Ship Finder: Reaching Net-Zero Shipping Emissions by 2050

Research & Analysis

User Experience

User Interface Design

Product Design

Design System

Product Strategy

1 product designer

1 product owner

2 frontend developers

2 backend developers

My team and I were assigned the responsibility of developing a product from conceptualization to its official release. This involved formulating strategies and conducting research on the target audience, defining key performance indicators (KPIs), outlining a minimum viable product (MVP) roadmap, testing proposed features, and crafting a design system to facilitate swift iterations.

Ship Finder allows charterers to compare carbon emissions from ships in the spot market and incorporate that emissions data into their decision-making before fixing a voyage.

The shipping industry stands for 2-3% of the total CO2 emissions in the world (940 million tonnes, and oil and gas shipping is estimated to stand for 220 million tonnes). In order to reduce the overall CO2 emission in line with the International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) commitment to reduce CO2 emissions in international shipping by at least 40% by 2030, and 70% by 2050, compared to 2008, the shipping industry has to find ways to reduce the CO2 emissions emitted during their voyages.

The shipping industry is expansive, encompassing various stakeholders with diverse interests. Despite these differences, they are all subject to the same regulations set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The key players in a chartering process include ship owners, ship brokers, and charterers.

Ship owners are responsible for the vessels employed in transporting goods, holding ownership and operational control. Acting as intermediaries between ship owners and charterers, ship brokers play a crucial role. They maintain a comprehensive position list of all the ships in their portfolio, providing valuable information to facilitate transactions.

Charterers, on the other hand, are the entities that possess the goods being transported by the vessel. They wield significant influence in determining the vessel's destination and play a pivotal role in the calculation of CO2 emissions for a particular voyage.

In essence, these three groups collectively navigate the complex world of shipping, guided by the common framework established by the IMO.

Given the different user groups and their characteristics and impact on the chartering process, setting them into primary and secondary audiences is imperative. The primary audience directly impacts reducing the CO2 emissions on voyages, which happens to be the Charterer. However, the role of the ship owner and broker cannot be relegated as they also play their roles in the value chain.

We kicked off a comprehensive research process by having user interviews with each audience in the chartering process. In total, we had 10 participants across the three users sharing their experiences and insights.

While charterers understand the need for CO2 emission reduction, they are not sure how to go about it.

There is no common carbon language in the shipping industry

Brokers are not sure how they are performing compared to the market, which makes it difficult to market their CO2 performance.

Charterers do not have a ready-made tool to advise them on cutting emissions on their future voyages

Ship owners want to maximise the potential of their CO2-efficient ship

There are scenarios where the charterer and ship owner are from the same parent company but operate under different names, therefore eliminating the need for a broker.

Products transported generally have different densities and this affects how emissions are calculated.

To help charterers make carbon-informed decisions when fixing a ship, we designed Ship Finder—a tool that simplifies complex emission data and brings it into the chartering workflow. The product empowers users to compare vessels based on carbon efficiency, making emissions a transparent and actionable part of every decision.

We anchored the product around two big principles:

Make carbon data visible and useful

Don’t get in the user’s way

We focused on:

A minimal, form-based search flow to keep input fast and familiar

Instant results ranked by emissions per voyage

Interactive voyage tweaking (e.g. adjusting route, speed) to show impact in real time

To scale fast, I built a modular design system that covered components, typography, colour, and spacing. This let us iterate quickly and stay consistent as the product evolved.

Each design decision was rooted in insights from our user interviews:

Uncertainty among charterers - We made carbon rankings central to the results page, allowing charterers to instantly see which ships perform better based on CO2 output.

Lack of a common carbon language - We standardised how emissions data is presented, showing estimated CO2 per voyage in a consistent format with clear comparisons.

No visibility for brokers - A performance benchmark feature was added to help brokers understand and showcase how their ships compare to market averages.

Need for future-planning tools - Users can explore different scenarios by adjusting routes, ship speeds, and cargo types, giving them foresight into emissions before a fixture is made.

To support informed decision-making, several key data points are presented to charterers within the Ship Finder interface.

1 We presented the available ships to the charterers, with the most carbon-efficient ship topping the list. This way they could quickly eliminate whichever option was not deemed good enough.

2 The IMO also has its alignment criteria to aid the decision-making process. These indicators help charterers assess whether a vessel’s emissions for the proposed voyage fall within or exceed recommended thresholds

3 The total cost of the voyage is also shown to help with the commercial decision for the charterer. This gives charterers a fuller picture of trade-offs, as the most carbon-efficient ship may not be the most cost-effective, especially when factoring in elements like current location and projected sailing speed.

4 Given that charterers often plan multiple voyages simultaneously, we made it simple to adjust search parameters on the fly. This flexibility ensures they can compare different routes, vessels, or criteria without having to restart their search each time.

5 Lastly, we included a visual map that displays the real-time positions of available ships. Charterers can quickly identify vessels near their load port, click through for full details, and determine whether the ship aligns with both their carbon emission goals and commercial needs.

6 The vessel’s current state, typically communicated by the broker, is used to calculate the distance to the voyage’s first port. This initial leg is crucial for assessing feasibility and timing.

7 Detailed ship specifications are included to provide charterers with a clear understanding of the vessel type under consideration. These details help assess compatibility with cargo requirements and route constraints.

8 We also display the total projected carbon cost for the voyage. This cost-based framing allows charterers to weigh environmental impact against financial considerations and company policy.

9 Estimated arrival dates are also surfaced early in the process. Timeliness is a critical factor in shipping logistics, and missing an agreed arrival window can result in contractual penalties. By displaying this data upfront, we help users plan around these risks.

10 & 11 Carbon emissions are broken down by each leg of the voyage. This granular view enables charterers to pinpoint which segments of the journey contribute most to emissions and identify opportunities for improvement or route adjustments.

12 The system highlights when a voyage passes through specific canals. These routes often carry added fees, so showing this information allows charterers to explore alternative paths, such as selecting a different canal or avoiding it altogether when feasible.

13 Speed is another adjustable parameter in the interface. Because vessel speed directly impacts emissions, slower speeds typically result in lower carbon output. Users are given the ability to simulate different scenarios and observe how changes affect sustainability metrics.

By integrating these elements into a single interface, Ship Finder empowers charterers to make decisions that balance efficiency, compliance, and sustainability.

The launch of Ship Finder exceeded expectations across the board, validating both the product vision and our user-centred design approach.

We initially projected 250 free trial signups, but within weeks of launch, we had over 1,000 signups, a 4x increase that signalled strong market interest.

In just six months, 18% of free trial users converted to paid subscriptions. By the one-year mark, the conversion rate rose to 24%, reflecting continued product value and trust.

The tool has powered over 5,000 voyage emission analyses, helping charterers make decisions that balance cost and carbon performance.

As adoption grew, so did the quality of emissions data submitted by users. This improved the accuracy of future voyage estimations and contributed to a stronger, data-driven ecosystem for carbon transparency in shipping.

You can’t control complexity—only design around it - Shipping is inherently complex: multiple stakeholders, regulations, and edge cases. Instead of oversimplifying the problem, we embraced the complexity and designed an experience that made the hard stuff feel manageable. Our role wasn’t to hide the complexity, it was to make navigating it feel intuitive.

Speak the user’s language - We avoided introducing new technical jargon. By using terms that charterers and brokers were already familiar with, we reduced friction and built trust.

Design momentum follows product-market fit - Because we were solving a validated, high-priority need, the product gained traction early. That momentum made every future design iteration more impactful—users were engaged and eager to see improvements.

Launch early, iterate fast - Ship Finder didn’t launch with every feature we had imagined. But it solved the core problem from day one. Instead of delaying for perfection, we focused on delivering real value early and built iteratively from there.