Martin Penney to lead LR’s digital solutions platform

Martin Penney will succeed Martin Taylor as the next chief executive officer of LR OneOcean, following Taylor’s decision to retire in May. Penney, previously CEO of marine software provider SpecTec, joined Lloyd’s Register on 19 February. He brings over 25 years’ experience in digital solutions, across aviation, maritime, logistics and supply chains.

Penney’s engineering background has led to an extensive global career working in executive commercial roles with Eniram, BMT and Marorka. During his more than five years at SpecTec, Penney drove the modernisation of the company’s flagship software products, resulting in its significant growth.

Nick Brown, LR CEO said: “LR is delighted to welcome Martin Penney to the team as LR OneOcean embarks on the next stage of its growth, supporting maritime stakeholders as they navigate digital transformation and the energy transition. Succeeding Martin Taylor, who has been instrumental to the rapid progress of LR OneOcean, we are confident that his extensive industry experience will contribute to LR OneOcean’s ongoing success.”

Martin Penney, LR OneOcean CEO said: “Maritime is an incredibly exciting industry to be part of right now as it works towards net-zero emissions and digitally enabled operations. LR OneOcean is at the centre of the transition, helping shipping companies to streamline their operations and make impactful decisions. I am delighted to join the team and support LR OneOcean and our clients on the next stage of the journey.”

LR acquired OneOcean in June 2022 and its digital solution platform, which provides real-time navigation, performance and compliance insight, is currently used on over 22,000 ships.

Taylor started OneOcean in 2010 as a company of less than 100 people distributing paper charts and has transformed it into one of the leading maritime software platforms with almost 500 colleagues.