Swedish Sea Rescue Society News

The International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) has announced the winners of this year’s IMRF Awards, which recognize all those involved in global maritime search and rescue (SAR) efforts.The IMRF Awards acknowledge those that have shown excellence in their field, developed innovative technology and equipment, or acted as a role model to inspire others. The awards also shine a light on those colleagues who offer the tireless support, training, and planning that enables SAR crews to do what they do…

The Swedish-built Combat Boat 90 (CB 90) has established itself with military forces around the world as both a warrior and a workhorse. The 52-foot boats first entered service in 1991 as troop carriers with the Swedish Marines, which is still procuring them. There are more than 250 operating worldwide today.These rugged boats are optimized for high-speed / shallow-draft operations in and around Sweden’s many coastal islands, but they have also proven to be ideal for a variety of other applications and operating environments.The CB 90 is 52 feet long, with a draft of just 2 feet 7 inches.

Svitzer Europe announced that Mattias Hellström has taken up the role of Chief Commercial Officer from December 1, 2020, reporting to Svitzer Europe’s Managing Director, Lise Demant. Hellström has more than 25 years of experience in shipping and towage, and joined Svitzer Europe in 2014 as Managing Director for Scandinavia. His role expanded to cover Svitzer’s important operation in Germany in 2017.During his time as Cluster MD, Mattias managed Svitzer Europe’s acquisition of Port Towage Nordic and its recent expansion of line handling services in Bremerhaven and towage services in Emden…

The future is painted bright for companies dealing in hybrid and electric marine propulsion, as vessel owners and operators pursue cleaner technologies to comply with ever-stricter environmental regulations while also seeking ways to improve their bottom line.Case in point is Germany-based electric drives manufacturer Torqeedo, which has to date delivered more than 100,000 electric propulsion products for a wide range of recreational and commercial customers.The hybrid/electric market is one that’s ripe for growth, says Dr. Ralf Plieninger, COO and CTO, Torqeedo.

The Swedish Club and Stena Line have completed a major Emergency Response Training Exercise, designed to test how Stena’s own emergency procedures integrate with those of the authorities and support services in the event of a major incident. The round table exercise took place last week at the Swedish Sea Rescue Society headquarters, with over sixty expert contributors taking part. The drill, jointly planned and conducted by the Club and the Swedish Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC)…

The STM Validation project has installed the first Sea Traffic Management (STM) compatible bridge systems, connecting ships with shore based services and actors. All available functions are said to be working flawlessly, including route optimization and synchronized port calls, as well as sending and receiving route segments ship to ship. The ships equipped are Stena Germanica and two rescue units from Swedish Sea Rescue Society ( SSRS), Rescue Märta Collin and Rescue 11-00. The route message format used…

A new lifeboat station has been opened on the Greek island of Chios – with the cooperation of International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) members – to help support the rescue of migrants in the Aegean. The Lifeboat station was made possible through a partnership between Koninklijke Nederlandse Redding Maatschappij (KNRM), the maritime search and rescue service from the Netherlands, and the Hellenic Rescue Team (HRT), and with the support of the Maria Tsakos Foundation along with community leaders and local volunteers. At an event to celebrate the opening of the centre – which was completed in only three months – two lifeboat vessels donated by the KNRM, Athena and Arina to be deployed on the surrounding waters, were also christened.

The International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) is to strengthen the capacity and effectiveness of the Hellenic Rescue Team (HRT), an IMRF member organization which is constantly rescuing migrants in the Aegean Sea. The IMRF will do this with the support of European maritime search and rescue (SAR) organizations who are also IMRF members. Following a temporary drop in the number of people trying to reach the Greek islands by sea in November, figures from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) are showing an increase again.

Scania, a tradition-rich Swedish industrial company will celebrate in 2016 its 125-year in existence. Very early on in 1902, the first engines for marine applications were produced. Scania, since 2014 a 100% daughter company of VW, is a manufacturer of trucks, buses, marine and industrial engines and a true propulsion pioneer. Today the company employs approximately 42,000 employees with an annual turnover of $11 billion. The marine diesel engines of Scanua are installed in a variety of vessels…

Two high-speed boats from Sweden have joined the sea rescue effort in the Eastern Aegean, and it was GAC that coordinated their delivery to Greece. The craft were sent by the not-for-profit NGO, the Swedish Sea Rescue Society (SSRS), in response to the growing humanitarian crisis that has seen thousands of refugees attempting to cross the sea to enter Europe through the islands of Eastern Greece. According to figures from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, in July 2015 alone 50,000 new arrivals were reported, mainly to the islands of Lesvos, Chios, Kos, Samos and Leros. 2014 was the deadliest year on record, with over 3…

On June 1, a mass rescue simulation exercise using Transas Navigational simulator NTPRO 5000 took place within the International Maritime Mass Rescue Conference 2014 held by the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF). The conference was hosted by the Swedish Sea Rescue Society (SSRS). More than 100 participants gathered at simulator facilities of the Chalmers Universty of Technology (Sweden) and the Swedish Maritime Administration. Both organizations use the latest Transas navigational simulator NTPRO 5000.

FRC International launched the innovative ‘DYNAV’ dynamic navigation system for high speed craft at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden in October. The DYNAV launch event enabled attendees from Scandinavia and Europe to come together with the objective of improving seafarer safety, operational performance and interoperability on fast craft. Professional sectors organizations included Search & Rescue, Navy, Special Forces, Coast Guard, law enforcement, maritime pilots, maritime legislators, training organisation and boat builders.

A seven day Lifeboat Crew Exchange Program involving rescue volunteers from nine countries has proved to be a fulfilling training exercise for all 55 participants. With the aim of exchanging knowledge, sharing ideas and building relationships between the voluntary institutions, the project is designed to help reduce the number of people losing their lives in Europe’s waters. Instigated by the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) and the Search and Rescue (SAR) organization KNRM from the Netherlands, the program has four clear objectives.

FRC International is launching the innovative DYNAV (DYnamic NAVigation) system for high speed craft at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden, October 29-30. All individuals and organizations operating planing craft from SAR, navy, special forces, coast guard, law enforcement, renewables and the commercial sector are invited to attend the DYNAV launch event. This will be an excellent opportunity for international RIB & HSC professionals, boat builders, equipment manufacturers and industry to come together with the objective of improving sefarer safety on fast craft.

FRC International will host CSI 2013 - Crew Systems Integration conference from July 2-4, 2013 at RNLI Lifeboat College, Poole, U.K. The international conference includes over 20 presentations focusing on nine integrated topics for the RIB and high speed craft sector. Dr. Trevor Dobbins, Technical Director of FRC International, said, “The CSI concept brings together integrated topics which can improve RIB & HSC operations. Crew Systems Integration (CSI) is now a recognized requirement for many maritime organizations and CSI 2013 will cover a wide range of solutions for the professional sector.

The 49.2 ft long ship prototype Stena Airmax was named in Gothenburg. The prototype is part of a project in which an air cushion is being tested to investigate to what extent it reduces the friction between the hull and the water, thus also reducing fuel consumption and emissions of large tankers in the future. Stena will invest in the region of $6.8m in the project. Following the very good results achieved in tests with small ship models, Stena Teknik has developed this large-scale model weighing 25 tons. The same tests will now be carried out with the Stena Airmax.