Iridium GMDSS Application Reviewed by IMO
Iridium Communications Inc. today announced that its application to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for the provision of mobile satellite communications in the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) was reviewed by the IMO Subcommittee on Navigation, Communications and Search and Rescue (NCSR). The application will now proceed to the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) at its next meeting in November, before advancing to a group of experts for comprehensive technical and operational evaluation. The delegates stated support for the United States position to advance Iridium's application to the next stage for evaluation. Final approval will be up to the Maritime Safety Committee, following review of the experts' report by NCSR, which is expected by mid-2016.
Order Book Opens on New Sailor Black Box
Launched at SMM 2012, Cobham SATCOM made its new standalone Sailor Class A AIS available to order in April 2013. The Sailor 6280/81 AIS System is a black box solution with flexible installation possibilities and features contemporary touch screen operation through the new Sailor 6004 Control Panel. Designed and built to the same fundamental qualities that have made Sailor such a respected name in maritime communication, the black box design of the Sailor 6280/81 AIS System enables simple installation and operation as a standalone navigation aid or part of an Integrated Navigation System (INS). Installation is easy; just install the black box transponder wherever convenient and connect it via LAN (using the sophisticated Lightweight Ethernet protocol) to the Sailor 6004 Control Panel.
COMMUNICATIONS: Vessel Operators Stay Connected on the Go
In today's fast moving offshore service industry with vessels venturing deeper and deeper into the Gulf of Mexico and to far off oilrigs around the world, communications is more important than ever. Today's offshore service vessels need far more ship-to-ship, ship to shore and even internal ship communications than ever before. "System redundancy is the key to today's state-of-the-art marine communications system", said Karl Beier, president of Beier Radio, Harvey, La. one of the leading suppliers of maritime communications equipment. "Communications backups not only make good sense but SOLAS rules mandate separate communications systems be in place to meet the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS)", Beier added.
EuroCom Downgrades Forecast
Maritime communications equipment maker EuroCom Industries (ECI) downgraded its 1999 sales and earnings forecast last week, citing slow demand for a key product after U.S. global satellite telephone firm Iridium filed for bankruptcy protection. Issuing its second profit warning within as many months, Danish-based ECI cut its full-year turnover estimate to 580-600 million crowns ($83-85.5 million) from 630-650 million crowns. It now saw break-even on the bottom line, down from a 20-25 million crown profit forecast. By comparison, in January-June, ECI's pre-tax profit more than doubled to 47.7 million crowns. The major problem is that…
