ClassNK issues Technology Qualification (TQ) for ‘SAS-IBS’ developed by Samsung Heavy Industries
TOKYO: ClassNK has issued a Technology Qualification (TQ)*1 for ‘SAS-IBS’, one of the components of the ‘Samsung Autonomous Navigation Assistance System (SAS)’*2 developed by Samsung Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., and a certificate handover ceremony was held in KORMARINE 2025.
Technologies related to maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS) are being actively developed to reduce human error, ease crew workloads, and address labor shortages. To support the implementation of such technologies, ClassNK has published its ‘Guidelines for Technology Qualification’*3, which enable the safety assessment of novel technologies not covered by existing regulations.
‘SAS’ developed by Samsung Heavy Industries is an Autonomous Navigation System (ANS) including the functions of situational awareness for recognizing own vessel and its surrounding environment, planning actions for collision and grounding avoidance, and performing vessel track control through an autopilot. ‘SAS-IBS’ is software designed to assess the risk of collisions and grounding with surrounding vessels and other obstacles, create safe paths to avoid such risks, and provide alert management functions based on its operational design domain*4.
ClassNK examined ‘SAS-IBS’, based on its ‘Guidelines for Technology Qualification’, including novelty evaluation, risk assessment, simulation testing, and qualification validation. Upon confirming that core functions for achieving autonomous navigation meet the requirements, ClassNK issued the statement.
ClassNK will continue supporting the implementation of automated/autonomous operation technologies by setting standards and technical verification.
Samsung Heavy Industries Website
https://www.samsungshi.com/En/Default.aspx
*1 Technology Qualification (TQ)
For technologies based on new concepts and designs that cannot be addressed by existing rules and standards, through the identification of risks and issues associated with the novelty of the technology and the review of the safety measures responding to them, ClassNK confirms that the concerned technology functions reliably within a defined scope, and issue a technology qualification. The qualification indicates that the new technology has been verified to be as acceptably safe as the technologies designed under existing rules and standards.