Shipping Technology launches ST Brain Lite: plug-and-play digitisation for chartered inland vessels
ROTTERDAM: Shipping Technology, the Rotterdam-based inland shipping technology company, is launching ST Brain Lite – a compact, easy-to-install onboard intelligence unit that brings real-time data connectivity to chartered vessels. Inland shipping container operator Danser Group is the product’s launching customer, deploying the units across the chartered ships on its Limburg Express container liner service.
The challenge: a data gap in chartered fleets
Shipping Technology already connects approximately 380 inland vessels with its full ST Brain platform. These range from tankers and container barges to river cruise ships (on which the company is experimenting with full autonomous sailing). However, a large segment of the market has remained out of reach: chartered ships.
In terms of digitalisation, chartered ships present a specific challenge: they are sometimes older vessels for which a full digital installation is either technically complex or economically unfeasible.
In addition, many operators depend on manual processes such as phone calls, WhatsApp messages, emails and spreadsheets to track vessel locations, cargo status, arrival times and fuel consumption. As such, the crews on these ships are responsible for a substantial administrative burden, manually relaying information that operators need for planning and reporting.
Danser Group, however, has already partially automated these processes. The company manages eight owned vessels, and relies on an additional 70 chartered ships to operate its liner services. To manage this fleet efficiently, they now take this approach even further by installing the ST Brain Lite fleetwide.
ST Brain Lite: simple installation, immediate insight
ST Brain Lite is a small onboard computer that connects to the vessel’s existing systems – GPS, AIS, loading systems and, where applicable, tank monitoring or container stowage software – and transmits data in real time. Not only to a secure cloud dashboard but directly into the operators’ system as well. The unit requires no complex integrations and is designed to be installed by the crew themselves, with remote activation support from Shipping Technology’s office team.
Ship owners retain control over which parties receive access to their vessel’s data. What’s more, ship owners whose vessels are equipped with ST Brain Lite by an operator can choose to subsequently invest in ST Brain full version or ST Sailing (comprising Shipping Technology’s Autonomous Lane Assist and Collision Detection solutions) to expand on the digital infrastructure already in place on board.
The data package captured by ST Brain Lite covers two core areas:
1. Vessel position and planning data: location, speed, and estimated time of arrival, enabling operators to accurately manage fleet movements.
2. Fuel consumption and emissions data: supporting sustainability reporting and enabling a.o. vessels calling at Rotterdam to qualify for a 5% port fee discount through the Green Award emission certification scheme.
Danser Group: digitising the Limburg Express container corridor
In the first phase, Danser Group will deploy ST Brain Lite across the chartered vessels operating its Limburg Express container liner service, which runs from Rotterdam via the River Maas to Venlo and Born. This marks the first time an inland shipping corridor will be fully digitised at the vessel level, giving Danser Group’s operations and customer teams continuous, accurate data on every ship in the service – whether owned or chartered. The Danser Group fleet will be fitted with ST Brain Lite, one corridor at a time as part of a phased roll-out.
“At Danser Group, we are digitising our office environment and operational processes step by step. Being able to connect digitally with the ships we charter – not just our own fleet – is an important milestone,” says Ben Maelissa, CEO of Danser Group. “ST Brain Lite will play a crucial role in enriching our data; it brings a combination of quality and scalability. Once installed on board, we have the real-time insights we need to make better decisions, keep our customers better informed, and continue building towards a fully digital operation.”
A new model for fleet digitisation
The launch of ST Brain Lite marks a strategic expansion of Shipping Technology’s mission to accelerate digitalisation across the inland shipping industry. Until now, investments in onboard digitalisation were primarily driven by ship owners, partly incentivised by insurers or financing institutions.
ST Brain Lite changes that dynamic. For the first time, logistics operators, who depend heavily on chartered vessels, can actively drive digitalisation within the fleets they operate. This improves transparency, operational efficiency and supply chain integration across the inland shipping ecosystem.
Launching customer Danser Group has strategically chosen to become the first inland shipping operator to actively stimulate onboard digitalisation by covering the investment costs for ship owners – a long-standing wish within the sector that is now becoming reality. This shows that a more efficient and data-driven inland shipping network is possible.
Donald Baan, COO of Shipping Technology, comments on the launch of ST Brain Lite:
“Since 2018, we have been connecting inland vessels and today data is flowing from nearly 380 ships across Europe. Yet a significant part of the inland fleet still operates largely analogue. With ST Brain Lite, we are removing the barriers to digitalisation and making connected shipping accessible for every vessel. This goes not only for crews and ship owners, but also for operators and chartering parties seeking more transparency and efficiency throughout the supply chain.
“Inland shipping has a huge opportunity to strengthen its competitive position through smarter data exchange and digital collaboration. ST Brain Lite is designed to accelerate exactly that transition: simple to deploy, practical in use, and immediately valuable. We are proud to launch this together with the Danser Group team and look forward to scaling the impact together.”
