Around 2008, we launched the “Infrastructure Integration Project” based on themes such as disaster countermeasures, security response, and internal control. Restructuring was promoted for about two years and then the servers were moved to an external data center, and we moved forward with simultaneously switching over systems such as the virtualization of scattered physical servers and further integration of databases. At the time we had around 100 employees and the majority were involved in infrastructure integration, and it further grew into a big project that included partner companies. This project unified the system operating environments and development methods, which resulted in making it easier to integrate and maintain the many systems used at Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha. Also, as part of the security response and internal control, we built a dedicated authentication system and introduced a workflow system, which now act as the base for our system configuration.

As an example of a development that contributed to optimizing data exchange, we have GApp (Global Application) which is a container ship core business system that was deployed sequentially from 2001 for each module. At the time, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha had a Container Shipping Department*1, and bases in each country around the world used different systems so it required a lot of time and effort to exchange data. Therefore, we developed a system to centrally manage global data, and enabling data to be shared between the cargo loading ports and discharge ports achieved optimized operation and reduced system operation costs incurred at each base throughout the world.

• 1 The Container Shipping Department was integrated into Ocean Network Express ONE established by three major shipping companies (including “K”Line Business Systems) from April 2018 onward.

In 2023, we developed “CHRONUS,” a system that uses AI-OCR (AI-based optical character recognition) technology. CHRONUS uses AI-OCR technology to extract required information from the “record of cargo loading/unloading work” (Statement of Fact) created in different formats at each port and shipper, and is a system that can automatically calculate the fees required for anchoring at port and automatically create a statement for the ship’s anchoring time (Laytime Statement).

CHRONUS was developed by both “K”Line Business Systems and a vendor sharing the work involved. A vendor with specialized technology to read images such as AI-OCR worked alongside “K”Line Business Systems, which has expert knowledge of the shipping business, to make the most of their field of expertise in proceeding with developing CHRONUS. As a result, it was no longer necessary to enter or digitize information manually, achieving a standardized workflow and an optimized work process.

Collaboration between “K”Line Business Systems and the vendor was finalized around the summer of 2022. CHRONUS was set to be released a year later so we talked to other departments throughout the company and asked for their cooperation, and then proceeded with the CHRONUS development project while working together as a team. During the development period, the three companies; Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, “K”Line Business Systems, and the vendor held meetings together to work out the details of the project.

Since most of our development is usually completed in-house, while collaborating on this project we closely communicated with the other parties to deepen mutual understanding of the project and focused on tasks such as reporting on the progress and checking specifications.

In recent development work, we have been increasingly promoting projects that share the work with vendors who have expertise in various fields. As with AI-OCR used in the CHRONUS project, development that incorporates multiple fields of expertise will likely be in demand in the future.

Kawasaki Integrated Maritime Solutions (K-IMS), an integrated shipping operations and performance management system, is indispensable to the “K”Line Group and is used to handle data acquired from ships in operation.
So far, we have been working on maximizing the use of big data acquired from each ship. In the future, we will work alongside Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha to link this data with our in-house developed systems and expand its use to the Sales Department, and also continue to restructure to create a more user-friendly system.