Software solution provider for ship design and operation, NAPA Group, has appointed Ilmo Kuutti to the position of President. He assumes the position from Juha Heikinheimo, who successfully served as President of the group for five and a half years.
Mr Kuutti holds a master’s deg[ds_preview]ree in Naval Architecture from Helsinki University of Technology, Finland. He started his career in shipyards, where he undertook various roles throughout the 1980’s. Since joining NAPA in 1991, he has been taken on various leadership positions, most recently Executive Vice President for Design and Senior Vice President, Key Customers.
Under the new leadership of Mr Kuutti, the company is organizing its business with the aim of serving its maritime industry customers better. Effective from 1 April 2017 NAPA will be organized into three customer-facing business units; NAPA Design Solutions, NAPA Safety Solutions, and NAPA Shipping Solutions. By structuring business units around specific domain knowledge and expertise the company intends to deliver greater understanding of customers’ needs and the market, bringing it closer to its customers to deliver a more customer-focused service.
NAPA Design Solutions provides integrated 3D tools for Naval Architects and Structural Engineers for designing ships and offshore structures that support all aspects of marine engineering and design on a single 3D product model. The solutions comprise of industry standard engineering software for hull form, hydrostatics, hydrodynamics and structures in particular for the initial and basic design phases. The unit will be headed by Executive Vice President, Mr Mikko Kuosa.
Safety Solutions provides solutions to increase safety, awareness and traceability onboard vessels. Solutions include a system targeted especially for cruise liners and other advanced vessels that delivers timely decision support data in flooding emergencies. It will also include loading and stability systems for various kinds of vessels for effective and safe cargo management, and flag-state approved electronic logbook for onboard data collection, recording and replication of data to shore-based offices. Executive Vice President, Mr Esa Henttinen, will head the unit.
Shipping Solutions offers tools and services for enhanced ship data management, ship specific and fleet-wide performance analysis, and dynamic optimization of vessels’ routes, speed, and trim. The solutions provide ship owners, operators, charterers and other maritime stakeholders increased transparency in ship management, and improved technical and operational performance. The unit will be headed by Executive Vice President, Mr Naoki Mizutani.
Ilmo Kuutti commented: »We are developing a new organizational structure within NAPA centered on three business units serving these three core needs of our customers. These are needs that span the lifecycle of a vessel, and we had teams within the business with direct experience and understanding of these areas. The new structure aims to bring those experts closer to the customers, and allow us to serve and communicate with our customers on a higher-level of understanding. It will also support the development of new, more targeted offerings to tackle the issues and challenges our customers face.«
