BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana officials on Monday announced a new “smart port” project aimed at using technology to make dredging and operations decisions around New Orleans’s port.

The Water Institute of the Gulf research organization will install data sensors on tugboats and other vessels navigating the Port of New Orleans’ district, to detect sediment levels in shallow parts of the Mississippi River that will inform dredging decisions.

The port is putting up $125,000 for the work.

Louisiana’s economic development department is seeking federal funds for a planned second phase that will digitally connect dock terminals, shipping lines, warehouses and cargo operators through a unified command at the New Orleans port and on the Water Institute’s campus.

Gov. John Bel Edwards said the project “will serve as a model for the future of maritime commerce.”

The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Peter Gaynor, attended the port announcement Monday with the Democratic governor, after a meeting about hurricane preparedness at the state’s homeland security office.