– The Lloyd’s Register Safety Accelerator innovation challenges offers trial funding and partnerships with leading marine and energy experts: Kotug and Gassco.
– Programme seeks safetytech innovators exploring the theme of human safety onboard ships and floating platforms.
– Winning startups will receive additional support from Plug and Play Tech Centre and Lloyd’s Register.

LONDON- The Lloyd’s Register Safety Accelerator announced its first round of innovation challenges to find innovative solutions for how to improve human safety onboard ships and floating platforms at a Launch Event yesterday.

The nature of marine and energy, and the environments in which these industries operate, makes working in these sectors some of the most dangerous in the world. Although conditions for crew and personnel are improving, there is more to be done to improve the safety of life on board.

The Lloyd’s Register Safety Accelerator is looking for proposals from companies with innovative digital ideas to address this Challenge Round, which is focussed on finding new ways to create safer work environments, particularly in marine and offshore.

Winning companies will receive trial funding and the opportunity to collaborate with commercial partners to accelerate the development of their technologies. Partners for this challenge round include Kotug and Gassco, plus others to be identified at the Innovation Day in Hamburg on the 4th September 2018.

The winning entrepreneurs will retain 100 percent of their IP, along with mentoring, entrepreneurial support and access to domain expertise to help bring their solution to market though support from Plug and Play Tech Centre and Lloyd’s Register.

The four categories are:

• Detecting minor leaks in complex industrial environments with Gassco – exploring new ways to identify, quantify and respond to minor leaks in complex industrial environments as part of the daily operation of the facility.

• Navigating gas vapour clouds with Kotug – seeking innovative methods to detect and visualise potentially explosive gas clouds, enabling vessels to avoid and navigate around it.
• Ensuring marine and offshore crew competency – seeking tools and concepts to ensure crew are always performing competently, reducing risks and injuries, through monitoring, measuring, advising, ensuring and empowering crew to do their job safely.

• Enhancing dynamic risk assessment – seeking new ways keep personnel better informed about operational risks affecting them in real time in their work environment and transform the current state of risk assessment from a static exercise to a process that is dynamic, intuitive and real-time.

Richard Clegg, Chief Executive, Lloyd’s Register Foundation, said:

“Accelerating the uptake and application of technology for the benefit of society is one of the pillars in the Foundation’s strategy. The Lloyd’s Register Safety Accelerator offers a great way of achieving this by bringing together people with challenges with those that have solutions. It’s a win-win and in the process, makes the world a safer place. I’m excited to see what innovative investable ideas come out of it.”

The deadline for applications is 5 August 2018. Shortlisted entries will be invited to a live pitch and Q&A with a panel of judges. The launch of trials for successful applicants is scheduled to take place in Winter 2018.

The Safety Accelerator is a joint initiative between Lloyd’s Register, one of the world’s leading providers of professional services for engineering and technology and Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a charitable foundation helping to protect life and property by supporting engineering-related education, public engagement and the application of research, which is funding the programme.

The Safety Accelerator is run in partnership with Plug and Play Tech Center, the largest global innovation platform and most active venture capital fund in Silicon Valley.
For more information about the Lloyd’s Register Safety Accelerator, including how to become an industry challenge partner, or applying to solve a challenge, please visit: https://www.lr.org/en/safety-accelerator/