A new generation of younger shipowners is full of ideas of how to nourish Germany’s shipping cluster.

Representatives of five well-known shipping families expres­sed their intention to grow their businesses, while displaying a far keener interest in technological trends and ecological concerns than their parents’ generation.

An airing of themes at the TradeWinds Shipowners Forum at SMM in Hamburg last week showed that asset play and consolidation remain high on the agenda for this younger generation.