chia.

According to statistics released by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), container throughput grew by 8.7 per cent to 36.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), and total cargo throughput remained stable at 630 million tonnes – making Singapore one of the world’s busiest port.

Singapore was also the world’s top bunkering port in 2018, with annual bunker sales volume close to the 50 million-tonne mark for the second year consecutively.

Sea Asia 2019 will feature new technologies on the exhibition show floor, as well as national pavilions. These include a maritime start-up focused platform, the Innovation Arena, an additive manufacturing showcase in collaboration with Nanyang Polytechnic and a virtual reality welding demonstration. There will also be 13 national pavilions, three of which are new to Sea Asia 2019 – Oman, Poland and Turkey.

Notably, the Sea Asia conference will see six shipping industry leaders debate for and against the motion at the returning Parliamentary Debate. The leaders will each share their thoughts on the motion, ‘This House believes that too much is expected of the shipping industry on environmental matters’.

Chairman of Seatrade, Informa Markets, Mr Chris Hayman, said current developments in the industry today, such as the upcoming International Maritime Organization (IMO) Sulphur Cap 2020, and the growing collaborations between start-ups and maritime, will also form significant parts of discussions at Sea Asia 2019.

“The sulphur cap sees the maritime industry moving into uncharted waters with what has been described as ‘a once in a century event’. As a result industry looking at alternative fuels and solutions to operate within the new environmental regulatory limits. At the same time, companies are looking towards collaboration with start-ups to bring innovative solutions to the table.

“Sea Asia 2019 provides an established and critical platform for global industry leaders to come together and share their thoughts on the current developments and how the industry can navigate challenges together moving forward,” said Mr Hayman.

Other highlights include the Sea Asia Global Forum, a panel featuring seasoned veterans reflecting on where the industry is headed to; the Future of the Maritime Workforce forum, which will look into how the Industrial Revolution 4.0 is impacting the maritime workforce; and the Fleet Management of the Future session focusing on the optimisation of fleet operations through digitalisation.
Source: Sea Asia 2019