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MarineNews spoke with Karen Hughey, President and COO of ABS Nautical Systems, about the market for fleet manage- ment software. Prior to joining ABS Nautical Systems, Hughey served as Vice President of Application Development for ABS. How did you get involved in the maritime industry? I had worked in IT management across multiple indus- tries when I decided to join ABS’ innovative IT depart- ment. I was never truly inspired by any one industry until I became involved in this industry — a truly dynamic field. Since 1997, I have been with ABS — and now ABS Nautical Systems. One factor in my decision to join ABS was the company’s history and proven stability. It has been around for nearly 150 years. What is the outlook for your market? Our market outlook is currently very strong. ABS Nautical Systems has a well-balanced client base within the main four maritime sectors: marine, government, off- shore and energy and work boat. We’ve grown tremen- dously and are continuing to open new offices globally and expand our client base with some of the top compa- nies in these sectors. Part of our growth is due to our new offerings within the NS5 software suite and part is a result of timing. When the maritime industry was at its peak, vessel owners didn’t have the time or capacity to implement a fleet manage- ment system. As a result of these economic conditions, this is the perfect time for many vessel owners to optimize their overall business processes, which includes imple- menting systems like NS5 or the Newbuild Program. The time and bandwidth is available within their organiza- tions, and fortunately minimal upfront investment is required for implementation. How is your company investing for the future? A significant portion of our revenues are reinvested back into customer-driven research and product development. We’re consistently enhancing our software suite and put- ting more stability into it. This spring we will introduce INSIGHTS 10 MN March 2011 Photo courtesy ABS Nautical Systems President & COO, ABS Nautical Systems Karen Hughey Photo courtesy ABS Nautical Systems ABS Nautical Systems client Hornbeck Offshore Services has implemented the NS5 software suite for its fleet management.
