by John Faraclas
I must admit that I have participated in numerous technical committee gatherings hosted by various maritime institutions and classification societies over time. However, I must acknowledge that the recent one, held last evening at the impressive Spyros Loverdos Foundation Library Fondazione, a listed 18th century building – a unique historical, architectural, cultural landmark in Kifissia, Athens by the great Philhellene Ernst Ziller, stood out as truly exceptional.
While organizing a successful corporate event doesn’t necessarily require a Ph.D., Dr. Chris Leontopoulos from ABS unquestionably possesses a remarkable ability to attune to the pulse of engineers. The session was described as succinct yet comprehensive, striking a perfect balance between deep technical insights and high-level discussions that were both theoretical and practical. ABS’s personnel were on hand, promptly addressing the most intricate regulatory inquiries posed by the discerning attendees: 30 engineering managers and directors from leading Greek shipping firms.
The agenda featured discussions on the latest ABS technologies, regulatory developments by ABS’s Regulatory Affairs VP, Stamatis Fradelos, cutting-edge simulation practices including ABS’s Wavesight Product Lifecycle Management platform by ABS VP Mrs Jennifer Trageser, immersive augmented reality by Demetres Armanes, as well as a captivating “alternative future fuels review” from the charterers’ perspective by Technava’s, Faidon Tomazos.
Veteran ABS surveyor, Leonidas Noulas (pictured above) described his experiences by spotlighting ship damages in a live interaction with the attendees.
The real-time electronic technical poll complemented the interactive nature of the Committee meeting, yielding truly fascinating results. Who said that technical committee discussions had to be dull?
During the meeting there were a number of important ABS attendees, who with I had the opportunity to talk with. Amongst others I had the opportunity to discuss with the ABS chief executive officer and president John Mcdonald – introduced to me by senior vice president Vassilios Kroustallis, Elias Kariambas, Vice President Business Development as well as well ABS’s Corporate Chief Engineer Machinery Angelo Tsevdos, my Chian compatriot.
The early evening dinner was excellent with good food and exceptional inspiring wine – the white one was mostly chosen by the majority of delegates and ABS’ hosts, leading to interesting and stimulating discussions.
In light of such engaging content and immersive experiences, what more could one possibly desire from a Classification Society’s technical committee gathering?
