Achieving innovation at scale is one of the main long-term goals of RINA. To attain this objective, RINA has established its AI Factory: an innovation lab composed of cross-business teams of professionals whose aim is digital transformation through both the optimization of services and processes, and the creation of new digital solutions using artificial intelligence .

RINA’s AI Factory is not just a technological development center but a true innovation lab: here, new technologies and digital solutions are explored, tested, and validated through pilot projects that demonstrate their feasibility and added value for the market. RINA’s AI Factory is working in parallel at two different levels. We are: 

• Developing new digital-enabled services to meet customers’ needs, and/or leveraging AI technologies to develop services with features that were previously not feasible
• Upgrading RINA’s existing digital-enabled services to embed the very latest developments in digital and AI technology in order to be more effective, user friendly, and interconnected with the rest of RINA’s service portfolio. 

The AI Factory is designed as an integrated structure able to follow the entire digital life cycle of a product - from the features definition, to the customer support throughout the software development, and the first product commercialization. This allows speed in the decision-making process, fast execution and quick deployment on the market.

New technologies and digital solutions are explored, tested, and validated through pilot projects that demonstrate their feasibility and added value for the market.  

RINA’s AI Factory is composed of two main bodies working in collaboration: the business/business model experts, and the software architects/specialists. This enables the factory to not just identify AI technologies but also their potential application, and therefore how to translate a market need to a smart digital solution in the most effective way.

RINA has ambitious growth plans for the AI Factory. We are working to ramp up its operations, applying internal and external resources, C-level involvement and significant funds.

This commitment has attracted high level talent from the market, from those seeking to work in an international environment.

The AI Factory represents an accelerator in RINA’s digital transformation and a strategic resource for building cutting-edge services, streamlining internal processes, and offering increasingly customized and innovative solutions to the market.

With this structure, RINA positions itself among the leading operators of the digital revolution, providing skills and technologies that meet future challenges and support clients in their growth and evolution.

RINA’s AI Factory allows us to consolidate our role as a trusted technological partner, capable of offering digital services in line with the new sustainability, efficiency, and competitiveness requirements.  

Construction projects are inherently complex, and managing such projects involves navigating a myriad of risks. Approximately 60% of construction projects face budget overruns and delays, highlighting the challenges involved in successful project completion.

Furthermore, more than 80% of delays and cost overruns in construction projects are linked to issues of poor coordination, risk underestimation, and poor process visibility.

Among the various phases of a project, activity at the construction site is one of the most risky and impactful. Not only are logistics and performance issues extremely challenging, construction sites are inherently dangerous, with a range of hazards that can cause serious problems. Understanding these risks can help construction managers create safer worksites, and better protect their teams from risk and environmental challenges.

Digitalization and innovation can support the optimal management of the worksite, both in improving worker safety and reducing the risk of incident, and in the tracking of tasks and activities. The latter can help minimize work interruptions and delays by monitoring the working environment, saving time over the life of the project and workers’ well-being during construction activities.

At the forefront of these developments, RINA has developed a unique software platform that seamlessly integrates advanced IoT technologies with our expertise in Health, Safety and Worksite management.

Known as the RINA Digital Construction Worksite tool, it delivers real-time monitoring and decision-support across multiple workstreams to enhance safety, efficiency, and compliance of worksite activities.   

Equipped with sensors, cameras, monitoring units, RFID codes, and other innovative features, the tool facilitates the real-time collection and transmission of environmental, material, and equipment data to a centralized platform, and makes use of AI algorithms and machine learning techniques to compare monitoring results.

The platform has been successfully deployed in several pilot schemes across Europe, including in Trento, Italy, and Zaragoza and La Garriga in Spain.

Multiple different functionalities have been tested, including monitoring worksite environmental conditions like heat and air quality, triggering automatic alerts in case of heatwaves periods, and providing anti-collision solutions during crane-human interaction, with sensors sending alerts if a worker comes too close while the crane is operating, and warning the crane operator in time to react and avoid a potential accident.

Going forward, BIM-based (Building Information Modeling) functionalities will be enabled, starting with the use of Scan-to-BIM solutions, which aims to deploy a digital twin of the construction site so the user can simulate work zones, access points, and phases of interventions before launching on-site.

The platform enables site teams to stay safer, manage risk better, and keep things running smoothly, all while delivering the right data at the right time. 

Parabolic flights are aerial maneuvers performed by specially equipped aircraft to simulate microgravity. These flights follow a parabolic trajectory: the aircraft ascends rapidly, reduces thrust to enter a free-fall phase, and creates a brief period of microgravity. This method is essential for space research and astronaut training, allowing scientists to conduct experiments, and enabling astronauts to experience weightlessness.

During the free-fall phase, parabolic flights allow scientists to study phenomena altered by Earth’s gravitational force. They are used for human physiology studies, particularly the effects of microgravity on astronaut health, space medicine, and plant growth in space. These flights also enable experiments in plasma physics, chemistry without gravity, and studying gases and aerosols in microgravity.

QBT Sagl, a subsidiary of RINA Prime Value Services, offers parabolic flights using general aviation aircraft like the Cessna 182, Cessna 172, and Piper PA28. Each flight includes four parabolas, totaling eight parabolas daily. These flights can achieve reduced gravity (below 0.5g), microgravity (below 0.15g), lunar gravity (0.16g), and Martian gravity (0.38g), allowing for the simulation of environments for long-duration space missions.

A key feature of QBT’s flights is the ability to conduct experiments in a controlled environment. Experiments are housed in a dedicated rack developed with Politecnico di Milano, offering 1.4 m³ of space. Advanced telemetry developed with SUPSI in Lugano enables real-time monitoring and adjustments, even from a remote control station.

QBT prioritizes safety, ensuring compliance with international regulations. All passengers require a medical certificate confirming their physical fitness to endure microgravity. The company provides comprehensive support throughout the mission, including mission planning, operational details, and detailed technical documentation post-mission.  

Regulations and costs management are two elements that still need to be addressed. The IMO Maritime Safety Committee during its 110th session agreed to consider a proposed revision of the IMO’s Code of Safety for Nuclear Merchant Ships, with further cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other IMO bodies. Meanwhile, RINA already in 2023 published the Guide for Nuclear Installation on Board of Marine Units.

Nuclear energy and propulsion have many potential benefits to bring to the yachting industry, while emitting zero carbon.

First, it offers an extension of the yacht operational range, thanks to the extremely high energy density of nuclear fuel. This means yachts could cruise non-stop across oceans or even undertake transcontinental voyages, opening up a new world of possibilities for exploration even in remote regions.

Onboard comfort would also be enhanced by the minimization of noise and vibration, as nuclear reactors operate more quietly than diesel engines.

Ongoing tests are steadily bringing this powerful energy source closer to the commercial yacht world, in what promises to be a genuine alternative to traditional fuels.