Barendrecht, April 17, 2025 — Two leading players in the maritime sector, Simwave and Shipping Technology, are joining forces to digitize and strengthen the inland shipping industry. With this collaboration, they aim to uniquely combine technology and training to create a new standard in safety, efficiency, and—above all—a future-proof inland shipping industry.
Inland shipping is at the dawn of a technological transformation. With the growing availability of real-time data, smart systems, and high-quality simulator training, new opportunities are emerging for skippers and shipowners. Simwave and Shipping Technology share a mission: empowering the people on board through the power of technology.
Simwave
Simwave is the world’s most prominent and technology-driven maritime training and research partner. From their state-of-the-art training center in Barendrecht, Simwave offers a wide range of training programs, research, and software applications related to competency management in both ocean and inland shipping, with customized solutions at the core. With 60 advanced simulators and tailored training programs, crews are optimally prepared for their tasks on board.
At the heart of their portfolio is the Simwave Academy: a Career Management Platform that provides skippers and crews with unique tools to expand their knowledge. The platform enables management to clearly map out and monitor career paths, and the data generated around this process can be used to make strategic decisions.
Through the Academy, users can also get acquainted with new technologies, such as the Shipping Technology Autonomous Lane Assist (ST ALA), for which a dedicated online course has been developed. This allows crews to become familiar with innovative systems at their own pace before using them on board.
“Inland shipping is changing rapidly, and that calls for a new approach to training,” says Marcel Kind, CEO of Simwave. “By partnering with Shipping Technology, we can enrich our training with up-to-date operational data and make this knowledge more accessible than ever through our digital learning environment.”
Shipping Technology
Shipping Technology develops digital solutions for the inland shipping industry, aiming to make the sector safer, more efficient, and more sustainable. Since its founding in 2018, more than 300 vessels have been equipped with the ST BRAIN: a smart hardware box that collects real-time vessel data and makes it available in the online ST Dashboard. Based on this, Shipping Technology offers targeted solutions for autonomous sailing, emissions reporting, and automatic data sharing with other systems.
With modules such as ST SAILING, ST EMISSIONS, and ST CONNECT, Shipping Technology responds to current market demands. These include smart route support, emission reports according to ISO 14083, and seamless data integrations with external partners. By unlocking data per vessel type, Shipping Technology supports shipowners, crews, and logistics partners in digitizing their operations.
“Our mission is not just to digitize inland shipping, but to make it more appealing to a new generation of skippers,” says Donald Baan of Shipping Technology. “By bringing our data and training expertise of Simwave together through this partnership, we’re making a significant step forward.”
A Shared Vision: Technology as Empowerment, Not Replacement
While Simwave excels at training crews in realistic and safe environments, Shipping Technology delivers innovative solutions that provide real-time insights into vessel and crew performance. By combining these worlds, a unique learning environment is created where experience, data, and digital support come together—an essential step towards a safer, more sustainable, and smarter inland shipping industry. Training becomes not only more realistic but also more closely aligned with everyday practice.
Launch at Schuttevaer Expo
The partnership was officially presented at the Schuttevaer Expo in the Onderzeebootloods in Rotterdam. During a workshop session, visitors got a preview of how digital systems and practical training can seamlessly integrate. The session not only demonstrated the shared vision of Simwave and Shipping Technology but also offered a glimpse into the future of sailing, training, and operations—smarter, safer, and more sustainable.
For more information, please contact:
Marcel Kind
CEO Simwave
mkind@simwave.nl
Donald Baan
COO Shipping Technology
donald.baan@shippingtechnology.com