Maritime Innovator: RightShip
Written bySpire Global
Our customers constantly amaze us with their innovative approach to industry solutions and out-of-the-box ideas to build a better planet.
This month’s Innovative Customer Spotlight is RightShip, one of the world’s leading ESG-focused digital maritime platforms, providing expertise in global safety, sustainability and social responsibility practices.
Between 1988 and 1991, nearly 100 seafarers were lost on large bulk carriers, mostly off the coast of Western Australia. These tragic events were the result of avoidable industry practices. The ensuing ‘Ships of Shame’ report issued by the Australian government shone a spotlight on the urgent need to improve industry standards.
The incidents led to RightShip forming in 2001, providing vetting and inspection services to founders Rio Tinto and BHP Freight. Over time, RightShip’s various services have been rolled out to more than 600 other customers, and with a broadened scope, offering environmental and social expertise and access to data.
Throughout the years, RightShip has evolved into a fully-fledged digital and tech company, ensuring their portal is intuitive and easy for customers to use, making the tasks they undertake day-to-day to keep their ships, cargo and crew safe and sound, straightforward to perform.
The “Right” Collaboration
Under the leadership of CEO Steen Lund, RightShip has opened up and created an innovative way of working – a real willingness to share. RightShip is dedicated to progressing the maritime industry and has worked with many other companies along the way to achieve the aim of zero harm.
Using RightShip’s Maritime Emissions Portal (MEP) to track emissions from vessels that come in and out of their 15 berths, GeelongPort have become the first port in Australia to be certified as carbon neutral, with the inclusion of Scope 3 vessel-based emissions in their carbon accounting. Another success story is RightShip’s relationship with the oldest port in Canada – the Port of Québec. They join a growing list of organizations using RightShip’s greenhouse gas (GHG) rating tool, also assessing the emissions of ships entering their waters. The Port now offers discounts on port fees to vessels, dependent on their GHG Rating and emission efficiency.
Making connections and building on one another’s knowledge for a better future is a central principle of RightShip. They use their expertise to support others to focus on the right issues. A fascinating new partnership RightShip just begun is with Plug and Play. This partnership gives RightShip opportunities to reach out to start-ups at an early stage in their development and provide guidance on how to grow and innovate within the maritime space, perhaps even helping them avoid initial errors and develop more quickly.
“I began my career as a sailing master – I was at sea for 12 years. I wanted to travel the world. But after a time, as many of us do, I came ashore to work for a Scandinavian shipping company, first in business development, then moving onto tech ecosystems.
I came to RightShip in 2021, leading the partnerships team. It’s my job to keep myself abreast of developments in the maritime industry and to watch out for interesting new players – and then try to find out whether we can collaborate with them or share data.”
Ajinkya Kadam
Partnerships Manager
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An established player with start-up passion
RightShip is credited for their data being robust and reliable, and their customers have chosen them not only for this, but because they also believe in the vision of a maritime industry causing zero harm. Customers value consistent yet evolving solution providers, and although RightShip has been a big name in the shipping industry for 20 years and has evolved in many ways, at their core they are still the same organization with a confident but humble outreach. They uphold consistent and fair values and believe strongly in treating every customer or potential partner in the same even-handed open way.
The range of solutions offered to customers goes beyond impressive. What is offered is the complete package, and yet, RightShip is still keen to expand and grow their offerings with partners who have unique expertise. Many organizations will be looking to create Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reports for the first time. At RightShip, they have the expertise to help with ‘E’ elements, such as greenhouse gas (GHG) Rating, Carbon Accounting, and their Maritime Emissions Portal. They support with the ‘S’ too, via the Code of Conduct and their crew welfare self-assessment. Finally, they cover off ‘G’ aspects via their vettings, inspections and Safety Score.
A company culture to be proud of
RightShip employees take pride in the company’s devotion to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). The company culture at RightShip is inspiring and sets the bar for others in the industry.
Employees are encouraged to study different topics outside the usual sphere of business and are even asked to include time for personal development in their weekly schedules. RightShip is the place where leaders are not afraid to ‘fail fast’ and where it is upheld that it is better to do that, than wait and wait for perfection until it’s too late.
Employees at RightShip were brought together by a shared vision and have become connected through bringing about efficiencies in the industry, and the ability to save effort, time, money, and the planet is something RightShip employees should be proud of.
RightShip team litterpick in Singapore
