Periodic Reporting for period 1 - IW-NET (Innovation driven Collaborative European Inland Waterways Transport Network)
Berichtszeitraum: 2020-05-01 bis 2021-10-31
The exploitation of Inland Waterway Transport (IWT) is regarded as an important pre-requisite to achieving the European target of reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from transportation by two-thirds to the year 2050. IWT represents an environmentally friendly proposition via (a) including public awareness and providing solutions to combine and to function favourably in comparison to rail and road transportation, (b) providing transparency and coordination with ecologically friendly transport modes, (c) unlocking the unexploited potential in the field of urban logistics, (d) managing the Infrastructure bottlenecks, such as locks, berths and fairway sections with encounter restrictions, (e) improving navigability (f) producing new vessel designs including autonomy and location awareness.
IW-NET takes a holistic perspective on the following innovation areas:
Digitalisation: optimised planning of barge operations serving dense urban areas with predictive demand routing (Brussels-Antwerp-Courtrai-Lille-Valenciennes); data-driven optimisation of navigability in uncertain water conditions (Danube).
Sustainable Infrastructure and Intelligent Traffic Management: simulation-based analysis of cost-effective traffic flow management strategies to overcome infrastructure bottlenecks; development of lockage announcement and forecasting solution; management of port stay services, and shore power (Weser/Mittelland Canal).
Innovative vessels: development of new barge designs that fit corridor conditions and target markets: barges with a high degree of automation for urban distribution (East Flanders-Ghent); capacity-optimized barges for push boats capable to cope with low/high water levels (Danube from Austria to Romania); use of GALILEO high-precision positioning services.
To ensure the wide applicability and the practical relevance of the solutions developed within the project, the IW-NET Living Lab involves application scenarios covering important TEN-T corridors to demonstrate and evaluate environmental, technological, organisational, economical, legal, and safety/security impacts of the IW-NET solutions by means of simulation and field experiments. Based on the findings, IW-NET will support European IWT roadmap development, to outline exploitation strategies, give policy recommendations and to raise awareness and capacity for competitive and sustainable IWT.
IW-NET takes a holistic perspective on the following innovation areas:
Digitalisation: optimised planning of barge operations serving dense urban areas with predictive demand routing (Brussels-Antwerp-Courtrai-Lille-Valenciennes); data-driven optimisation of navigability in uncertain water conditions (Danube).
Sustainable Infrastructure and Intelligent Traffic Management: simulation-based analysis of cost-effective traffic flow management strategies to overcome infrastructure bottlenecks; development of lockage announcement and forecasting solution; management of port stay services, and shore power (Weser/Mittelland Canal).
Innovative vessels: development of new barge designs that fit corridor conditions and target markets: barges with a high degree of automation for urban distribution (East Flanders-Ghent); capacity-optimized barges for push boats capable to cope with low/high water levels (Danube from Austria to Romania); use of GALILEO high-precision positioning services.
To ensure the wide applicability and the practical relevance of the solutions developed within the project, the IW-NET Living Lab involves application scenarios covering important TEN-T corridors to demonstrate and evaluate environmental, technological, organisational, economical, legal, and safety/security impacts of the IW-NET solutions by means of simulation and field experiments. Based on the findings, IW-NET will support European IWT roadmap development, to outline exploitation strategies, give policy recommendations and to raise awareness and capacity for competitive and sustainable IWT.
For IW-NET project (1-May-2020 to 30-April-2023), all planned deliverables for M18 have been delivered and all the important milestones have been reached:
MS1- Project Setup: Project Handbook, Living Lab Guidelines and Setup, IW-NET observatory initiation, Simulation Analysis tooling base established.
MS2-Requirements Gathering Application Scenarios: detailed requirements and implementation plan-backlog complete. Innovative Green vessels study.
MS3-IW-NET Concept Proving: Mid project reports by work packages, Technology Development and Research activities have produced initial prototypes. Each Application Scenario has a concept proving prototype ready.
• The Digitalisation of IW-NET assets development includes the configuration of a Cloud Big Data infrastructure, comprising of the baseline services for Security, Identity Management, and a private Blockchain facility with smart-contracts as required by the Synchromodal Booking applications.
• IW-NET established and IWT observatory for key IWT enablers, which is constantly updated with new content. Further, on IWT infrastructures, there has been a specification and development of an initial catalogue of RIS services and a unified API, investigating parallel initiatives in the domain (RIS COMEX).
• For vessels innovations, a taxonomy of Innovative and Green vessels has been created, linking to the SoA developments in the domain, providing a Reference model for connected vessels.
• Simulation is employed to study the impact of innovations, including the introduction of autonomous navigation scenarios, navigability in low level water conditions, environmental impact, also integrating the Revenue Management Strategies for Decision Support.
• New barges designs are in progress, so far, six different barge types were developed and are being evaluated. Costs-based scenarios are being produced, also considering the unstable situation in the steel market.
By mid-project [M18], a solid ground communication base has been established, including the IW-NET website and social media platforms. IW-NET employs several communication channels, such as participation at relevant IWT events and conferences; publication of articles and news; usage of REWWay (Research and Education in Inland Waterway Logistics) Platform and Observatory; and engagement with stakeholders via surveys and questionnaires. An initial version of the report ‘Pan-European IWT engagement Communication Plan and Activities’ was delivered.
MS1- Project Setup: Project Handbook, Living Lab Guidelines and Setup, IW-NET observatory initiation, Simulation Analysis tooling base established.
MS2-Requirements Gathering Application Scenarios: detailed requirements and implementation plan-backlog complete. Innovative Green vessels study.
MS3-IW-NET Concept Proving: Mid project reports by work packages, Technology Development and Research activities have produced initial prototypes. Each Application Scenario has a concept proving prototype ready.
• The Digitalisation of IW-NET assets development includes the configuration of a Cloud Big Data infrastructure, comprising of the baseline services for Security, Identity Management, and a private Blockchain facility with smart-contracts as required by the Synchromodal Booking applications.
• IW-NET established and IWT observatory for key IWT enablers, which is constantly updated with new content. Further, on IWT infrastructures, there has been a specification and development of an initial catalogue of RIS services and a unified API, investigating parallel initiatives in the domain (RIS COMEX).
• For vessels innovations, a taxonomy of Innovative and Green vessels has been created, linking to the SoA developments in the domain, providing a Reference model for connected vessels.
• Simulation is employed to study the impact of innovations, including the introduction of autonomous navigation scenarios, navigability in low level water conditions, environmental impact, also integrating the Revenue Management Strategies for Decision Support.
• New barges designs are in progress, so far, six different barge types were developed and are being evaluated. Costs-based scenarios are being produced, also considering the unstable situation in the steel market.
By mid-project [M18], a solid ground communication base has been established, including the IW-NET website and social media platforms. IW-NET employs several communication channels, such as participation at relevant IWT events and conferences; publication of articles and news; usage of REWWay (Research and Education in Inland Waterway Logistics) Platform and Observatory; and engagement with stakeholders via surveys and questionnaires. An initial version of the report ‘Pan-European IWT engagement Communication Plan and Activities’ was delivered.
IW-NET engages European IWT stakeholders as proactive participants in a multimodal optimization process across the EU Transport System and will feed an Innovation Driven Collaborative European IWT network of sustainable solutions. IW-NET will help demonstrate - based on the selected examples and corridors - that a 10% modal shift of cargo transportation by 2030 is possible.
IW-NET develops a wide set of modelling tools and profiled methods for analysis and strategy support. These solutions align to the ALICE strategies as regards the IWT domain, towards the implementation of efficient, interconnected, and resilient IW transportation networks, improving the GHG T&L profiles towards the 2050 zero emission vision. For all digitalisation services, solutions are using current state-of-art security options for Identity Management and Blockchain. As regards the design of shore power service applications, IW-NET pursues innovative and patent-worthy solutions for shore power systems, involving the introduction of innovative processes and business models.
The impact of the project will be maximised by the development of a Pan-European IWT engagement communication strategy, including communication, capacity-building and activities that will bring greater visibility to the project and allow its outputs to be leveraged by identified target audiences. Specifically, IW-NET will:
• Help decongest road and city infrastructures improving the IWT share.
• Help reduce the CO2 and air pollutant emissions of Intra-European freight transport, specifically for urban areas, reducing the GHG emissions, improving the capacity and resources utilisation and the overall volume/barge-km delivery, introducing eco-friendly barges solutions, providing synchromodality based IWT planning and execution management, and full awareness with novel IoT sensor solutions for IWT.
• Enhance the performance of IWT infrastructures with better interaction and delivery of IW infrastructure services, including the provision of RIS and shore power.
• Improve the freight delivery and flows between IW ports creating simulation scenarios and demos for the planning and operations of terminals.
• Modernise and increase reliability and competitiveness of Intra-European Waterborne transport, with synchromodal booking, data driven operations and new barge designs, of improved navigability, autonomous navigation, and urban services deployment suitability/performance.
IW-NET develops a wide set of modelling tools and profiled methods for analysis and strategy support. These solutions align to the ALICE strategies as regards the IWT domain, towards the implementation of efficient, interconnected, and resilient IW transportation networks, improving the GHG T&L profiles towards the 2050 zero emission vision. For all digitalisation services, solutions are using current state-of-art security options for Identity Management and Blockchain. As regards the design of shore power service applications, IW-NET pursues innovative and patent-worthy solutions for shore power systems, involving the introduction of innovative processes and business models.
The impact of the project will be maximised by the development of a Pan-European IWT engagement communication strategy, including communication, capacity-building and activities that will bring greater visibility to the project and allow its outputs to be leveraged by identified target audiences. Specifically, IW-NET will:
• Help decongest road and city infrastructures improving the IWT share.
• Help reduce the CO2 and air pollutant emissions of Intra-European freight transport, specifically for urban areas, reducing the GHG emissions, improving the capacity and resources utilisation and the overall volume/barge-km delivery, introducing eco-friendly barges solutions, providing synchromodality based IWT planning and execution management, and full awareness with novel IoT sensor solutions for IWT.
• Enhance the performance of IWT infrastructures with better interaction and delivery of IW infrastructure services, including the provision of RIS and shore power.
• Improve the freight delivery and flows between IW ports creating simulation scenarios and demos for the planning and operations of terminals.
• Modernise and increase reliability and competitiveness of Intra-European Waterborne transport, with synchromodal booking, data driven operations and new barge designs, of improved navigability, autonomous navigation, and urban services deployment suitability/performance.