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Stena Line providing free internet to Scandinavian passengers through Marlink
- Details
- Category: Products & services
- Published on Monday, 14 January 2013 18:53
- Written by Teijo Niemelä
Stena Line, the established ferry operator in north west Europe is using a customer-specific solution from Marlink to provide improved free Internet connectivity for passengers on seven ferries serving Norwegian, Swedish and Danish routes. The CoastalRoam solution is a specially developed addition to the Marlink Sealink customized VSAT services already in use aboard the ferries. The implementation of CoastalRoam follows a recent user trial, aboard the Stena Danica ferry, on its route between Sweden and Denmark.
Stena Line operates 20 routes with a modern fleet of 38 vessels including fast ferries (Stena HSS), traditional combi-ferries, RoPax ferries for freight and passengers, and RoRo ferries purely for freight in Scandinavia, the North Sea and the Irish Sea. The passenger vessel market is competitive so the ability to differentiate is important, hence Stena Line’s commitment to providing a high level of services on board, including Value Added Services such as free Internet connectivity for passengers.
“Our goal is to make any voyage as comfortable and convenient for passengers as we can,” explains Calle Sedelius, IT support Specialist, Stena IT. “Internet connectivity is vital in this day and age but provision of free Wi-Fi on board for hundreds of users is very hard to achieve cost-effectively. With CoastalRoam, we are able to confidently offer the service and balance the cost versus the high levels of customer satisfaction we get from it.”
CoastalRoam is specifically designed for Stena Line and integrates satellite, 3G and 4G for Norway, Sweden, Poland, Germany and Denmark. Whenever the vessels are within range, the public Internet on board switches automatically to the fastest service available, using a lower cost carrier for free passenger connectivity. 4G is also being implemented on CoastalRoam for another customer in Norway and the system is prepared for other carrier technologies such as Wi-Fi and WiMAX.
“Stena Line aims to continue the CoastalRoam roll out for more routes as fast as we can find telecom providers with good 3G and 4G coverage and competitive prices,” adds Raimo Warkki, Commercial Ship Communications & Systems at Stena IT.
“The combination of 3G antennas and Marlink Sealink customized VSAT services on board these seven ferries ensures seamless free connectivity for passengers,” says Tom Erling Hansen, Head of Sales North Europe, Marlink. “Because CoastalRoam enables automatic switching between VSAT and 3G, the system is able to find the fastest and least-cost connectivity available at any time. This makes it cost and time effective for Stena Line to offer a high value customer service for free, which helps them to stay competitive in the market.”
Free Internet for passengers is available via 3G and 4G when in range and on VSAT at other times. The Sealink customized VSAT service is used to provide highly reliable and cost-effective connectivity for vessel business critical operations in addition to supporting businesses on board Stena Line vessels.
Two German ship repairers merge to form German Dry Docks
- Details
- Category: Products & services
- Published on Monday, 14 January 2013 12:48
- Written by Kari Reinikainen
Two German ship repairers, MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven AG and Rickmers Lloyd Dockbetrieb GmbH & Co KG merge their dry dock businesses to form a new company called German Dry Docks GmbH & Co. The headquarters of the new company, employing about 100 people, is at Barkhausenstrasse 60 in Bremerhaven, the new company said in a statement.
German Dry Docks boasts four docks of its own and a further 2 large docks in co-operation with Lloyd Werft. As a result, six docks in Bremerhaven’s Kaiserhafen – of up to 38 m internal width, 335 m length and 11.5 m draught above keel blocks - are available to our customers. Our targets are increased efficiency, more flexibility, bigger dock capacities and thus better performance at fair market prices.
The management of German Dry Docks will consist of the Managing Director of Rickmers Lloyd Dockbetrieb Uwe Beck and the current Authorised Officer of MWB Ship Division Detlef Nünke. They are both successful shipbuilding engineers with many years of ship repair management experience behind them. Docking repair business at both existing locations will also continue to involve the current proven joint personnel team.
MWB Motorenwerke Bremerhaven AG under its Chairman Jürgen Gloystein and 145 specialists will continue to concentrate on its traditional business know-how in the ship drive and energy technology sectors which includes the now increasingly important areas of energy efficiency and emissions reduction.
TEAM passenger bridges for Norwegian Breakaway at Manhattan terminal
- Details
- Category: Products & services
- Published on Thursday, 22 November 2012 10:43
- Written by Kari Reinikainen
TEAM’s Passenger Boarding Bridges will provide ease of embarkation and disembarkation for the cruise guests of Norwegian Breakaway at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal.
TEAM Ports & Maritime has been awarded by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and Turner Construction Corporation a contract to design, manufacture, assemble, transport and install two HYDRA Passenger Boarding Bridges (PBBs) at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal in New York.
The PBBs will provide seamless access for cruise guests from cruise terminal building to NCL’s Breakaway and vice versa. The Norwegian Breakaway will start turnaround operations in New York as of May 2013. .
Wärtsilä wins LNG propulsion system order from Canadian ferry company
- Details
- Category: Products & services
- Published on Monday, 03 December 2012 10:19
- Written by Kari Reinikainen
Wärtsilä, the marine industry's leading solutions and services provider, has been awarded the contract to supply the gas powered propulsion machinery and corresponding gas storage and handling systems for a new passenger ferry, the company said in a statement.
The vessel has been ordered by Canadian operator Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ), and will be the first North American ferry to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG). The ship is being built by Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani in Italy and will be used on routes crossing the St. Lawrence River. The Wärtsilä contract was signed in October, 2012. The Wärtsilä equipment is due to be delivered in the autumn 2013, and the vessel is scheduled for delivery by the end of 2014.
The ferry is being built to comply with the stringent emission regulations applicable to its area of operation. With the Wärtsilä 34 dual-fuel generating sets, which will provide the main power generation, the stringent regulations will clearly be met. By operating on LNG, nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions are at least 85% below those specified in the current International Maritime Organisation (IMO) regulations, and the CO2 emissions are some 25% less than those of a conventional marine engine running on diesel fuel. The sulphur oxide (SOx) and particle emissions are negligible at almost zero percent. This level of environmental sustainability even exceeds the emission reductions mandated by the strict local regulations. The IMO has designated some U.S. and Canadian waters as an Emissions Control Area (ECA). This is in line with the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). The North American ECA became enforceable in August 2012.
Bolidt successfully tests flooring that electrocutes bacteria
- Details
- Category: Products & services
- Published on Thursday, 15 November 2012 15:43
- Written by Kari Reinikainen
Bolidt Synthetic Products & Systems and independent Dutch research organisation TNO have carried out various tests on antimicrobial flooring systems, which employ a revolutionary new bactericidal technique. The first lab experiments show great promise, Bolidt said in a statement.
“Using a bactericidal technique in a flooring system that kills bacteria by electrocution is new. Bolidt has developed a range of synthetic flooring systems for the healthcare sector that introduces this revolutionary technique. Whereas currently available antibacterial (paint) systems are based on a chemical technique to prevent the spread of multi-resistant bacteria, Bolidt systems are based on a patented mechanical AM-Inside technology,” the company said.
“Their bactericidal effect is a process, by which the bacterium is killed as soon as it comes into contact with the floor surface due to the inherent difference in electrical charge between the floor surface and the bacterium itself. As a result, the multi-resistant bacteria cannot reproduce and survive. Large contact surfaces are thus protected against the growth and spread of bacteria.”
“Since it is precisely the flooring that poses a major risk of spreading multi-resistant bacteria, this development will help hospitals and medical centres make a huge step forward in their fight against multi-resistant bacteria such as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Methicilline-resistant Staphylocuccus aureus (MRSA). The first series of lab experiments have shown that the bactericidal formula in the Bolidt flooring systems is effective against a large number of multi-resistant bacteria. In addition, the bacteria cannot become resistant. The tests and lab experiments conducted at TNO and in Bolidt’s own laboratory have reached an advanced stage, but a number of final tests remain to be done. We are also developing the same technology in our specialist hygienic wall systems for the healthcare sector”, said Commercial Director Ruud van der Sloot in the statement.
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