From concept to practicality: Unmanned vessel research in China

Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) have received increasing attention from industrial practitioners, researchers, and policymakers because of industry 4.0 and the digitization of the maritime industry. Crucial questions related to security, safety of personnel and vessels, and socio-economic domains have been addressed to a certain extent. In recent years, China has arisen as one of the leading maritime players worldwide, and unmanned vessels could remarkably influence the Chinese maritime industry. However, there is still a lack of systematic studies aiming to develop a deep understanding of potential advantages and challenges associated with the deployment of unmanned vessels in China. Therefore, using a mixed-method research design, this study attempts to obtain valuable insights based on the viewpoints of the key Chinese stakeholders concerning unmanned vessels, including the benefits, the restrictions, the obstacles to large-scale implementation, the risks, and how to mitigate possible implementation barriers. The main advantage of deploying unmanned ships was found to be the reduction in the ship crew size or complete elimination of the ship crew, which would reduce the operating costs and eliminate human errors on board the ships. Nevertheless, along with important advantages, a number of challenges associated with the development and deployment of unmanned ships were identified, including technological challenges, regulatory challenges, safety and security challenges, and technology investment challenges. All these challenges have to be adequately addressed by the relevant stakeholders to ensure the successful deployment of unmanned ships around the globe in the following years.