EGGS Design - Stories - Meet Espen A. Jørgensen

Since the dawn of mankind, we have wanted to master the ocean. We have fought the extreme elements, tried to control them, innovate within them and over time, we have succeeded. Today, a new tsunami of challenges and issues within tech, logistics and sustainability have emerged. Solving these problems is the key to improving our control over the seas, Espen A. Jørgensen explains.

Binding the world together

Salt water runs through his veins. Growing up on the seafront, either in the joiner's house crafting more or less useful inventions or trying them out both above and below the surface, Espen has always been attracted to the wildness and possibilities of the ocean.

The ocean is what binds the world together. The ocean industries are global, which challenges us to think of both the big picture while also focusing in detail on the many lives who depend on it. The ocean industries comprise some of the most complex systems and vessels man has created. As a result, there are an abundance of opportunities here, he explains.

Designing the maritime future

Design within the ocean space has been one of EGGS key domains of expertise since the consultancy was established, with the maritime industry as a leading subdomain.

Designers in EGGS are working with both market leaders and start-ups within the maritime sector, helping them discover, design and develop maritime hardware, software and services.

For us, it is all about embracing the complexity of the maritime industries, collaborating with domain expertise and creating products and services that contribute to solving real problems. This, in turn, creates great value for the business and society. Design methods can make technologists, business people and other professionals work together in more seamless ways, Espen says.

We aim to help our customers both prepare for and shape the maritime future. We see that combining the need for a sustainable ocean future with new technology and ways of doing business is challenging, yet an active driver for innovation. Through co-creation, design and methodical future thinking, we help our customers prepare for the changes ahead.

Espen has from the very beginning been involved in the development of Blueye Pioneer, working in close-knit teams with Bluye Robotic's specialists. This next generation underwater drone allows professional users within the maritime industry to perform their own underwater inspections on propellers and hulls, reducing risk and increasing efficiency.

New waves of challenges and opportunities

Norwegians have, since the Viking age, crossed the high seas to connect with other parts of the world. Norway is a small country, but as seafarers, we are a world leading. With a proud tradition as one of the key players in the global industry, the maritime sector is one of Norway's oldest, currently creating value for a total NOK 140 billion annually.

The challenges the industry now needs to overcome are rapidly changing. An increasing need for efficiency, sustainability, safety and adaptability are rendering old ways of doing business obsolete. At the same time, maritime companies are getting more sophisticated with an increasing number of interconnected data, technologies, value chains and people, Espen explains.

Challenges related to digitalization, logistics and sustainability issues require adaptability for meeting the future in competitive ways. The current methods of solving problems are not necessarily the ones that address the challenges of the future, Espen states.

We are in the middle of a tech-tsunami of increased digitalization and technology, making innovation and efficiency improvements possible. Often, it's the people that represent the toughest challenge to change.

The human factor

For successful technological innovation, Espen emphasizes the importance of understanding the users’ needs.

On one side, we have the opportunities that the new technology offers. On the other hand, we have people and organizations that are going to use this technology to create value. Building a bridge between the technology and the people is crucial.

Professional users in the maritime industry are handling some of the most complex technology man has created, managing operations where mistakes could lead to catastrophic consequences. This requires systems that perform well on human terms - that are intuitive, can be trusted and that we can be proud of, Espen says.

EGGS helped develop Ulstein’s new generation automation system designing a user experience to match the company’s high-performance standards.

Crafting together

In addition to using design as a craft to improve offerings, Espen accentuates the value of the design-driven innovation methods when crafting for the maritime industry.

We experience that as a strategic partner, we use design methodology to support business transformation and overcome the new ocean challenges and complexity, Espen says.

Encouraging collaboration and rapid interactions between different areas of expertise make great things happen. Together we can craft the maritime future.

Want to meet Espen? Reach him on espen.jorgensen@eggsdesign.com or call him on +47 930 02430