Containership operator CMA CGM Group is looking to the stars to improve its shipping and logistics practices, announcing Thursday that it plans to use satellite communications to create better data sharing through a five-year partnership with the French space agency, CNES.
According to the partners, the collaboration will help improve smart ship routing, a transition to green maritime energy sources, upgraded port activities, and optimized logistics.
They plan to reach those goals by working with start-up firms and subject matter experts (SMEs), supporting CMA CGM’s research and development (R&D) team, and investing in the two organizations’ business development units—ZEBOX, CMA CGM Venture, and Connect by CNES. “Connect by CNES” is the space agency’s initiative to help firms develop innovative products and services leveraging space technologies.
That plan will extend an existing relationship between CNES and the CMA CGM Group, which are both members of the French Maritime Cluster and already use satellites in the “Cospas-Sarsat” satellite network to collect, locate, and forward distress signals from emergency beacons on ships at sea.
The deal will also deepen collaboration with the satellite-based data service providers CLS and Kineis, which operate smart ship routing and space-based Internet of Things (IoT) solutions designed to meet the digital needs of shipowners.
CNES and CMA CGM’s experts now plan to work together on topics such as smart ship routing, which can enhance safety at sea to aid crews and closely manage shipping’s environmental footprint. The approach will optimize sea crossings by sharing data on currents, winds, and waves and by developing effective management of future hybrid ship propulsion systems, they say.
“Creating activities from satellite data and services for our societies is a major focus of action for us at the French space agency,” CNES Chairman & CEO Philippe Baptiste said in a release. “This agreement signed with CMA CGM, one of the world’s leading shipping and logistics players, is a perfect illustration of our desire to reach outside the space industry, notably to the mobility sector, which is a priority area for Connect by CNES alongside the environment and healthcare.”
