Crew Manager's Digitalized Operations
Screening
The candidates that have applied to Elvictor, either from the branch offices or through the Seafarers' SaaS cloud or online application, pass through a screening process, which the initial stage of this screening process is purely automated to avoid the bottleneck of applications that may be irrelevant and does not worth time-consuming.
The automated procedures assisted with AI tools and APIs that we have embedded into our cloud system allow us to screen mechanically and with accuracy the documents, certificates, and the candidates’ previous sea services applied to Elvictor Group.
Having an influx of an average of over 500 new global applications that in peak seasons exceed even a thousand, from various nationalities and ranks, concerning varying open placements, it is humanly impossible to achieve a detailed human-intensive screening of every single data and detail.

Previous Sea Services Intelligence
IMO Database
For this reason, we have purchased and acquired data for developing a unique database that we call IMO Database. This database contains analytical data of all vessel particulars of about 120,000 ships. With APIs, we continuously update the IMO database to have more updated information.

On the other hand, the seafarer applicant is restricted to place vessel particulars; the only required information is the IMO Number, the sign-on date, the sign-on place/port, the sign-off date, and the sign of place/port and a reason for signing off. The ports and the reasons are pre-determined but allow for more reasons that may not be on the list.
Based on the above restrictions, and structured application, the advantages are the following:
- The seafarer cannot alter any of the vessel particulars' data; thus, the KPIs Elvictor automatically develops for officer matrix and cannot forge experience inferences.
- The application of the seafarer becomes easier and faster
- Elvictor's indexing algorithm may easily measure and match the candidate's traits and skills.
- Avoidance of conflicting previous sea services
- Profile generation of the candidate and segmentation on vessel type and experience
MOU Port State Control Databases
One of the most important databases for screening that Elvictor developed back in 2008 was the port state control database. This database is daily updated and has a collection of inspections, incidents, and detentions of vessels since 2003.
This database, in connection with the IMO database, provides information that is accumulated and when a seafarer applies and possess his previous sea services, Elvictor’s cloud system imminently detects:

- If the applicant had any detention or incident in any of his previous sea services and based on the data, this detention or incident had to do with his rank. If everything is clear imminently, the candidate passes to the "secure list of applicants/candidates of Elvictor." If the candidate had any incident or detention, the system automatically sends him to his mobile or social media a coded link to update some information and reply to some system-generated questions commonly asked and requested by Elvictor's Ship Managers. These questions and answers and additional information are communicated to the Ship Manager with full analysis and decision making.
- Easy way to measure the experience of inspections and also port experience.
- Another way to check the validity and authenticity of the candidate's port of embarkation or disembarkation.
AIS Position List Database
A more holistic approach to authenticate the candidate’s previous sea services is the third database that is daily updated through various APIs that concern the AIS data that prove the past positions of each vessel. Thus, if the applicant in the sign-on date or sign-off date declares a port that by that time the vessel was sailing or was in another port, imminently, Elvictor’s system identifies the falsified information.
Before Elvictor’s screening automated system excludes the seafarer candidate, the system sends in an email, but also SMS to his mobile and to his mobile apps and social media, a coded link with “specific fields” to update the previous sea service, informing the candidate that the system has identified mismatching information. If the applicant updates the previous sea service, he is requested simultaneously to upload from his Seaman Book the page with the IMO and the vessel’s stamp that proves the previous sea service. This information is then tackled by the officers in charge of Elvictor Group to finally identify if this previous sea service is correct or misleading.

Documents and Certificates Screening
One of the automated screening strategies we have applied here in Elvictor Group, and form one of our unique innovations and provided us a solution for the authenticity, is the documents and certificates screening solution.
This solution forms a paperless and risk-averse toolbox for authentication of the seafarers’ documents and certificates through intelligent character and objects character recognition APIs and AI APIs that provide us superior features that are fully accurate and automated.
Every applicant and candidate that either applies through our network office or the SaaS Cloud Seafarer Intranet or the online application drags and drops his scanned documentation and certification.

This drag and dropped provided documentation/certification automatically activate APIs that do the following:
- Identify the document/certificate type. Meaning is it a Passport, Visa (and what type of Visa), COC, etc.
- Recognizes the origin of this document/certificate (COC of Filipino Captain)
- Polygon of information. Identifies the fields needed on the document/certificate, like issued date, expiry date, number, etc.
- Acquires and stores the data into Elvictor's database automatically
The above process minimizes the data entry of a candidate and also of the officer in the network office of Elvictor, allowing the data to be used through Elvictor’s algorithms for authenticating the document/certificate through publicly available information provided by national and/or international organizations (COC authenticity for example).

Output Factors
Parties informed
The respected branch office(s) of Elvictor is informed
The Operations Center of Elvictor
Potential candidates are informed
Results
Simultaneously, indexing of candidates' valid and invalid documentation occurs, and the documents/certificates holders are prioritized. Due to their skills and officer matrix figures, the high indexed candidates are also prioritized, but proactively travel-readiness estimation is calculated, and to-do procedures are identified and communicated.
Advantages
The volume of such certificates and documents can run concurrently in Elvictor's cloud system, minimizing the maximum working hours needed for this volume to be processed by the servers and for the data to be converted into valuable information of proactiveness and decision making.
The advantages are that the screening of the documents and certificates with AI APIs tools does not allow any human error and makes the authenticity and validity too imminent.

Takeaways

Philosophy
The philosophy behind the original digitalized screening by having organized data that are directly related to the procedures governing Elvictor's ISO Standards and the Elvictor's Policy are based on the triptych: Time Merit Efficiency.

Proactiveness
Transforming applications into structural datasets and prior human screening, the data from previous sea services and certification are authenticated, cross-checked, validated, and confirmed from valid governmental and organizational databases, allows a holistic screening of an application. Through this holistic screening of the applicant candidate's data, there are no mistyping or human errors and no human interference in the process of validation and authentication. The potential risk of proposing a seafarer with falsified or mistyped information is minimized to an extreme level, allowing Elvictor's branch office staff to gain time and focus on more critical procedures and avoid boredom electronic bureaucracy. Finally, the speed of proposing applicants at a later stage is competitive and includes verified information and documentation on the proposal stage!

Parametic Customization
Special Ship Managers' requirements may suggest applying or alter some procedures concerning the screening of the previous sea services or the certification and documentation of each applicant. Simultaneously, controlled forms exist that Ship Managers request for these forms to be "filled in" or request specific log files for monitoring the entire process of screening, validation, and authentication. This digitalized procedure allows customizations and can be developed and amended as per Ship Manager to the most considerable feasible extent.

Best Practice
Elvictor possesses a live data streaming database that is updated daily since 2007. Elvictor has innovated in amalgamating the data and creating valuable information needed for the authentication of the new candidates' previous sea services.
A success ratio of over 90% authenticating the previous sea services allows Elvictor to quickly separate the candidates, eliminating the risk of falsified information or non-documented evidence concerning the candidates' last sea services.
The amalgamated database comprises the populated data from Elvictor's IMO's accurate vessel particulars database and vessel positions database that is informed through AIS providers integration and at last from a specially designed database updated daily for vessel detentions and inspections from the MOU websites.
Concerning the certificates and documents validation, there is a list of APIs that Elvictor has integrated into its ecosystem:
a) Deep learning and machine learning tools
b) Recognition of the certificates and documents
c) Acquiring their information and injecting it directly without human interference into the database
This automated process allows minimization and even elimination of human data entry and errors. Automatic checks, validation, and verification with public governmental databases is a fact.

Paperless Operations
The process of screening the data of any application and validating and automatic data entry of any candidate applicant certification is done thoroughly through internal exchange and cross-check of data through artificial intelligence APIs applied to Elvictor's ecosystem in-house developed robot processing automation algorithms. All the above are "injecting" the know-how of Elvictor into the system and at the same time have digitalized paper-intensive and human-intensive procedures to have accuracy and operational efficiency.

Documented Evidence
The evidence of the authentication of an applicant's previous sea services in Elvictor's seafarer employment applications (SEA) is documented on links on the IMO number of each "previous sea service" recorded that redirects the user to the AIS sites' vessel link. Simultaneously, there are links provided for the proposal's purpose to view every single scanned page of the seaman book that refers to "each specific previous sea service."
The branch office control form of candidates' seafarer employment applications (SEA) is also provided in a scanned format to prove the candidate's application and the information.
All information concerning any certification or documentation is provided in detailed analysis in Elvictor's SEA, and a link to view the scanned document for proof of possession and authenticity.