Map Norway News

NAVTOR CEO Tor Svanes is "Mr. ECDIS", at least that't the title he's been given in a new book charting his life story as well as his role in the development of maritime e-Navigation. Author Tønnes H. Gundersen details the voyage that took Svanes from electrician’s apprentice in the small town of Egersund, Southern Norway, to a globally renowned figure in this key smart shipping niche. And, Svanes is keen to add, the journey isn’t over yet.Gundersen spent more than two years researching, interviewing and writing the 300-page opus, which was launched today in both English and Norwegian versions.

E-navigation company NAVTOR has further illustrated its ambitions within the maritime sector by appointing Frode Klepsvik, the former Director of the Norwegian Hydrographic Service, to the company’s board of directors. The appointment follows on just two months after the arrival of Tor Svanes, the founder of C-MAP Norway, in the position of Managing Director. Klepsvik has a unique pedigree within the maritime sector, boasting lengthy tenures with the Royal Norwegian Navy, where he climbed to the rank of Commander, and Det Norske Veritas, where he was responsible for Classification of Ships and Certification of Automation, Navigation and Integrated Bridge Systems.

E-navigation company NAVTOR said that Tor A. Svanes, the founder of C-MAP Norway, has joined the business in the position of Managing Director. Svanes, who is well known within the maritime industry for his contribution to the development of ECDIS and the electronic chart concept, will now lead and develop the NAVTOR team and proposition. Stavanger-based Smedvig established NAVTOR in June 2011 after the firm spotted an emerging opportunity in the maritime marketplace. As carriage requirements for ENCs moved towards an official IMO mandate, Smedvig saw an opening to build up an e-navigation company that could meet the new demand for digital navigational services.

C-MAP has been appointed an Official Distributor of Electronic Navigation Charts (ENC) produced by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) Hydrographic Department. This announcement was made after C-MAP Norway signed an agreement with the MPA. The MPA has been a pioneer in the development of ENCs and is one of the few hydrographic offices that offer complete ENC coverage of national waters supported by an updating service. The waters of Singapore are subject to continual change due to weather and environmental factors. As a result, the MPA surveys the Singapore waters continually. This survey data is collected and included in its navigation chart database on a weekly basis, resulting in a uniquely updated chart database.

PHOTO: Mr. China Shipping Container Lines Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of China Shipping Group, is one of the largest Shipping companies in China. It owns a fleet of 103 container vessels with a total capacity of over 120,000 TEUs, and is operating dozens of domestic coastal and international routes from China to Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia, Europe, Mediterranean and North America. In the beginning of 2003, when the construction of their new Xin Series began, it has been decided to equip the 5600TEU vessels with Litton Sperry VMS ECDIS and 4200TEU vessels with KH ECDIS.

The Norwegian Hydrographic Service has signed a contract with C-Map Norway for electronic navigational charts (ENC) and production of paper nautical charts. This long-term plan, which aims to cover the Norwegian coast with modern sea charts by 2006, will be accomplished with data and databases coming from Norwegian Hydrographic Services so that C-Map can produce S57 Edition 3 data, ENC S57 data as outlined in the ENC product specification and data for paper chart production. The contract's main elements involve production of new charts and reconstruction of new charts - with all production carried out under the terms of the contract based on S57 data…

The SMM exhibition in Hamburg has once again proven that it is the cradle of marine technology and the grand-daddy of all marine exhibitions. On display in 12 separate halls were more than 1,300 exhibitors from more than 50 countries, launching new products and discussing business with an estimated 37,000 visitors. More telling that sheer numbers, in this case, is the feeling of the exhibition and the ubiquitous marine technology theme. The quality of attendee and exhibitor is always high, but this edition of the bi-annual exhibition seemed especially charged due to the many positives currently running throughout the full spectrum of the maritime market.

C-MAP Norway reports increased demand for the weather forecasting service developed by C-MAP Marine Forecast, a business unit of C-MAP Norway. C-MAP Norway confirmed today that Green Charter, a business unit of the Bergen-based Green Reefers, recently ordered a subscription to the WeatherViewTM service for eight vessels. According to C-MAP marketing manager Willy Zeiler, the contract is further proof that the shipping industry has recognised the value of the weather forecasting service. "We are confident that as the industry becomes familiar with the innovative functionality and customised presentation of WeatherviewTM, demand will continue to rise," he says. The order placed by Green Reefers followed extensive testing about two of the company's vessels, Green Frost and Green Ice.