Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published Sep 21, 2022 10:26 AM by The Maritime Executive

Inmarsat, the world leader in global, mobile communications, provided SEA-KIT International’s uncrewed surface vessel (USV) Maxlimer with connectivity services to transmit data and video from the site of the recent underwater volcanic eruption in Tonga. As part of an international project to assess the environmental damage caused by the eruption, the 12-metre remotely operated vessel mapped the volcano’s submerged caldera and measured local marine conditions.

In 2021, Inmarsat installed a Global Xpress antenna and Fleet LTE hardware on board Maxlimer, adding to the USV’s existing FleetBroadband antenna and allowing it to access full Fleet Xpress capabilities and seamlessly switch between networks. Following a successful pilot, SEA-KIT has signed up for a high-upload plan and the services of Inmarsat Certified Application Provider (CAP) Videosoft Global to support the vessel’s survey activities in Tonga.

Scott Middleton, Sales Director EMEA, Inmarsat Maritime, said: “This project represented a natural evolution of Inmarsat’s relationship with SEA-KIT and offered us an exciting opportunity to support an important initiative. The high-upload plan, which was tailored to Maxlimer’s data and video-transmission requirements, is now available as a general service and we anticipate more demand from uncrewed surface vessel operators in the future.”

Maxlimer used Videosoft’s streaming service, which has significant bandwidth savings when compared with conventional streaming services, to transmit live video from the site, as well as high-definition, low-latency CCTV enabling SEA-KIT to monitor the vessel’s operations remotely.

Iain Janes, Business Development Manager, Videosoft, said: “We were delighted to offer our adaptive video compression solutions and bespoke real-time transmission via a dedicated bandwidth through Inmarsat’s Fleet Connect service. This prevented interference with Maxlimer’s mission-critical operations.”

In addition to high-upload capacity, SEA-KIT benefitted from a 99.9% uptime service level agreement through Fleet Xpress, with Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Ka-band spot beams also providing significantly higher signal strength and faster transmission rates than regular wide-beam technology. A network of solutions engineers and service managers was ready to support SEA-KIT with any technical queries or issues regarding its connectivity service.                                                       Ashley Skett, Director of Operations, SEA-KIT International, said: “This is our most remote mission to date, taking place in the Pacific Ocean 16,000 kilometres from our base in Tollesbury, Essex. In these circumstances, reliability is critical from our connectivity partner. Inmarsat provides us with world-class connectivity, allowing us to control and monitor Maxlimer’s operations and access live-streamed video via a dedicated network. We will work together with Inmarsat as we continue to demonstrate the ground-breaking capabilities of our uncrewed surface vessels as a solution for safer and more sustainable maritime operations around the world.”

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

Published Sep 23, 2022 4:24 PM by The Maritime Executive

The UK reports a strong response for its first-ever carbon storage licensing round which offers up 13 areas along the coast for the emerging industry. The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) reports it received 26 bids in the three-month process that closed last week and which is likely to be the first many auctions as they seek to develop the industry to provide carbon storage. The NSTA reported it was launching the carbon storage licensing round in June in response...

Published Sep 23, 2022 3:10 PM by The Maritime Executive

MSC met the deadline set by the FMC’s administrative judge hearing the complaint of Shipping Act violations against the carrier strongly refuting the accusations that the company has not supplied information and could be subjected to a default judgment. The world’s largest carrier continues to vigorously defend its actions calling the problems the shipper experienced errors and poor communication involving no wrongdoing by MSC. Two weeks ago, Judge Erin Wirth hearing the complaint by a Pennsylvania-based furniture company against MSC...

Published Sep 23, 2022 1:42 PM by The Maritime Executive

Shanghai port officials announced plans for a massive new container terminal that will expand the region’s throughput capacity by nearly a quarter. The project which calls for more than a $7 billion investment in the port capacity in the Yangtze region comes as Shanghai is feeling increasing competition both from neighboring Chinese ports as well as Singapore which recently opened its massive new port complex. The Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) plans to develop a new container terminal in Zhejiang...

Published Sep 23, 2022 12:30 PM by The Maritime Executive

A prototype for the first commercial wing-in-ground effect vessel called a seaglider completed its first test flights. The demonstrations were carried out with a quarter-scale model in a series of flights in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, and are being called the “next great moment” in transportation by Regent a company working to commercialize the technology for regional travel. Conceptualized more than 60 years ago, the wing-in-ground effect vehicle flies low (within one wingspan) over the water to take advantage of...

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