PROMINENT started with the State-of-Play analysis, which resulted in:
- A list of Operational Profiles and Fleet Families;
- A list of Best Available Greening Technologies and Concepts;
- An analysis of Barriers and Facilitating Factors for Innovation Uptake
By focussing on these three elements, the basis was laid for the activities in the area of Advanced Concepts for Mass Introduction, which aimed at the following concepts:
- Emission after-treatment of diesel engines;
- Energy-efficient navigation.
The activities concerning "Advance Concepts for Mass Introduction" focussed on the preparation of the pilot deployment activities as well as a preliminary assessment of the costs and benefits related to the concepts. After testing of the standardised solutions in WP5, the costs and benefits were calculated according to the outcomes of the pilot execution. Since Certification, Monitoring and Enforcement are key issues of implementing alternative energy concepts, first the state-of-the-art regarding current emission legsilation for Inland Waterway Transport was analysed. As a second step, various aspects of certification (procedures), monitoring and enforcement were analysed according to their applicability in relation to massive introduction of alternative energy concepts.
Another important factor of a sustainable transport mode is the human factor. For this reason, PROMINENT developed e-learning modules concerning vessel stability, energy-efficient navigation and dangerous cargo. In relation to the current developments concerning modernisation and harmonisation of professional qualifications in inland navigation, PROMINENT analysed the comparison of the use of inland navigation ship-handling simulators to real-life situations. Besides an e-SRB and e-Logbook was developed in close cooperation with the Joint Research Centre and tested on board 10 inland vessels. In order to stimulate the use of IWT, a dedicated community of Practice with lesson materials for bachelor logistics students was developed and extensively tested with teachers and students.
Standardised solutions for LNG have been prepared for pilot testing, including the ex-ante cost-benefit analysis for the technologies applicable. The concepts of right- sizing/hybrid concepts have been investigated as well. An assessment of certification, monitoring and enforcement options and procedures has been conducted, thereby supporting the preparation of the pilot testing. These results have been discussed with the CESNI/PT in November 2016.
Various real-life pilots on board have been executed during the project: pilots in the field of energy-efficient navigation, diesel after-treatment, and LNG monitoring.
In order to facilitate the roll-out of the technologies and concepts developed in the framework of PROMINENT, the roll-out plan including supporting tools and advises regarding policy initiatives has been developed.