Japanese shipbuilding has long been recognized for the production and on-time delivery of high-quality, innovative ships. Japanese shipyards will continue to remain competitive in an ideal future because of these strengths. However, shipbuilding in Japan faces several internal and external challenges that put this future at risk: a generation of highly skilled experts retiring from the workforce, a reliance on institutional knowledge, increased global competition, and growing demand for more innovative ship types.
At the same time, many shipbuilders have yet to fully advance their digital transformation (DX) initiatives or take advantage of the process enhancements that modern digital technologies can support — further increasing the risk of falling behind.
This paper defines digital transformation in shipbuilding and examines how Japanese shipbuilders can accelerate DX within their organizations to stay globally competitive over the long term and overcome industry-wide risks. By highlighting transformation case studies from the Japanese public sector during COVID-19 and contrasting the varied DX approaches of shipbuilders, this paper provides a practical framework to help the industry avoid the digital cliff.
Read the whitepaper to learn how Japanese shipbuilders can accelerate digital transformation and DX adoption within their organizations.