thyssenkrupp and Wilhelmsen have founded a joint venture called “Pelagus 3D”, which will in future offer spare parts for shipping worldwide via a digital platform. The new company uses modern additive manufacturing technology and a global partner network to produce and deliver spare parts more time- and cost-efficiently. In this way, customers should be able to ensure the seaworthiness of their ships and maintain their operations as planned. Pelagus 3D thus addresses the challenge of high transport and storage costs as well as the longer duration of conventional manufacturing processes in the maritime sector.
Own expertise
On the one hand, thyssenkrupp brings to the joint venture its technological know-how in the field of additive manufacturing as well as the skills from its own tech centers in Singapore and Germany. thyssenkrupp Materials Services, the materials trading and services segment of thyssenkrupp, also contributes in-depth experience in the development of digital supply chain solutions and platforms. For example, the experts developed the platform used for Pelagus 3D. Global shipping group Wilhelmsen, in turn, brings its deep maritime expertise and direct experience with the needs of ship fleet managers, supporting the delivery of a broad portfolio of maritime products and services for a variety of vessels.
“The global economy depends on resilient and flexible supply chains. The dynamic market environment has shown us this again and again since Corona at the latest. In our partnership with Wilhelmsen, we are showing how we can maintain the operation of ships and secure the flow of goods in shipping, which is so important for international trade,” explains Ilse Henne, Chief Transformation Officer of thyssenkrupp Materials Services.
Global partner network
The digital platform developed by thyssenkrupp Materials Services will be the heart of Pelagus 3D. It serves as a connection between customers as well as ship managers and OEMs. Through this platform, the joint venture has access to a global partner network with various manufacturing technologies, especially printing technologies. This allows the company to respond to requests to print any material. Production also takes place locally where the spare part is needed, so that long transport routes can be avoided.
“Through our collaboration with thyssenkrupp, we are able to bring Pelagus 3D to market and solve a fundamental and evolutionary logistics problem. Wilhelmsen is not only pleased about the introduction of Pelagus 3D, but as a designer of the maritime industry, is also proud to finally be able to offer this service to the global merchant fleet,” says André Engen, President of Wilhelmsen Ships Service.
Pelagus 3D will be headquartered in Singapore. The management consists of Ken Lip Ong, Head of TechCenter Additive Manufacturing at thyssenkrupp in Singapore, as CEO, and Håkon Ellekjær, Head of Ventures for 3D Printing at Wilhelmsen, as CCO. The supervisory board includes Cetin Nazikkol, Chief Transformation Officer and CEO of the Asia Pacific Africa region at thyssenkrupp AG, Dr. Sebastian Smerat, Head of Customer Innovation at thyssenkrupp Materials Services, as well as Kjell André Engen, President of Wilhelmsen Ship Services, and Nakhul Malhotra, Vice President Emerging Opportunities Portfolio at Wilhemsen.
Inherent part
Pelagus 3D will be part of the innovation portfolio of thyssenkrupp Materials Services. As one of the world's leading companies in the global materials trading and services sector, thyssenkrupp Materials Services consistently relies on new digital business models in order to grow as part of its “Materials as a Service” strategy.
“We want to use innovations strategically to digitize offers and supply chains, make them transparent and thus enable new forms of value creation,” explains Dr. Sebastian Smerat.
In addition to the 50% stake in Pelagus 3D, the portfolio includes other corporate ventures such as “pacemaker”, an AI-based forecasting solution, or “toii”, an IIoT solution for optimizing production processes.
