Maximising operational availability with fleet management and monitoring

Digital fleet management at the core of maritime performance

MacGregor enables sustainable global maritime and offshore operations by maximising efficiency in cargo and load handling. With decades of experience and a strong portfolio of technologies and services, MacGregor solutions are designed to perform with the sea, helping customers enhance safety, reduce environmental impact and optimise operational efficiency.

A key element of this portfolio is OnWatch Scout, a digital platform that connects vessel subsystems, controls and automation to shoreside monitoring and analytics. By increasing the flow of operational data from ship to shore, the platform supports a shift from reactive troubleshooting to proactive support and helps shipowners and operators maximise the availability of critical equipment and reduce unplanned downtime.

As digital services became increasingly critical to customers’ daily operations, MacGregor wanted to accelerate development and strengthen the reliability of its growing application landscape. To support the continued evolution of OnWatch Scout, MacGregor partnered with Solita as a long-term development and operations partner.

“Digital services are essential in helping our customers maximise equipment availability and operational performance. Working together as an integrated team, we’ve not only enhanced OnWatch Scout but also elevated our entire approach to digital application development”, says Tim Bischoff, Digital Product Manager at MacGregor.

Turning vessel data into operational insight

Modern vessels generate vast amounts of operational data. The value lies in turning that data into actionable insight that improves reliability, safety and lifecycle performance.

OnWatch Scout integrates McGregor’s on-deck systems and enables condition monitoring, insightful analytics and structured maintenance planning. It also supports fleet-level management, vessel configuration management and remote software updates, making it easier to manage systems consistently across multiple vessels.

By providing a shared, data-driven view of equipment status and performance for both onboard crews and shoreside teams, the platform improves transparency and decision-making across fleets.

For MacGregor, these capabilities are a core part of the company’s value proposition: helping customers reduce unplanned downtime and improve the performance of critical assets. 

A multidisciplinary team to accelerate development

Solita provided a multidisciplinary team working as an integrated part of MacGregor’s organisation. The team designs, builds and operates data-intensive applications that utilise vessel data to support maintenance planning and predictive capabilities.

In addition to OnWatch Scout, the team maintains and develops also other McGregor applications and solutions like

• MyMacGregor: Customer portal with centralised contract lifecycle and access management
• Vessel Map: Global vessel tracking and service planning tool for sales and operations
• Data Lake: Operational data platform integrating internal and external sources
• Supplier Portal: Order management and invoicing platform for MacGregor’s supplier network

During the collaboration, OnWatch Scout has expanded with enhanced fleet management and configuration management features, as well as improved software update functionality. At the same time, we have together introduced a new way of working, modern DevOps practices and observability, and strengthened development processes while respecting the safety-critical nature of maritime operations.

“With Solita’s support, we have accelerated development and strengthened our DevOps practices across the OnWatch Scout platform”, says Toni Uskola, Director, Technology & Enterprise Architecture at MacGregor.

From reactive maintenance to proactive operations

By combining continuous condition monitoring with extensive analytics, OnWatch Scout enables earlier identification of potential issues and more proactive maintenance planning. Enhanced fleet visibility and maintenance action & replacement part recommendations provide shipowners and operators with better control over equipment health across vessels.

These capabilities support more effective maintenance planning, reduce unexpected downtime and help secure the operational availability and earning potential of valuable ship assets. 

Accelerated development and stronger DevOps capabilities

The collaboration has accelerated the development of OnWatch Scout and strengthened operational practices across MacGregor’s digital solutions. With improved DevOps capabilities and continuous delivery, the organisation can respond more quickly to changing requirements. Enhanced condition monitoring and predictive capabilities support the overarching goal: maximising equipment availability across fleets.

“In data-intensive industrial environments, availability is everything. Our role has been to combine analytics and modern DevOps practices to support MacGregor’s digital growth and ensure reliable fleet-wide operations”, says Marko Suojasto, Account Executive at Solita

As Onwatch Scout continues to evolve, the joint team can introduce new digital services and improvements on top of a robust, data-driven platform, supporting MacGregor’s mission to maximise operational availability for its maritime customers.

Technologies

AWS IoT, Serverless on AWS, DevOps on AWS, QuestDB, Typescript, React

About MacGregor