Recent Episodes
About
Setting Course
Welcome to Setting Course, an ABS Podcast. From carbon capture and electrification to alternative fuels and regulatory developments — tune in for informed conversations between industry leaders as we chart the future of maritime.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Stergios Stamopoulos, ABS Director of Global Sustainability, and Ushma Ahuja, ABS Senior Sustainability Engineer, join host Brad Cox, ABS, to discuss the publication’s findings and major sustainability trends in the industry.
Guest Speakers: Stergios Stamopoulos and Ushma Ahuja
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Sustainability Outlook: What's Next for Shipping?
Guest Speakers
Stergios Stamopoulos
ABS Director of Global Sustainability
Stergios Stamopoulos is the ABS Director of Global Sustainability for the Western Hemisphere, leading ABS activities in the Americas and Europe regions. Under his leadership, the ABS sustainability centers in Houston, Athens and Copenhagen are assisting ship and offshore owners, operators, and other stakeholders with achieving their sustainability goals. He joined ABS in 2007 as an engineer and has worked in Greece, South Korea and the U.S. in a variety of roles.
Ushma Ahuja
ABS Senior Sustainability Engineer
Ushma Ahuja is a Senior Sustainability Engineer at the ABS Global Sustainability Center in Copenhagen, where she supports ESG mapping projects. She has been a Secondee with the Regulatory Affairs team of Maersk-McKinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping since 2023.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Stergios Stamopoulos, ABS Director of Global Sustainability, and Ushma Ahuja, ABS Senior Sustainability Engineer, join host Brad Cox, ABS, to discuss the publication’s findings and major sustainability trends in the industry.
Key Points
The number of ships using alternative fuels is expected to continue growing.
Energy efficiency technologies have an important role to play in reducing fuel consumption and emissions.
Increased shipyard capacity for newbuilds and retrofitting is crucial for decarbonization.
Liquid hydrogen and nuclear energy have substantial potential to support decarbonization.
The industry needs innovation, regulatory compliance and collaboration to achieve net-zero targets.
With MEPC’s 82nd session coming up, we had several IMO delegates from across the industry join Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, to discuss what they expect from the meeting, the hottest topics that will be discussed, and issues future meetings will need to address.
Guest Speakers: Panos Zachariadis, Thanos Theocharis, KC Wong,
Emmanuel Vergetis and Stamatis Fradelos
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MEPC 82 Expectations
Guest Speakers
Panos Zachariadis
Technical Director, Atlantic Bulk Carriers Management
Thanos Theocharis
Senior Manager, Regulatory Affairs, Republic of the Marshall Islands Registry
The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) is at the center of the action for the shipping industry’s decarbonization.
With MEPC’s 82nd session coming up, we had several IMO delegates from across the industry join Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, to discuss what they expect from the meeting, the hottest topics that will be discussed, and issues future meetings will need to address.
KC Wong
Senior Technical Manager, INTERTANKO
Emmanuel Vergetis
Greece Region Representative, INTERCARGO
Stamatis Fradelos
Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, ABS
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On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Jan Chow, Senior Manager of Applications and Services Engineering for Amogy, and Michael Kei, Vice President of Technology for ABS, joined host Brad Cox to discuss Amogy’s ammonia cracking technology, the company’s ammonia-powered tugboat, and ammonia safety.
Guest Speakers: Jan Chow and Michael Kei
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Ammonia Cracking with Amogy
Guest Speakers
Jan Chow
Amogy Senior Manager of Applications and Services Engineering
Michael Kei
ABS Vice President of Technology
Ammonia offers interesting potential as a zero-carbon marine fuel. Several companies are developing technologies to support ammonia’s application by taking advantage of its energy density and mitigating its toxicity risks.
Jan Chow, Senior Manager of Applications and Services Engineering for Amogy, and Michael Kei, Vice President of Technology for ABS, joined host Brad Cox on this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, to discuss Amogy’s ammonia cracking technology, the company’s ammonia-powered tugboat, and ammonia safety.
This special episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, was recorded on board the Signet Capella tugboat at the Enbridge Ingleside Energy Center near Corpus Christi, Texas. The Signet Sirius, sistership of the Signet Capella, was the first commercial U.S. vessel designed, built and verified using an end-to-end 3D design process.
Guest Speakers: Tim McCallum, Dmitry Kapiturov and Scott Sienkiewicz
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3D Design with
Signet and RAL
Guest Speakers
Tim McCallum
Signet Senior Vice President of Engineering
Dmitry Kapiturov
Robert Allan Ltd. Production Design Manager
The emergence of 3D model-based design for maritime is changing the way ships are designed, engineered, built and classed.
In this episode, Signet Maritime Corporation Senior Vice President of Engineering Tim McCallum, Robert Allan Ltd. Production Design Manager Dmitry Kapiturov and ABS Senior Engineer Scott Sienkiewicz joined host Brad Cox to discuss the Signet Capella, the Signet Sirius and the impact of 3D design on maritime engineering.
Scott Sienkiewicz
ABS Senior Engineer
Craig Carter, Thordon Bearings Vice President of Business Development, and Chris Leontopoulos, ABS Vice President of Technology, joined host Brad Cox on this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, to discuss the Blue Ocean Alliance’s design for a sterntubeless propeller shaft bearing arrangement and its potential for the maritime industry.
Guest Speakers: Craig Carter and Chris Leontopoulos
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Sterntubeless Design
with Thordon
Guest Speakers
Craig Carter
Thordon Bearings Vice President of Business Development
Chris Leontopoulos
ABS Vice President of Technology
A revolutionary vessel design with a novel aft layout could reduce a vessel’s environmental impact and promote efficient operations.
Craig Carter, Thordon Bearings Vice President of Business Development, and Chris Leontopoulos, ABS Vice President of Technology, joined host Brad Cox on this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, to discuss the Blue Ocean Alliance’s design for a sterntubeless propeller shaft bearing arrangement and its potential for the maritime industry.
Learn more about the sterntubeless design from the ABS Requirements for Sterntubeless Vessels with Water Lubricated Bearings.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Daniel Tan, Pelagus 3D Chief Technology Officer, and Dr. Gu Hai, ABS Vice President of Technology, joined host Brad Cox to discuss the potential for on-demand additive manufacturing for the maritime industry.
Guest Speakers: Daniel Tan and Dr. Gu Hai
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On-Demand 3D-Printed Parts with Pelagus 3D
Guest Speakers
Daniel Tan
Pelagus 3D Chief Technology Officer
Dr. Gu Hai
ABS Vice President of Technology
Using additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, to produce replacement parts on demand can support just-in-time operations and potentially mitigate supply chain disruptions for the maritime and offshore industries.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Daniel Tan, Pelagus 3D Chief Technology Officer, and Dr. Gu Hai, ABS Vice President of Technology, joined host Brad Cox to discuss the potential for on-demand AM for the maritime industry.
Learn more about how ABS is supporting AM for the industry here.
This special episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, was recorded at the ABS Laboratory for Ocean Innovation at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. On this episode, Siva Rathinam, Texas A&M Professor of Mechanical Engineering, and Denny Raymond, ABS Senior Technology Engineer, joined host Brad Cox to discuss the university's research into autonomous technologies for the maritime industry.
Guest Speakers: Siva Rathinam and Denny Raymond
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Autonomous Navigation Research with Texas A&M
Guest Speakers
Siva Rathinam
Texas A&M Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Denny Raymond
ABS Senior Technology Engineer
As autonomous technologies rapidly evolve, institutions like Texas A&M University are pioneering research into how the technologies can be virtually verified and validated before they are deployed on real-world maritime vessels.
This special episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, was recorded at the ABS Laboratory for Ocean Innovation at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas, where the university and ABS are researching the implementation of autonomous navigation — just one of many research collaborations between the two organizations.
In this episode, Texas A&M Professor of Mechanical Engineering Siva Rathinam and ABS Senior Technology Engineer Denny Raymond joined host Brad Cox to discuss the challenges, benefits and safety concerns of autonomous systems, as well as how the ongoing research can help push the industry forward.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Sanne Henriksen, Head of IMO and EU Public and Regulatory Affairs at A.P. Moller-Maersk, Philippos Philis, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Lemissoler Group, and Stamatis Fradelos, ABS Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, join host Brad Cox, ABS, to discuss their expectations for MEPC 83 and how it could impact the maritime industry.
Sanne Henriksen, Philippos Philis and Stamatis Fradelos
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Previewing MEPC 83 With Maersk and Lemissoler
The 83rd meeting of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) is fast approaching, with potentially industry-shaking decisions set to be discussed and possibly agreed upon.
On this episode of Setting Course, an ABS Podcast, Sanne Henriksen, Head of IMO and EU Public and Regulatory Affairs at A.P. Moller-Maersk, Philippos Philis, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Lemissoler Group, and Stamatis Fradelos, ABS Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, join host Brad Cox, ABS, to discuss their expectations for MEPC 83 and how it could impact the maritime industry.
Guest Speakers
Sanne Henriksen
Head of IMO and EU Public and Regulatory Affairs,
A.P. Moller-Maersk
Philippos Philis
Founder, Chairman and CEO, Lemissoler Group
Stamatis Fradelos
Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, ABS