Communications Platform News

Realizing the full value of digital solutions far exceeds the capability of technology. The technology exists today to help offshore energy and maritime operators radically improve efficiency and cut costs in equal measure. The real trick to driving efficiencies is to take advantage of the latest technologies while at the same time negotiating the necessary culture change within individual organizations, to really reap the benefits.Harvest Technology Group is a relatively young and small Australian company that has caught the attention of a number of offshore and subsea industry heavyweights…

An ailing mariner was medevaced from a bulk carrier near Cold Bay, Alaska, the U.S. Coast Guard said.At approximately 1 p.m. on Wednesday, the 17th District Command Center watchstanders received a call from the Alaska Maritime Agency in Dutch Harbor reporting the 42-year-old crew member was suffering from a possible stroke aboard the bulk carrier Restinga, 140 miles south of Dutch Harbor.At 2:01 p.m., an aircrew aboard a C-130J Super Hercules aircraft launched from Air Station Kodiak to respond to the incident. At 2:54 p.m., a Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew, forward-deployed to Cold Bay, also launched to respond, while the Marshall Islands-flagged vessel made its way closer to Cold Bay.Both Coast Guard assets arrived on scene at approximately 4:30 p.m.

An ailing crew member was medevaced from a U.S.-flagged tug Patriarch on Tuesday, approximately 207 miles of east Turks and Caicos, and 287 miles north of Puerto Rico, the U.S Coast Guard said.The Crowley-owned Patriarch was en route from Jacksonville, Fla. to San Juan, Puerto Rico when the vessel's master contacted Coast Guard Seventh District command to request a medevac for a 59-year-old man on board who was suffering from medical complications and needed higher level medical…

A 67-year-old man adrift for several weeks on board a disabled sailboat was rescued hundreds of miles miles off the coast of Alaska with help from a 984-foot containership and the U.S. Coast Guard.At approximately 9:00 a.m. Thursday, Coast Guard District 17 command center watchstanders received a distress alert from the sailing vessel Miss Lilly, in which the man aboard reported his vessel to be disabled and adrift roughly 500 nautical miles south-southwest of Dutch Harbor, and…

For Marine Technology Reporter's (MTR) 14th Annual "MTR100" - a look at 100 innovators and technologies in the subsea space - MTR editor-at-large Elaine Maslin reports on five companies and technologies that are worth the watch for the remainder of 2019 and beyond. For the full edition, see https://magazines.marinelink.com/nwm/MarineTechnology/201907/Blue Logic: Entering a new eraCompletely new modes of operation are entering the underwater domain for oil and gas operations and…

US-owned renewable energy company Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) announced that the Company's PB3 PowerBuoy deployed in the Adriatic Sea has produced more than one MegaWatt-hour (MWh) cumulative energy to date. The cost-effective ocean energy solutions provider said that the PowerBuoy has been deployed for six months, operating continuously and error-free while being controlled remotely from OPT’s NJ facility.George H. Kirby, OPT’s President and Chief Executive Officer said, “We are excited to announce this major power generation milestone for our PB3 PowerBuoy deployed in the Adriatic Sea. Since the contract began in March of last year…

Iridium Communications Inc. announced today that KDDI Corporation, Navarino and NSSLGlobal Ltd., are the newest Iridium Certus service providers for the maritime industry. Iridium Certus will offer a L-band satellite broadband connectivity solution.With higher speeds, state-of-the-art small form factor terminals and competitive pricing options, Iridium Certus will offer a complete communications platform for all mariners and can serve as a primary service or VSAT companion solution.

Over the past year, 29,646 seagoing vessels entered the port of Rotterdam, up more than 600 from 2016's 29,022. The number of incidents in the port fell from 159 to 129, and included one ‘serious accident’ involving an inland vessel that went adrift after hitting a groyne with its rudder. According to National Harbour Master René de Vries, the decrease in the number of minor incidents can be explained by the Port Authority’s investments in infrastructure in recent years: “Thanks to the new buoy configurations and dolphins, there were considerably fewer minor bollard-ship collisions and fewer barges went adrift due to bad weather,” he said. Efficiency in inspections continued to increase further in 2017, according to the port.

Dubai-based Topaz Energy and Marine has signed an agreement with Orange Business Services for a Maritime Connect solution that connects its fleet at sea and supports the corporate network. Topaz is an offshore support vessel company for the global energy industry. The Orange integrated communications platform increases the efficiency of the fleet, lowers cost and improves the onboard experience for crew. Under a three-year agreement Orange is initially connecting 39 vessels from the Topaz fleet…

Orbit Communications Systems Ltd., a provider of precision tracking-based communications solutions and airborne communications management systems, announced that a global NGSO (Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit) satellite operator placed a repeat order worth $645,000 for its OceanTRx 7-500 Ka-band maritime satellite communications platform. Delivery of the system, which will provide continuous broadband connectivity via satellite aboard cruise ships, is expected in 2017. “We put a lot into our relationships and deals like this prove it,” commented Eitan Livneh, Orbit’s CEO. OceanTRx 7 is a maritime satcom platform supporting a variety of 2.2-meter stabilized antenna system configurations in C, Ku, X and Ka bands.

Satellite communications services provider Inmarsat said it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), establishing a relationship to leverage the ‘smart ship’ connectivity offered by Fleet Xpress at the vessel construction stage. The agreement envisages the South Korean yard installing Inmarsat-approved terminal hardware and offering applications to cover remote machinery diagnostics and CCTV services, to leverage the satellite communications platform’s capabilities from the moment the ship is delivered.

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) has announced that the upcoming Iridium NEXT launch has been targeted for September 30, 2017 at 6:30 a.m. PDT. This launch will deliver another 10 Iridium NEXT satellites to orbit on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and will bring the total number of Iridium NEXT satellites deployed to 30. SpaceX selected the September 30th launch date based on rocket and Vandenberg Air Force Base range availability. SpaceX’s targeted launch schedule accommodates completion of the Iridium NEXT constellation as planned in mid-2018.

Iridium Communications Inc. announced that two key milestones along the path to becoming the second recognized provider of Global Maritime Distress Safety System (GMDSS) services have been reached. During its 98th session this past June, the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) adopted new performance standards for GMDSS equipment and approved amendments to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Treaty, which pave the way for Iridium to become a recognized GMDSS service provider. Now, the key remaining step in the approval process is an IMO resolution recognizing Iridium as a certified GMDSS mobile satellite service provider. Iridium expects this will be completed during calendar year 2018, with Iridium GMDSS service to begin in 2020.

Marlink has launched XChange Telemed, a new telemedicine service designed to improve the health and safety of crew and passengers at sea, while meeting new ILO/MLC and IMO/STCW labor regulations for health and medical treatment on board. XChange Telemed provides a cost-effective way for shipping companies to manage both regular and emergency medical consultations for the welfare of crew and passengers, thereby supporting the medical health of seafarers and reducing the risk of spiraling costs incurred due to medical emergencies on board.

SpeedCast International Limited (SpeedCast), a global satellite telecommunications service provider, announced that it has been awarded a multi-year communications contract by international shipping company, Vroon. The new Ku-band satellite service will facilitate high-performance broadband connectivity with multi-megabit speeds, providing “hotel experience” Internet facilities for Vroon clients aboard specific categories of vessels. These include subsea-support vessels (10-25 passengers)…

Marine Atlantic Inc. (MAI) selected Imtech Marine Canada to replace its ship to shore wireless communication system. Given a short timeframe, installation took place in just three weeks. Owned by the Canadian government, Marine Atlantic Inc. operates four of the largest ferries in North America and sails between the Provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia on a daily basis. In the government tender for the contract Marine Atlantic Inc. requested a ‘reliable, up-to-date and scalable ship to shore communications platform.

Maritime Broadband has expanded its worldwide footprint by opening an office, Maritime Broadband Hellas, in Athens, Greece. The new office addresses the growing international demand for its C-Bird VSAT communications solution and spearheads sales and service support in the region. Maritime Broadband Hellas, which is headed by Managing Director, Thanasis Giamas, employs a four-person staff fluent in English, Greek and French to serve the most prolific shipping companies throughout Europe and the world via its global channel partners.

The maritime industry is at a crossroads, with a dearth of next-generation talent willing and available for a life at sea, yet increasing demands for efficiency and clarity of operations. At this crossroads lies modern communication technology, the connective tissue that can help to cure many of the industry’s ills, as Frank Coles, President of Inmarsat Maritime, contends. Commercial shipping will always remain a pivotal link in the global transport chain, but the very nature…

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) has today departed the dry dock at Puget Sound Naval Shipyards and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF) . The event marked the conclusion of the 9-month dry dock portion of Stennis’ Docking Planned Incremental Availability (DPIA) maintenance period. “This milestone is a big win, not just for the Stennis and PSNS & IMF team, but also for the Navy,” said Stennis’ commanding officer, Capt. Michael Wettlaufer. To date, Stennis and PSNS & IMF personnel completed more than 11,000 critical repair jobs including the restoration of Stennis’ multi-ton propellers, shafts and rudders, as well as refurbishing all four aircraft catapults.

Airbus Defence and Space has launched XChange v3, the latest evolution of its XChange communications platform, which is set to further improve the flow of operational data between ship and shore through sophisticated voice and connectivity service management. XChange is an all-in-one solution to manage communications services in an easy and intuitive way. It gives more control with less operational overhead while on board administrative tasks can also be out-sourced to onshore offices.

Vessel tracking and asset/document management software, used by hundreds of U.S. commercial workboat and fishing customers,  is now available internationally for integration into existing partner applications. McMurdo Group, a company in end-to-end search and rescue (SAR) and maritime domain awareness (MDA) solutions, has announced that its fleet management software platform is now available worldwide for partners to integrate into their existing maritime applications and solutions. The McMurdo Group software platform, the most widely used vessel tracking and fleet management software in the U.S. commercial maritime market, will be demonstrated at the V-Tracks Vessel Tracking and Monitoring Conference in London (Radisson Blu Portman Hotel) February 27-28.

MARIS and Orange Business Servicesa sign agreement to facilitate integrated and digital maritime navigation services. Maritime technology specialist MARIS and Orange Business Services have formalized an agreement to deliver Electronic Chart Display Information Systems (ECDIS) and maritime digital services directly to navigators via the world’s largest, fully-managed Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network. Through the solution Current At Sea, the MARIS/Orange Business Services partnership unlocks the full potential of integrated, paperless maritime navigation and vessel operations management by basing it on the most up-to-date digital chart information available.

German ship operator Hartmann Reederei chose Marlink to supply standardized Ku-band VSAT services to a diversified fleet of 74 vessels for an initial three-year duration. Hartmann Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. KG is headquartered in Leer, and encompasses the entire value-added chain of shipping, covering all activities in the maritime transport and logistics sector, as well as those in the shipping market. Upgrading its existing Inmarsat E&E services, Hartmann sought a new communications platform to cater for its most important needs: improve the crew retention…