Smart Ports: Piers of the Future

For the first time, the ports of Antwerp, Barcelona, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Montreal and Rotterdam come together to showcase their most advanced digital transformation and sustainability projects at their dedicated ‘Smart Ports’ exhibit

The smart fairway digitalization pilot is a part of the EMMA Extension project that is funded by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme. This summer, 34 smart buoys were installed in the Saimaa deep fairway, which is Finland’s most important inland waterway for merchant shipping.
Safety is enhanced in particular by the fact that the pilots and VTS can adjust the light output of beacons and the rhythm of lights to support the navigation of vessels in poor visibility and weather conditions....

The Bahamas has imposed a compulsory maritime pilot rule for all vessels, including cruise ships, at its ports since September 2025.

Klaipeda is one among few seaports in Europe, where maritime pilots are able to carry out operations in remote mode. As it is attempted to avoid contact with other persons as much as possible during the quarantine, several trials have already been performed in the seaport. They revealed that such assistance for the vessels sailing in Klaipeda Port is effective and safe.

Pilot-in-the-Loop simulations embedded to a high-resolution maritime environment.

Here’s a nice little video of the sea trials of ‘Svitzer Oued Martil’ including some cool on-board 360 camera footage of her going through some pretty big breaking seas during rough weather testing, and some nice foggy day drone footage and trials alongside the Brittany Ferry ‘Armorique’.

TOKYO-Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., together with its two group companies and the following consortium partners, today announced the completion of a successful sea trial of autonomous sailing using a large commercial coastal car ferry, in a voyage from the Tomakomai Port, Hokkaido Prefecture to the Oarai Port, Ibaraki Prefecture.

DPC provide a Pilot Service for vessels visiting the port, the service involves putting on and taking off Pilots from the vessels both in port and at sea. Only personnel who are qualified, trained and passed out as competent in their respective roles are involved in this operation which will normally involve a Coxswain to helm the boat, a boatman to look after the deck operations and ensure the safety of the Pilot throughout the operation. Following correct procedures and utilising all...

Poseidon on the model boat pond in Vallensbæk, Denmark.
Poseidon is a pilot boat based on a kit but modified to match the real pilot boat "Poseidon". The entire super structure is scratch built with very detailed interior that this video doesn't do justice. The real boat is based in Hornbæk, Denmark. The builder has made many visits to this boat to get all the details right.
Builder and owner: Ole Bødker
Link to Vallensbæk model boat club (Danish): http://www.vallensbaekmodelskibsklub.dk

Many consider the Bristol Channel pilot cutter to be the finest sailing boat design ever. Fast, seaworthy and beautiful to behold, the pilot cutter is the perfect combination of form and function - a thoroughbred perfectly adapted to a life in one of the Britain's most treacherous stretches of water. Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe explores the life of the pilots and sails a perfectly restored cutter to find out just what drove these men and their wonderful machines.