Study Guide

Learning outcomes

The student is able to
- plan, implement and evaluate a Service Design project with service design methods
- develop sustainable practices in organisations

Teaching methods

The project is completed in cooperation with a working life partner in a P2P learning environment. Working life partner is Wärtsilä Oyj.

Service Design for NextGen Vessel Traffic Service (VTS)

Project Description:
In this project, a team of BBA students from Laurea University will collaborate with Wärtsilä to develop a new, modern Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) system, tailored to meet the evolving demands of contemporary ports. This project is at the forefront of integrating advanced decision support tools and AI-driven technologies into VTS operations.

Key Project Activities:

Collaboration with Wärtsilä: Work closely with Wärtsilä to understand their vision and requirements for the NextGen VTS system.
Focus Group Studies: Conduct in-depth studies with selected focus groups, such as port personnel, to gather insights on current VTS usage and expectations.
User Interface and Tool Development: Examine the new user interface and tools being developed by Wärtsilä, assessing their practicality and effectiveness in supporting VTS operators.

Practical Application Analysis: Explore how these new tools and interfaces will function in real-world scenarios, aiding the day-to-day activities of VTS operators.

Expected Outcomes:
The project will culminate in a comprehensive study report detailing how the focus groups would utilize the VTS system and their future expectations from such systems. The report will provide valuable insights into the practical application of AI and decision support tools in VTS operations, aiding Wärtsilä in the development of a service that is both technologically advanced and user-friendly.


The enrolled students will develop their competencies related to the study in question during this project implementation.

Daytime learning:
An independently studied part (in Canvas) supports the project implementation, but it is important to take part in project teamwork and guidance on campus according to schedule. Studying requires active participation and commitment to interactive project work. You will receive individual feedback for assignments from the teacher, and working life or peer feedback are also utilised.

Project’s guidance and working sessions can be viewed in Timetable Engine / Tuudo. Communication practices are agreed on a project-specific basis.

Attending the project days on Hyvinkää campus is MANDATORY.

Laurea reserves the right to make changes.

Quality of implementation has been evaluated and self-evaluation report is available Teams.

Learning materials and recommended literature

The source materials needed for the subject area of the project are selected separately after the project assignment.

Co-operation with working life and/or RDI

Working life partner: Wärtsilä Oyj.

Important dates

Kick-Off (mandatory participation): TBA, on Hyvinkää campus.

It is compulsory to participate in the project kickoff meeting so that everyone participating in the project will receive the information on the project task.

Project guidance is offered on a weekly basis. The student can compare the available guidance sessions in Timetable Engine and select those projects/studies that do not overlap.

According to the degree regulations (section 18): Students must be present for the first contact teaching session, or they must notify the responsible teacher of their absence to confirm they intend to participate in studies… Registration for the study unit will be rejected, if the student does not notify the teacher of being absent from the first contact teaching session or the reason for their absence cannot be considered justified.

Students workload

1 cr. = 26.7 h

Content and scheduling

Aims of the project:

The project will culminate in a comprehensive study report detailing how the focus groups would utilize the VTS system and their future expectations from such systems. The report will provide valuable insights into the practical application of AI and decision support tools in VTS operations, aiding Wärtsilä in the development of a service that is both technologically advanced and user-friendly.

Further information for students

The study unit corresponds to the requirements of Bachelor's level education.

This study implementation is a P2P project meaning that the project is completed in a small group and guided by a teacher. Participating in the project requires attendance in the project guidance meetings and group meetings.

Grading scale

H-5

Evaluation methods and criteria

“The evaluation of competence is based on the descriptions of objectives in the curricula, and the level of competence is assessed according to the evaluation criteria listed in the implementation plan for the studies.” (Laurea degree regulations).

Evaluation is discussed at the beginning of the project. In this study unit the assessing of the competences will be done by using the criteria set for requirement level II.

Professional knowledge basis, information searching and reporting

To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- analyse the acquired information, draw conclusions and combine theoretical knowledge with experiential knowledge

To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- critically evaluate information and justify their actions with science-based knowledge

To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- use professional concepts in a consistent manner and demonstrate their familiarity with the knowledge basis
- report and communicate in a professional manner

Professional practice and workplace development

To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- evaluate the applicability of produced knowledge, skill or idea to other contexts as well as their impact
- anticipate needs of customers and/or co-operation partners

To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- propose creative solutions at work
- promote professional co-operation and enhance customer and partner relationships

To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- act independently taking into account the operating environment
- take responsibility for interaction with customers and/or co-operation partners and for responding to their needs

Teamwork skills, leadership and responsibility

To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- evaluate and develop the team’s entrepreneurial and responsible approach to work
- evaluate the possibilities for utilising competence and plan their personal development and development of the team

To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- act in a manner that promotes the team’s entrepreneurial and responsible approach to work
- describe the development of their competence in relation to the learning outcomes

To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- describe the significance of their actions for successful co-operation
- describe their competence in relation to the learning outcomes

“Students who has failed to demonstrate their competence in accordance with the approved level must supplement or retake their study attainment in a manner and schedule defined by the teacher of the study unit. In project studies, students must supplement the competence missing from the project’s learning outcomes, until their competence can be evaluated as passing.” (Degree regulations.)

Further information

The project provides similar competences as study units R0216 Service Design ja Corporate Social Responsibility. Thus if you have completed this study entity you can not include the these two in your degree.