From deck to desk: What maritime CFOs need from their data

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Shipping is unpredictable. Budgets shouldn’t be.

And yet, for too many maritime CFOs, financial planning still relies on fragmented data, delayed updates, and retrospective analysis - long after the opportunities to act have passed.

 

The result? Budget overruns, missed forecasts, and a constant battle to explain the unplanned.

But the tools - and the data - already exist to change that.

 

Real-time data, real-world impact

Modern shipping operations generate thousands of data points every day - from fuel spend and voyage performance to maintenance costs, crewing expenses, and commercial contracts.

That data holds the answers to your biggest questions:

• Are we staying within our OpEx targets?
• Where can we reduce dry dock costs or extend service intervals?
• What’s our forecasted spend per vessel this quarter?

The problem isn’t a lack of data. It’s that finance teams often don’t have direct access to it - or the means to translate it into real-time financial insight.

 

From legacy systems to live forecasts

Historically, financial reporting in shipping has been built on delays: quarterly downloads, emailed spreadsheets, and cross-departmental guesswork.

But in today’s environment - where fuel prices spike overnight and regulatory fines can blow up a budget - you need data that’s fast, mobile, and clear.

 

With Shipnet and Helix, maritime CFOs can:

• Access real-time financial data from anywhere
• Track cost centres by vessel, route, or department
• Instantly generate reports and dashboards
• Build forecasts using live operational data
• Validate spend against historical and peer benchmarks

All from a mobile device. All in real time.

Interested in finding out more? Get in touch

 

See the whole picture (and the hidden costs)

Helix turns your operational data into usable business insight. By sitting at the core of your Shipnet systems, it pulls together your commercial, technical, crewing and maintenance data into a single financial view.

That means you’re no longer relying on the vessel team to export reports—or reconciling three systems just to find out why a fuel bill jumped by 20%.

It also means no more nasty surprises at month end.

• Spot budget drift before it happens
• Model the financial impact of a delay or contract change
• Review performance trends across your fleet or business unit

It’s the difference between reacting and leading.

 

Why CFOs are driving the shift

Finance leaders across the industry are pushing for more visibility - not just for compliance, but to drive better business decisions.

They want to know: where are we losing money? Where are we missing opportunity?

And the answers aren’t on a spreadsheet - they’re buried in your data.

Helix and Shipnet bring them to the surface, with the tools and insights to act - today, not next quarter.

 

It’s time to modernise maritime finance

No more silos. No more delays.

Just powerful financial insight, straight from your operations.

 

Want to find out more? Just get in touch here

 

Danny James

Product Marketing Manager