Cir News

If the global commercial fleet reduced its speed by 10%, it would reduce underwater radiated noise by 40%, but nothing’s ever that simple.The main thing holding the shipping industry back from reducing its underwater radiated noise (URN) is not a lack of appropriate technology. It’s argued that many of the technologies being implemented today to reduce fuel consumption also reduce noise. So, the noise reductions could essentially come at no net cost to the shipowner, but there’s a lack of regulation and a lack of targeted incentives…

Digital solutions company Marlink has partnered with LEO internet operator Eutelsat OneWeb to provide digital connectivity solutions to cruise company Ponant.Ponant will deploy the Eutelsat OneWeb service on its polar exploration icebreaker Le Commandant Charcot, providing guests and crew with high throughput and low latency internet access across the vessel’s itinerary.Leveraging Marlink’s expertise in smart hybrid networks, the bandwidth delivered by Eutelsat OneWeb will enable Ponant’s seamless collaboration between the ship’s bridge, engineering crew and shore teams.

Maritime communications specialist Marlink has signed an agreement to provide hybrid network connectivity services to at least 100 ships operated by shipmanager Thome Group. The contract will guarantee that the vessels are equipped with Marlink’s high speed VSAT service as well as L-band back-up to ensure flexible guaranteed bandwidth at all times. Based in Singapore, the Thome Group provides integrated ship management services, as well as offshore management, oil and gas marine services and crewing.The company has about 200 vessels under full technical management.

Maritime satellite communications services firm Marlink is equipping Solstad Offshore vessels with Starlink connectivity integrated with the Sealink VSAT, L-band backup, and 4G services."Solstad Offshore is the first offshore vessel operator on the Marlink network to trial Starlink testing the network in harsh weather conditions. In September 2022, the company completed the migration of its fleet connectivity to Marlink, including Sealink VSAT and 4G connectivity, and is now evaluating if this should be further extended with Starlink integration…

Marlink unveiled Sealink 60, a Ku-band VSAT service for smaller merchant, offshore and fishing vessels, designed to provide flexible, regional connectivity to vessels seeking to upgrade from L-band services.“The introduction of Sealink 60 marks a further evolution of Marlink’s VSAT services, since it will exclusively cater for vessels requiring reduced antenna size and maximum flexibility in terms of coverage and throughput,” says Tore Morten Olsen, President, Maritime, Marlink.

The law governing marine insurance in the United States has long been a source of considerable confusion. And if there was once a clear set of principles applicable in such cases, the Supreme Court long ago muddied the waters with their infamous ruling in Wilburn Boat Co. v. Fireman’s Fund Ins. Co., 348 U.S. 310 (1955). That case, involving a fire on a houseboat on an inland man-made lake on the Texas-Oklahoma border, established the “litmus test” for when maritime law should…

Marlink, a smart network solutions provider, will provide a global hybrid network solution to vessels operated by Subsea 7, a subsea installation giant in the offshore energy industry space.Marlink will provide a secure hybrid network solution to Subsea 7, combining its global Sealink VSAT solution with L-band back-up, global 4G cellular services, and connection to the Tampnet network for operations in the North Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.The contract, of an undisclosed value…

Plaintiffs seeking to recover from ship managers or the vessels they operate but lacking a direct claim against a particular vessel have developed a clever strategy under U.S. maritime law. They seize a managed vessel under Supplemental Admiralty Rule B and claim the vessel-owning company is an alter ego of the defendant with whom the dispute really exists. In this way, plaintiffs can take advantage of the relatively low evidentiary bar to delve into protracted discovery to develop…

Vessel owners rarely carry cargo for their own account. More commonly by far, a vessel owner will charter its vessel to another party to carry their (or their sub-charterer’s) cargo. The contracts can vary widely – from voyage charters or contracts of affreightment to time charters to negotiable bills of lading (not to mention the more complex arrangements that one often sees for container cargos). But in most instances, vessel owners are in the business of transporting cargo on behalf of others and, all going well, of being paid to do so.

Satellite communications specialist Marlink has been awarded a contract renewal to expand its Sealink VSAT service to international ship owner Transpetrol.The provider of satellite communications services for the maritime industry claimed that the higher levels of guaranteed bandwidth ensure global connectivity for 14 strong tanker fleet.The renewal secures access to Marlink’s global network and specially-chosen business critical VSAT solutions for the entire tanker fleet and two planned new buildings due for delivery within 18 months.Operating a sophisticated and diverse fleet from medium range tankers to Aframax and Very Large Gas Carriers on global routes…

For a long time there has been a deficit of trained maritime officers in Brazil, as for decades the only accredited training institutes were run by the Brazilian Navy, where a very limited number of prospective maritime deck and engine officers could be trained at its two training institutes in the country. That's all changing now with the Institute of Nautical Sciences (ICN) leading the way.With the discovery of the pre-salt in 2007 and the continued growth of the maritime and offshore sectors, the lack of qualified Brazilian officers became acute. For many years, and even today, most offshore captains and officers are foreigners, while there is a more significant number of local captains and officers in the merchant fleet.

Antwerp based crude oil tanker company Euronav has signed a deal with Satcom Global for its Aura Ku-Band VSAT service. With Satcom Global Aura on-board, Euronav’s fleet will benefit from a global service that provides guaranteed bandwidth via a generous Committed Information Rate (CIR). The crew will experience significantly enhanced connectivity while business critical applications are supported with ease. During 2017, Euronav undertook a comprehensive series of sea trials using Aura and following excellent results decided to begin a fleet wide rollout of the service.

On the waterfront, it all depends. It is well established that workplace safety and productivity can be compromised, not just by the use of illicit substances and alcohol, but also by the use of prescription drugs. Federal law, however, imposes limits on employer inquiries in this area both with respect to the affected job classifications and the scope of the inquiry. Generally, an employer may not ask all employees what prescription medications they are taking because such an inquiry is not job-related and consistent with business necessity, according to Enforcement Guidance from the U.S.

Italian ship owner and long-term Telemar customer d’Amico Group has selected Marlink’s Sealink Premium Plus VSAT service to enhance connectivity across its fleet of over 50 product tankers and dry cargo vessels. Sealink Premium Plus provides global connectivity for d’Amico’s business and vessel operations, in addition to supporting crew welfare. With Sealink Premium Plus, the d’Amico fleet will receive a guaranteed Committed Information Rate (CIR) and completely unlimited Ku-band VSAT data in parallel to unlimited L-band back-up, for a single, fixed monthly fee.

A Marlink commissioned survey of Asian ship owners has confirmed that many shipping companies are ready to embrace the increased capacity and greater data usage enabled by maritime VSAT. Marlink initiated the survey to further deepen its understanding of the Asian markets, align its service development roadmap and ensure the specific needs of Asian customers are met with flexible, cost-effective and innovative new communication services. A key finding of the survey showed that…

Commissioner William P. Doyle Votes to reject joint contracting authority for Ro/Ro foreign carriers to negotiate collectively for U.S.-Flag tug services. Doyle's Statement, shown below, says new rules go beyond the scope of the Shipping Act and shipping practices harmful to U.S. Today, I voted to disapprove the roll-on roll-off (Ro/Ro) WLL/Eukor/ARC/Glovis Cooperative Working Agreement amendment involving Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics AS (WWL), Eukor Car Carriers Inc. (Eukor), American Roll-on Roll-off Carrier LLC (ARC), and Hyundai Glovis Co. Ltd. (Glovis) (collectively Parties). This amendment filed with the Federal Maritime Commission seeks to broaden the authority of the Parties to jointly solicit bids for contracts covering the provision of tug services…

When is bad harassment prevention training worse than no training at all? When it comes with a wagging finger shaming employees whose only sin is being a little rough around the edges. When it emboldens opportunistic employees to seek an advantage they do not deserve. When it causes managers to cravenly subordinate legitimate operational considerations to political correctness. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not mandate a general civility code. Nor does it prohibit all verbal or physical harassment in the workplace.

Hamburg-based Leonhardt & Blumberg (L&B), one of Germany’s independent charter owner of handysize containerships, has become the first customer for Marlink’s new Sealink Business VSAT service. With Sealink Business on board, L&B’s fleet will operate using guaranteed minimum bandwidth regardless of the amount of data consumed, ensuring availability for business critical applications at all times. L&B will use its new on board communication capabilities to focus on operational improvements, including more electronic document handling and collaboration between vessels and shore-based personnel. While business processes are L&B’s primary driver for using Sealink Business, the company will also be able to improve its crew communication facilities.

Marlink announced it has completed the roll-out of VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) connectivity across the entire Kuwait Oil Tanker Company (KOTC) fleet of 26 tankers, during a three month project started in March 2015. The final vessel, Mutriba, was completed and fully online by mid-June 2015. Marlink was awarded the contract to deliver VSAT to KOTC’s fleet in January 2015. With easier and more cost-effective access to data and voice communication through Marlink’s Sealink VSAT services, KOTC now is able to enhance its global logistics operations, i.e.

Rickmers Group will migrate to multiband VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) from Marlink Maritime VSAT for its fleet of 90+ vessels including containerships, bulk carriers and heavy lift vessels, in a move  that aims to improve operational efficiency through better integration of ship and shore side networks in addition to providing internet connectivity for crew welfare. High bandwidth availability on Marlink’s Ku-band ‘Plus’ maritime VSAT services will enable Rickmers to significantly enhance on board IT opportunities while introducing the possibility of live monitoring…

Marlink will provide BP Shipping with global multi-band high speed VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) services to support operational efficiency and crew communication across its tanker fleet. Under the new contract, Marlink will deliver primary communication capability on its flexible Sealink VSAT service, including MSS (Mobile Satellite System) back-up to BP’s operated fleet. BP Shipping was one of the first operators to adopt maritime VSAT services across its tanker fleet. The company’s current operated fleet will migrate to Sealink Ku-band VSAT. BP’s existing vessels will retain their C-band VSAT antennas, enabling Marlink to deliver a true multi-band broadband service with high availability of connectivity globally.

As part of a major initiative to promote hazard awareness throughout the shipping industry, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and The Standard Club have issued free safety posters to shipping companies worldwide. The release of the posters marks the final stage of a campaign by the two organisations to promote hazard awareness with a ‘Spot the Hazard’ competition for seafarers. The competition invited seafarers across the world to identify ten hazards within five typical scenes – bridge, deck, engine room, galley and port terminal. The level of engagement with the campaign was impressive. More than 1,300 entries were submitted by seafarers from 78 shipping companies, comprising a wide range of nationalities.

Egypt headquartered Maridive Group, an international offshore marine and oil support services provider, has chosen to migrate 24 of its Offshore Support Vessels to Marlink’s VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) WaveCall Plus services in addition to one new build vessel. Maridive Group has a globally distributed fleet with an operational footprint covering North & West Africa, the Mediterranean, the Caspian Sea and Latin American countries. The company selected Marlink to upgrade its vessels to VSAT in 2012, and this latest contract adds a further five vessels operating in Venezuela and Brazil, while enhancing Maridive’s communication capabilities for business, crew and safety by upgrading to WaveCall Plus.