NAPA and Stena Line unveil digital RoRo stability system

Helsinki-based maritime software firm, NAPA, and ferry and RoRo operator, Stena Line, have released details of a new stability management and cargo planning system for vessels engaged in RoRo and RoPax trades.

NAPA Stability for RoRo has been designed to operate in the particularly challenging RoRo cargo sector. A typical Stena Line vessel, for example, might have 1,300 passengers, 90 trailers, 120 trucks, 45 containers, 180 cars, 25 cars with caravans, 30 mobile homes, 35 dangerous goods units, and possibly livestock and rail cargo.

The cargo management procedure is extremely complex and is carried out manually, based on cargo manifests. Typically, this takes 60-90 minutes of officer time per departure.

The new system, however, connects directly to operators’ booking systems. Cargo data – including weights, quantities, dangerous goods – is imported to the loading computer, eliminating manual systems.

Master of the Stena Germanica, Capt. Jörgen Gustavsson, said: “On a RoPax vessel, getting the cargo in the right place is one of the most complex parts of every departure – stability, trim, fuel management, dangerous goods segregation, all under time pressure. With NAPA Stability for RoRo, the manual work is essentially gone. What used to take our officers hours in data entry and planning now takes 10 to 15 minutes. That time goes straight back into the operation, where it matters most.”