Wärtsilä
Client's Requirements
Wärtsilä is a global leader in technologies and lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy industries, with vessel traffic systems delivered to hundreds of ports across more than 50 countries. When they set out to launch the next generation of their Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS), they needed a partner who could support them with their new complex maritime software.
We were brought in to lead UX/UI design for the new product, but the engagement grew well beyond the interface. Over more than eight months, we also supported Wärtsilä with other marketing strategies connected with their Go-to-Market Strategy to launch the product.
The Challenge
In a VTS (Vessel Traffic Service) centre, operators are responsible for keeping a port or coastal area safe and moving, tracking vessels, assigning safe routes and berths, watching for risk, and coordinating with multiple stakeholders, often all at once.
The difficulty isn’t a lack of information. It’s the opposite. Operators are surrounded by data flowing in from radar, AIS, CCTV, weather stations and more, while juggling several systems in parallel. The cognitive load is enormous, and the cost of missing something is high.
Our brief was clear: help operators focus on what matters most, without adding to the noise. The new product needed to surface the right information at the right moment, make it easy to find and analyse, and support operators as they multitask, rather than competing for their attention.
UX/UI Design Support
We started by understanding the people behind the screens, not just the software in front of them.
We mapped the real experience. Through user research, we built user personas and journey maps that reflected how VTS operators actually work, where attention is stretched, where systems get in the way, and where small frictions add up to real risk over a long shift. This gave us, and Wärtsilä, a shared, evidence-based picture of the problems worth solving.
We designed around focus and clarity. With the pain points identified, we moved into designing features that directly addressed the core challenges of the VTS environment: prioritising critical information, reducing visual and cognitive overload, and keeping key data easy to read and act on while operators move between tasks and systems.
We designed for the way operators think. Every interface decision was weighed against a simple question, does this help the operator or VTS managers make a faster, safer, more confident decision? The result is a product experience built to support situational awareness, not overwhelm it.
Marketing Support
A strong product still needs a strong launch. Alongside the design work, we are supporting Wärtsilä bring the new VTMS to market.
We are working with their team on a Go-to-Market strategy and helping them to execute it, designing marketing materials for both online and in-person use. That included assets for industry conferences and physical presentations, where Wärtsilä meets port authorities and decision-makers face to face, as well as social media content designed to build engagement and interest organically.
The goal throughout was consistency: a single, credible story about the new product, told clearly across every touchpoint from the trade-show floor to the LinkedIn feed.
More telling than the numbers was who was reaching out, and why. The post generated genuine inbound interest from senior decision-makers, heads of maritime operations, marine officers at major port operators such as DP World, and VTS project managers, many asking directly for more detail or a demo. That’s the clearest signal a launch can give: not just awareness, but qualified demand created organically, without paid push.
The insight underneath it all is one that shaped the whole project. In a category defined by dense, technical software, leading with people, clarity, focus, and the operator’s real experience, is what cut through. A human-centred design story didn’t just make the product easier to use; it made it easier to sell.
We continue to work with Wärtsilä on Navi-Harbour X, supporting the product and its go-to-market as it evolves, an ongoing partnership we’re proud to be part of.