Aimed to insure a wider involvement and participation of Maritime End-Users in the EC RTD Framework Programmes, specially maritime SMEs for wider and adaptive services, based on understanding and sharing strategies, E-MAR will contribute to Stimulate the activity of Maritime players towards e-work and e-commerce and to sustain European maritime business towards the new skill base SMEs need to maximise profitability and employment.

E-mar will evaluate medium and long term market needs with respect to:
a) The type and volume of products and services within the currently addressed areas of the Maritime Transport Chain; investigate for areas relevant to the e-commerce and e-work but not yet addressed by the maritime industry RTD projects;
b) the required Information Technological knowledge and ability by the industry to provide the market with the required products and services in sufficient quantities and at competitive prices. The added value of this TN is contained in the fact that it treats technology in relation with market and society needs from a medium and long term prospect hereby enhancing the technological coherence and synergy between the various areas of interest within the Maritime Industry: the Maritime Transport Chain and the Marine Resources.

Objectives:
E-MAR key objectives can be summed up as:- To identify gaps or shortcomings and to permit maritime SMEs to jointly identify needs for enhancing the competitiveness of the European Maritime Industry by using appropriate e-work and e-business; - To provide the basic ground for enhancing the understanding of innovation and by the promoting the IST programme with special reference to e-work and e-business Maritime Applications;- To generate a higher level of awareness at bottom and top level, which includes The Maritime Industries Forum, the Supporting Group of the Maritime Regions, and the Maritime City Networks.

Work description:
E-MAR work is basically within the following activities: Supporting Group (SG); Technical Secretariat (TN); SG plenary meetings; Local workshop-events (E-MAR DAY).

workpackages: The work will be developed at three levels.
Level 1: Dissemination of state of the art and Best Practices based on EC RTD success stories for e-work and e-commerce.
Level 2: Collecting the end-users requirements for e-work and stimulating their awareness and preparedness to innovate their business process and re-engineering the way of working for competing in global markets.
Level 3: Supporting ongoing RTD projects in maritime or related e-work by providing overall end-user assessment of likely results and applications.

Milestones:
The following Thematic Network results will be achieved:- Networking of Maritime Regional Interests of Excellence, bringing together maritime industry SMEs with a common objective to improve e-work environment and technology for new and improved methods of work;
- Interaction with Member States, Maritime Industry Forum, Maritime Regions and the Maritime City Networks, for sharing requirements, priorities and knowledge on e-work and e-commerce;
- Dissemination and awareness actions at both bottom and top level within Europe. E-MAR will outline the direction and common industrial needs for future development and application of more effective Maritime e-work, for maintaining industrial competitiveness and improving social benefits:
M1: Identification of actors and end-users requirements;
M2: Likely solutions for implementation in the Maritime industry;
M3: Analysis of priorities and actions for the Maritime Industry.