GTT Marine has launched Bridge Operations Quality Assurance (BOQA), a new capability that uses existing Voyage Data Recorder data to identify safety-relevant events during routine vessel operations. The system moves VDR data into a wider digital safety role, giving shipowners and fleet teams a way to review operational behaviour before it becomes part of an incident investigation.
VDRs have long served as the maritime industry’s record of what happened on the bridge during an incident. GTT Marine is now applying the same data to routine operations, with BOQA continuously evaluating information already captured onboard and bringing events requiring attention to shore-based safety teams and crews.
The system works through predefined safety triggers rather than requiring teams to manually examine large volumes of voyage data. Depending on the vessel and available data, these triggers can identify close passing, excessive rates of turn or rudder angles, abnormal heading changes, rolling and sustained heel, excessive speed in shallow water, severe true wind conditions and sudden deceleration linked to a possible collision or grounding.
GTT Marine says BOQA is designed to distinguish meaningful events from routine fluctuations. Its analysis can take operational context into account, including factors such as Closest Point of Approach, vessel length, speed and water depth when assessing close-passing events.
The commercial launch also gives shipowners another way to use data already generated by their vessels. Events identified by BOQA can be reviewed across ships and voyages, allowing marine, HSEQ and fleet management teams to examine recurring behaviour and operational trends.
“VDRs transformed maritime safety by giving the industry a trusted record of what happened when something went wrong. By leveraging that same foundation to provide safety insight while operations are still going right, BOQA ensures that every voyage becomes an opportunity to improve the next one,” said Christian Kock, EVP, Safety, GTT Marine.
BOQA is available through Safety Insights by Danelec. GTT Marine says the capability represents a broader role for VDR data within the shipowner’s digital safety ecosystem.
