Technological innovation key to future prosperity

Family ownership of certain German shipyards is viewed by some as holding back the industry. Others argue it offers flexibility and the ability to adapt faster to changing market conditions than a lumbering multinational.
"They are constantly improving and investing but in steps," said German shipbuilders association VSM director Ralf Soren Marquardt of companies such as cruiseship, ferry and gas-carrier builder Meyer Werft.
He goes on to argue that ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems's (TKMS) strategy of mixing naval with merchant newbuildings allows them to maximise capacity through the different market cycles.
"There is also a lot of innovation in naval shipbuilding that can be transferred to merchant shipbuilding, where there is constant demand to improve productivity. They interact in a positive way," claimed Marquardt.
On the technological front, German industry is at the forefront of developing fuel-cell technology that may be used, for example, to generate auxiliary power on cruiseships.
It is a clean source of power at a time of stricter emissions controls. Owners of superyachts built in Germany have also shown interest. A consortium of yards, classification societies, research institutions and fuel-cell manufacturers have teamed up to develop the technology.
"We see this as an opportunity for German shipbuilding," said Marquardt, who says he is confident the country can deliver and create new opportunities. VSM is also keen to see the development in Germany of gas-burning vessels.
Marquardt says VSM hopes that in future suitable instruments can be devised to better protect intellectual property.
"But in the end we are convinced that even the best international conventions won't stop fully the drain of know-how to other parts of the world," he said. The answer is continual innovation.
It is frequently claimed that German vessel designs are plagiarised by Asian yards one source refers to a case where a general arrangement was copied and a new logo superimposed over that of the German originator.
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