WSS to use drones for ship deliveries

Ship agency Wilhelmsen Ships Service is launching a pilot project that will study the use of unmanned aircraft systems to deliver agency essentials to vessels at sea, WSS said in a statement.    Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) is launching a pilot program to study the use of unmanned aircraft systems, otherwise known as “drones,” for delivering supplies to ocean vessels, according to a statement from the company.
   “Whether it is deliveries of critical documents or vital medical supplies, tank inspections, or monitoring cargo and stockpile levels, we believe semi-autonomous drone flights can support and further enhance what our ships agency team can offer our customers,” WSS VP of Business Solutions & Marketing Marius Johansen said of the project.
   “Relied upon by owners, operators, vessels and crew to get spare parts, medicine, documents, or cash to master where it needs to be at moment’s notice, drone delivery is a natural extension of our existing agency service portfolio,” he added.
   Drone deliveries to anchored ships may even help to cut costs, said Johansen. With launch vessels, which typically deliver essentials to anchored ships, costing an average of $1,500 per trip, he estimates that drone delivery costs would eventually come down to just $150.
   Last year, Danish shipping giant AP Moller Maersk Group said it would experiment with drone aircraft for deliveries and inspections in its Maersk Tankers division. In similar fashion, Maersk said that drone deliveries can save costs and time when small parcel deliveries can be made with drones instead of barges.
   WSS plans to launch “a large-scale working pilot project in one of the busiest ports in 2017” and will be on hand to discuss the project more at the Nor-Shipping conference in Oslo and Lillestrøm, Norway, at the end of May.