Efficiency is key to commercial and environmental performance in shipping, in this episode we discuss efficiency as an ethos and the technologies that enable more efficient tanker operations. With SMM 2024 and its environmental conference gmec just around the corner, Seatrade Maritime’s Gary Howard spoke to Ardmore Shipping technical manager Suraj Batra about the importance of operational efficiency in the Ardmore fleet, and some of the technologies the company has trialled and adopted in its pursuit of optimisation. Tune in to hear Ardmore’s transition plan as the company prepares for the retirement of CEO Anthony Gurnee, and Batra’s thoughts on the most impactful efficiency strategies employed across the company’s product tanker fleet. The episode previews a topic at gmec 2024, where Batra joins a panel session on decarbonisation through fleet efficiency alongside Harriet Hunnisett-Johnson, head of maritime at Signol, Yarden Gross, CEO & co-founder at Orca AI, and Cristina Aleixendri, COO & co-founder at bound4blue, moderated by Thetius founder Nick Chubb. The conversation on the day will combine the expertise of the wider panel to cover AI technology in operational efficiency, wind assisted propulsion, and the role of organisational and behavioural change in bringing about decarbonisation. Claus Ulrich Selbach, Business Unit Director Maritime and Technology Fairs at SMM organiser Hamburg Messe und Congress also joins the episode to give an update on the gmec 2024 programme. Uli shares new innovations on the show floor at SMM this year such as the AI center, start-ups@SMM, and the future fuels area, and the show’s own environmental efforts such as removing carpets and embracing public transport. SMM takes place in Hamburg from September 3-6, 2024, with its flagship environmental conference gmec on September 4. Open to all ticket holders, gmec will be located on the Green Stage in hall A4.