FURUNO Opens UAE, Italy Training Centers

FURUNO NavSkills network of training centers has been expanded with a further two locations in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates and Mola di Bari, Italy.

In the UAE, it is FURUNO’s long-term exclusive distributor IMTECH MARINE/Radio Holland Middle East, who has set up a training facility in the building where they have their principal operation, in the emirate of Sharjah. IMTECH/RHME is currently the only NavSkills center in the Middle East.

The vision of IMTECH/RHME in the field of training is to offer its customers a full package solution, covering equipment sales, installation, service and operator training. The location is in one of the primary hubs of the tanker industry and it is foreseen that the possibility of offering training in connection with crew changes can be a great benefit to the tanker industry. The fact that other shipping segments are growing in the area will only support the efforts and provide further opportunities.

Starting its operation in October 2013, IMTECH/RHME training center is able to provide training on both the FEA-2X07 and FMD-3200/3300 ECDIS models, with a capacity of 4 simultaneous FEA-trainees and 2 FMD-trainees.

In Italy, FURUNO is happy to have the training center THESI CONSULTING becoming a part of the NavSkills network.

Located in the city of Mola di Bari on the Adriatic coast THESI is a family operated training center that has come to establish itself as one of the prime training facilities in Italy, building on many years of seagoing experience by its founder and owner.

THESI has offered a wide range of accredited maritime courses for many years, a list that is now augmented by the accreditation from FURUNO, becoming a part of the NavSkills network of training centers.

THESI has set up a FURUNO ECDIS training solution with 4 FEA-2X07 and 2 FMD-3200/3300 trainee workstations, identical to the one in the UAE.

The NavSkills network is founded on the principle that the ship operator, in order to obtain the most benefit from having its navigators trained, can find a training center that offers  type specific training on a FURUNO ECDIS, identically delivered worldwide both in contents and instructions, close to where the navigators are sourced from. This will most likely bridge any possible language barriers and provide for a knowledge level of the bridge team.

All the training material is in English, while the benefit of having a trained instructor speaking your native language will allow for question and answers to be conducted in native language. This fact will most likely elevate the individual navigator’s competence to a completely new level, making him more capable of performing his duties.

With FURUNO’ own two INS Training Centers and the 10 NavSkills network training centers, FURUNO type specific ECDIS training can now be found in locations almost all around the world: Copenhagen, Singapore, Hamburg, Athens, Istanbul, Manila, Mumbai, Shanghai, Odessa, Shajah and Mola di Bari.

FURUNO said it is committed to continue the quest of further expansion of the network with new centers in new locations. Within a very short time frame, the NavSkills training center network can welcome PIVOT Maritime, Australia, into the “family”.